GO-JO Industries Expands in North Carolina with Help from Abbott Laboratories

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Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). GO-JO Industries (Akron, Ohio) is investing $10 million to construct a new hand sanitizer plant in Laurinburg, North Carolina (Plant 1062372). Construction on the plant, which commenced in October 2003, includes modifying an existing 190,000 square foot production building and 110,000 square foot warehouse. New production, packaging and bottling line equipment will also be installed. The new plant is expected to be operational by January 2005, employing 250 and manufacturing the hand sanitizer Purell.

The prestigious health care company Abbott Laboratories Incorporated (NYSE: ABT) (Abbott Park, Illinois) formally occupied the 300,000 square foot plant. Abbot closed the plant in June 2002 and had donated the plant to the non-profit Scotland Development Corporation in Laurinburg, North Carolina. Shortly thereafter, the county went looking for a new suitor.

GO-JO's prompting factors in accepting the former Abbot plant was not only because of its tip top condition, but of the existing clean rooms, which are necessary when producing the waterless Purell hand sanitizer. These factors will enable GO-JO to minimize investment costs for new production and reduce the time involved with getting this new plant up and running.

GO-JO Industries, Headquartered in Akron, Ohio produces and provides waterless hand sanitizer products used in the health-care, food services and automotive industries just to name a few. The privately held company was founded in 1946 and was created by Jerome Lippman a rubber plant worker during World War II. His determination and drive to develop a soap to remove tough stains without water, led him to Kent State University Professor who with him developed a product they came to call GO-JO.