China tile firm plans US facility

A Chinese tilemaker is set to bring hundreds of new jobs to the Nashville, Tennessee, area.

Dongguan City-based Wonderful Group has agreed to invest $150 million in a production facility in the city of Lebanon.

It's the largest capital investment by a Chinese company in Tennessee's history, according to Randy Boyd, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.

"We are pleased and proud to invest in the city of Lebanon and Middle Tennessee," Wonderful Group CEO Jianping Huang said Tuesday. "With our US-based management team, we will expand our existing broad manufacturing footprint internationally to produce high quality porcelain tile."

"We appreciate the support we've received from the state, county and city and look forward to bringing more jobs to Tennessee," Jianping added.

The project, Wonderful Group's first in the US, will create 220 new jobs, the company said. Construction on a 500,000-square-foot plot is already underway and the plant is expected to be operational by late 2016.

Wonderful Group made the announcement in a news release on Tuesday.

Tennessee Gov Bill Haslam said he was grateful that the Chinese ceramics firm had chosen his state as the site for its first operation in the US.

"Tennessee competes on a global level and when a company decides to expand its business here it speaks volumes to our business-friendly environment and skilled workforce," Haslam said.

"Companies can choose to do business anywhere in the world, and today's announcement is another step toward making Tennessee the No 1 location in the southeast for high quality jobs," he added.

Boyd called it "great news" for the entire state. "Tennessee will be home to Wonderful Group's first manufacturing facility in the country," he said. "I look forward to building a strong relationship with the company in the years to come."

jackfreifelder@chinadailyusa.com

(China Daily USA 11/06/2015 page2)