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Uans-Hillis Amco News
Adams-Millis Plant
Barnwell, S.C.
May, 1994
Barnwell Operation Moves Ahead
It was late in 1992 that
today’s Adams-Millis Barnwell
Plant was a mere “four walls
and an echo.” A little more
than a year later it is on its way
to becoming the largest sock
manufacturing facility in the
world. It is expected to achieve
that status sometime during
1994.
“We’ve come a long way
sincewe beganouroperations
here,” said Plant Manager Dan
Bulman. “Our employees have
worked extremely hard to
make this operation work and
work well.”
“The employees have re
sponded very well,” said Di
rector of Manufacturing
Dennis Hodges. “They have
been very positive in getting
production to the point it is
today. And they have done it
even though they had no prior
experience in making socks.”
When the plant began
operations February 25,1993,
there were 50 employees. Fifty
knitting machines were put into
operation in the beginning with
others brought on line soon
afterward.
There are now 400 knitting
machines in operation and
more than 425 employees. In
the beginning the plant was
knitting about 1,200 dozens a
week. The plant now knits
more than 130,000 dozens and
finishes nearly 90,000 dozens
weekly.
The plant’s first seaming
line with six seaming and six
boarding machines went on
line March 15,1993 as did the
dyehouse and packaging ar
eas. The new tunnel washing
operation began two weeks
later.
Everything has not been
totally smooth in the first year
of operation, according to
Bulman.
“Starting a new plant is the
hardest thing I have ever done
in manufacturing,” he said.
The startup operation si
multaneously incorporated
construction, installingequip-
ment and employee training.
Construction involved al
CEO Reflect Si
Barnwell Output
A Tremendous
Achievement
In Short Time
When Adams-Millis began
two years ago looking for a lo
cation for a new manufactur
ing facility, the former Burl
ington Industries carpet yarn
plant made the list of possi
bilities. A six-month search
ended with the decision to
purchase the Barnwell facility
in October 1992.
Since then a lot of work by
many people throughout
Adams-Millis has turned the
facility into what ranks among
the top five largest sock manu
facturing facilities in the world.
Production is expected to in
crease this year to move it neck
and neck with Mount Airy as
the leading sock manufactur
ing facility in the country.
“Since we began produc
tion just over a year ago, we’ve
asked a lot of the people in
Barnwell and they are work
ing very hard to deliver every
thing we ask,” said Adams-
Millis CEO Rich Noll. “To
day they are routinely produc-
terations of the 650-foot long
building that contains some
250,000 square feet of space.
It was built in 1968 by the E.T.
Barwick Company as a carpet
(Continued on Page 2)
Ready
To Go
Chabela Wash
ington prepares to
place a six pack of
Hanes white ath
letic socks into a
box ready for ship
ping from the
Barnwell Plant.
Washington has
worked at the
plant since May
1993.
ing more than 100,000 dozens
a week. That’s a tremendous
achievement in that amount
of time.”
Expansion plans for
(Continued on Page 2)
Framed
Seamer
A series of pneumatic
tubes on a seaming ma
chine form a frame for
Linda Broughton, a
seamer at the Barnwell
plant. She joined Adams-
Millis in August.