WastAway to expand operations to Coffee Co.
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“We’ve purchased 21 acres, and we have an option to purchase something like 14 more acres,” said Wade Sparkman, WastAway’s vice president of sales. “And we’re going to build a 90,000-square-foot building in their new industrial park to house the WastAway process there.”
Though WastAway’s price, at $40 per ton, was significantly higher than the other two bidders, Coffee County decided to go with the company due to some of the inherent advantages of the process.
“They voted to add an additional $50,000 to their solid waste budget just to go with WastAway,” Sparkman said. “They also passed another resolution putting up money to match a TIIP grant, which amounts to $80,000, to run water and sewer back to where we’re going to build.”
Coffee County’s previous contract was with BFI, and though BFI’s bid was lower than WastAway’s, Sparkman said the commission gave several reasons for deciding to go with the WastAway process.
“Employment was number one,” Sparkman said, noting the plant will provide around 12 to 15 jobs to start, but with the possibility the company could build an extrusion plant in Coffee County which could amount to another 200 to 250 jobs.
Sparkman said Warren County will benefit from the new facility as well.
“All the equipment will be manufactured in Warren County,” he said, noting this would provide a significant amount of business locally.
The recycling figures offered by the process was also a big factor, according to Sparkman.
“Coffee County is very recycling conscious,” Sparkman said, “and they’re wanting the 95 percent recycling. They’ve never been able to meet their goal, so the 95 percent is a big thing for them.”
Sparkman said the company plans to begin operations in Coffee County in January of 2004, and will be the first business to be located in the new industrial park which is a joint venture between Manchester and Tullahoma.
Coffee County officials and commissioners made several trips to the WastAway plant here before deciding to go with the WastAway process, and found it impressive enough that the county’s 21 commissioners voted unanimously to utilize it for Coffee County’s solid waste.
“I’m pretty excited about it,” said Coffee County Executive Ray Johnson. “This will actually be the second one, since you have one in McMinnville, but we’re going to try to do everything we can to locate them here and look forward to working with them.”
Johnson said he was personally impressed with the process and its potential.
“I’ve been up there twice and have seen the process. It’s sort of a no-brainer for helping our county, our state and the country as far as solid waste disposal,” Johnson said. “Hopefully it will be the answer for recycling all the way across the country.”
Sparkman indicated the Coffee County facility is just the first of many expansions planned for the Warren County-based business.