On September 24, U.S. Nonwovens Corp. announced that it has completed Phase II of its $32 million North American Capacity Expansion and Modernization Program. This phase resulted in the completion of 500,000 square feet for manufacturing and distribution space. Investments targeted state-of-the-art fully automated blending, converting & robotic packaging lines and molds representing virtually all consumer packaging formats in the market.

The company has also upgraded the output of its nonwoven line at its Brentwood Mill location. All USN upgrades are steeped in sophisticated plant-level control and automation systems. Soft cost investments included federal, state, and local regulatory compliance and permits; ERP/QMS/WMS/IT system upgrades;100% wind energy consumption in selected facilities; training; and increases in research and development on innovations in new formulas, nonwovens, packaging and end products, along with the associated IP.

Phase III of this expansion program is larger in scope and already underway. The completion of Phase III will further increase USN’s annual capacity and skill sets, ensuring the company’s commitment to satisfy future customer demand, as well as unpredictable Surge Demand.

“Our ability to satisfy customer demand across the retail and institutional markets, with the unforeseen 3X surge for disinfecting products as a result of last year’s H1N1 Swine Flu outbreak is a testament to our commitment of having Open Surge Capacity available for our customers,” said Robert Stein, company spokesman.