ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 16, 1996 TAG: 9602160083
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CLINTON, N.C.
SOURCE: Associated Press
SINCE A SWISS CORPORATION chose a small town in farm country for a new factory in 1989, its investment in education and training has paid off for itself and the community.
Colander Johnson was barely making ends meet in 1989 with her weekly paycheck as a seamstress at a small sewing plant.
She wanted a new job, but few opportunities came her way near her home in Clinton, a town of 7,500 east of Fayetteville in the heart of North Carolina hog country.
Six years later, a lot has changed for Johnson. At 41, she now works as a technician for Schindler Escalator Corp. in Clinton, a plant that has opened many doors for residents of this mostly agricultural community.
``I had no idea I'd be doing something like this,'' she said at the 100,000-square-foot factory. ``I finally have a chance to use my brains.''
Five years ago, the Ebikon, Switzerland-based Schindler Group was looking for a U.S. site for a new plant. Its criteria included a location near a major East Coast seaport and interstate highways.
After hesitating, the company, which is one of the world's leading makers of escalators and elevators, chose Clinton from a list of 100 communities in eight states.
Then the hard part began.
Many residents of this rural community were functionally illiterate or involved in incompatible industries, with few applicable technical skills, said human resources director Jim Carrier.
``These are hard-working people - a lot of them have worked the land or worked in other tough jobs, like meat-packing plants or textiles,'' Carrier said. ``We had to make a heavy commitment to training.''
Schindler brought in some of its best welders and other skilled workers from Europe to train the new employees.
The company also offered incentives for employees to gain skills and improve performance. It set up apprenticeships and, with a nearby community college, trained new workers.
Most recently, Schindler donated equipment to a high school to give students an early start if they wanted to work for the company.
The results were far beyond what the company had expected.
With a $20 million investment in 1989, the company projected full production capacity at 350 units per year. But that jumped to 500 escalators in 1994.
Escalators manufactured in Clinton have been installed in the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas, the Mall of America in Minneapolis, the Guadalajara Metro in Mexico and Calgary Airport in Canada.
Each day, more than 100 million passengers ride on escalators that were made in Clinton.
``The plant's rated capacity today is 50 percent higher than original projections because the productivity of the work force has come along so fast,'' said David J. Bauhs, chief executive officer of Schindler Elevator.
The Clinton factory, which makes more escalators than any other U.S. plant, was named to Industry Week magazine's list of 25 finalists in the 1995 competition for ``America's Best Plants.''
John Williams, 33, said that Schindler has helped get him on a career track. After bouncing from job to job, he came to Schindler and is in a four-year apprenticeship program, learning to become an expert mechanic welder.
``I don't know of any other place in Sampson County where you can get the opportunities I'm getting with Schindler,'' he said.
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. ``I finally have a chance to use my brains,''by CNBSchindler Elevator Corp. technician Colander Johnson says after her
training and experience at the Clinton, N.C., factory. color. 2.
Industry Week magazine named Schindler's Clinton, N.C., factory a
finalist in the 1995 competition for ``America's Best Plants.'' The
factory makes more escalators than any other in the United States,
exceeding its owner's expectations.