Top Polymer Enterprise recently announced plans to construct its first U.S. manufacturing facility in Social Circle, Georgia. The town of roughly 4,400 is about 45 miles east of Atlanta. The new, $15 million 60,000-square-foot facility is expected to create at least 70 jobs. The company makes thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), which is a compound that combines the properties of rubber and plastic.
The company’s products are used primarily in automobiles and home appliances. It exports to more than 30 countries from its two current production facilities in Dongguan City and Liyang City, China. Top Polymer officials cited the combination of a highly skilled workforce, logistics infrastructure, and low cost of doing business as principal reasons for coming to Georgia. The Georgia Department of Economic Development also played a pivotal role by providing resources for exploring the expansion.
Georgia has been successful in luring a number of manufacturers to the Peach State with tax incentives that include:
- The Job Tax Credit that provides up to $4,000 in annual tax savings per job for up to five years.
- Investment Tax Credits that help Georgia businesses grow by making it more affordable to expand and improve facilities. Manufacturers that have operated in Georgia for at least three years are eligible to earn investment tax credits for upgrades or expansions in the amount of one to eight percent of qualified capital investments of $50,000 or more.
- Foreign-Trade Zone programs that allow qualified companies to decrease, defer, or eliminate duties on materials that are imported but used in products assembled in Georgia.