Oct 5 2005
LG Chem, Ltd has announced that it will open its first U.S manufacturing facility, LG Chem Industrial Materials, in Gordon County, Georgia.
The new facility will produce LG HI-MACS, which is an artificial acrylic solid surface, mainly applied to bathroom and kitchen counter tops.
The company invested a total of USD 40 million into the facility. The specification of the HI-MACS, which LG CIM will start to produce, is 760mm(width) x 3680mm(length) and the thickness will range from 6mm to 12mm. The annual production capacity will be 300,000 sheets.
Georgia was strategically selected as the most suitable location due to its stable supply of raw materials, low labor cost, and fast delivery. Other advantageous are logistics, and reduction in import tax. Furthermore, the enthusiasm and support from the State of Georgia was one of the major attractions for the investment.
"Not only will the project hold a great significance for our company but also it will be beneficial to the State of Georgia as well. This is truly a win-win situation," said President and CEO of LG Chem, No Ki-Ho, during his commemoration speech on 3rd October 2005.
"This marks a great significance for LG Chem as it will be the first manufacturing facility in the North America," added the CEO.
Overall, the global markets size for acrylic solid surface in 2004 was KRW 1.2 trillion. Out of the total global market size, LG Chem's market share was 14% and the company plans to increase its market share to 20% by 2008.
LG Chem will be the first chemical company in Korea to launch a manufacturing facility in North America.
http://www.lg.co.kr/