Gwinnett Daily Post

WINDER - A manufacturing firm will move its custom metal fabrication operations to Toccoa after 26 years in Winder.

Mathew Marty, owner of CMC of Georgia Inc., announced recently the upcoming move should allow the company to more than double its productivity and employee base.

CMC makes custom cabs for off-road vehicles, fabricates metal parts and does custom welding.

Marty's grandfather, an engineer, opened the company in 1910 in Chicago as the Chicago Manufacturing Co. The company moved to Winder in 1981 with 10 to 15 employees, Marty said, and has since outgrown its 40,000-square-foot South Beulah Street building.

"We considered staying in Winder but could not find an existing facility to move into that would fit our needs, and expansion was too expensive," Marty said. "We found a facility in Toccoa that had been used for heavy welding and fabrication. It has been vacant for four years."

CMC will invest $7 million in equipment and upgrades to the 120,000-square-foot building on U.S. Highway 123 in Toccoa, according to Marty.

The company employs 30 to 40 individuals in Winder. Marty expects to double the business within two years in Toccoa.

"We hope our employees will go with us," Marty said.

Workers will start moving some of the operation in August, and the move should be complete in November.

"We believe there is a lot of opportunity in our business," Marty said. "We think there is an able work force in Stephens County that allows us to expand."

The Barrow County Chamber of Commerce reminds its long-standing member that there will always be a spot for them in Barrow County.

"We are happy for them and we wish them the best in their expansion," said Linda Moore, vice president of economic development. "And they should always be aware that the welcome mat is out in Barrow County."