AdvantageLumber.com (Buffalo, N.Y.) purchased one of the largest warehouse and production spaces for wood products in Brazil, which will allow the company to manufacture hardwood flooring and other wood products.
The company expects to manufacture 3 million square feet of hardwood flooring and 14 million square feet of decking, deck tiles and cabinet-grade lumber annually from the 130,000-square-foot factory after it is retooled with European machinery, according to a statement.
The purchase will allow Advantage Lumber to offer better selection, quality and volume pricing, it said.
Ownership over the plant will give Advantage Lumber full oversight to comply with Lacey Act tree species regulations, and the company intends to achieve Forest Stewardship Council certification for the operation.
That facility will employ 140 workers. The company said they will be paid well while working in a factory upgraded to U.S. and European safety standards.
“If the company can afford it, then just do it. The results are quickly seen in the product quality and on the faces of the employees working in the factory,” said Robert Pelc, company founder, in a statement. “It is pretty amazing that even though we are not a huge Fortune 500 company, we still have the ability to instantly help change the lives of a struggling community.”
