Alpharetta, Ga.—With its new North American laminate manufacturing plant and distribution center nearing completion in Barnwell, S.C., Kronotex USA has announced the core members of its team to run the facility. Sam Green, Kronotex’ director of U.S. sales, said the company’s parent, KronoGroup Switzerland, is committed to expanding its North American operations and this facility is a key component.

Not only will the Barnwell campus house a fully modernized laminate flooring manufacturing plant, it will act as the company’s eastern distribution center, joining the ones it already has in Savannah, Ga., and Houston. Currently, products Kronotex markets and sells in North America—laminate flooring, OSB and melamine laminated particleboard—are manufactured in Germany and France, meaning the U.S. operation will become an integral part of the the company’s worldwide strategy. Green said when choosing the members of the facility’s team, the company had to make sure it hired top quality people because “we employ sophisticated technology to develop trend-setting solutions for our customers.”

With that, Steve Russell will serve as plant manager. He was previously group manager of manufacturing for Georgia Pacific. Julia Dickinson was named purchasing manager. She comes to Kronotex from Dixie-Narco where she was materials manager. Jeffery Martin comes over in the same capacity he had from the American LaFrance and Sterling Trucks divisions of Freightliner—human resources manager. Finally, Richard Nash, Robert Scruggs, Stephen Mason, Tony Bunch, Brian Owens and Roger Sprinkle have each been named a team leader within the facility. Team leaders oversee specific areas of the operations, including maintenance, electrical, laminating, etc. For more information on Kronotex, call 678/513-5699. —Matthew Spieler