Governor McDonnell Announces Trinity Packaging Corporation Expansion in Town of Rocky Mount

RICHMOND - Governor Bob McDonnell today announced that Trinity Packaging Corporation will make a multi-million dollar investment to expand capacity at its operation in the town of Rocky Mount in Franklin County. The project will create 25 new jobs and save 75 jobs. Virginia successfully competed against North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah and Wisconsin for the project.

Speaking about today’s announcement, Governor McDonnell said, “Trinity Packaging Corporation is thriving in Rocky Mount due to the excellent workforce and solid infrastructure that meet their needs. This expansion project was highly competitive, and not only will we keep 75 jobs in the region, Trinity will add 25 new jobs. The company’s film production and printing technology are good examples of the strength of Virginia’s advanced manufacturing sector.”

“I am delighted that Trinity Packaging Corporation has decided to expand their operations in Franklin County,” said Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling. “I enjoyed working with them throughout this process. Trinity Packaging has been a valued corporate citizen of our state for some time, but the decision to expand their plant in Rocky Mount shows their long term commitment to Virginia. The leadership of Trinity Packaging knows that Virginia is a great place to do business, and their decision to expand their operations in Franklin County will preserve jobs that could have been lost to another locality, create new jobs and needed capital investment in this community.”

Headquartered in Armonk, New York, Trinity Packaging was founded in 1917 as Trinity Bag and Paper Company. In 1979, Trinity entered into the plastics market and throughout the 1990s expanded its plastics product offerings to include retail store bags, mailing envelopes, food service bags and lawn and garden bags. Trinity is now widely considered a leader in innovation and plastic products for the entire North American market.

"Our people are our greatest asset and the work ethic of people in the Rocky Mount area is outstanding" said Dan Mills Trinity V.P. of Operations. "We were very pleased with the responsiveness of officials from Franklin County, the Town of Rocky Mount, the Roanoke Regional Partnership and the Commonwealth of Virginia as they worked to help us make the expansion happen here."

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with Franklin County, the Town of Rocky Mount and the Roanoke Regional Partnership to secure the project for Virginia. Governor McDonnell approved a $100,000 grant from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund to assist with the project. The Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission approved $100,000 in Tobacco Region Opportunity Funds for the project. The company is eligible to receive rail access funding from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation. The Virginia Department of Business Assistance will provide training assistance through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program.

“Trinity Packaging’s success with its Rocky Mount facility helped drive the decision to expand here,” said Charles Wagner, chairman of the Franklin County Board of Supervisors. “In these tough economic times, adding jobs has never been more important. But Trinity Packaging’s decision is also a testament to the excellent business climate in Franklin County and the Commonwealth.”

“The Town of Rocky Mount is committed to working with our existing businesses to help them expand,” said Mayor Steve Angle. “We are pleased that Trinity has put an idle building back into service, demonstrating what we can do with the private sector when we partner to develop employment opportunities.”

The Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission provided funding to assist Trinity Packaging in this expansion project. David Cundiff, member of the Tobacco Commission, commented that “It is a great honor to provide the citizens of Franklin County with the much needed funding to create and to sustain jobs in the county.”