Caesarstone Opens New Plant To Serve Demand In The U.S.

Caesarstone Sdot-Yam Ltd CSTE has finally come to the United States. On Wednesday, the countertop maker unveiled its third manufacturing plant, its first in the U.S. "North America, and mainly the United States, is our fastest-growing market nowadays," said Caesarstone CEO Yosef Shiran, speaking from the factory in Richmond Hills, Georgia. "Committed to serving our customer and demand for our products, with this new plant we are entering a new phase where capacity is less of a constraint to our business. Manufacturing of products in the U.S. will allow us to serve our customers even quicker." The company also has plants in Kibbutz Sdot-Yam in central Israel and Bar-Lev Industrial Park in northern Israel. The expansion in the U.S. is warranted: the company has seen sales growth of 500 percent over the last five years in the U.S, and Shiran said Caesarstone is "just scratching the surface." Caesarstone achieved worldwide sales of $450 million in 2014. Over the last 52 weeks, it stock has risen more than 20 percent. The company has a market cap of about $2.1 billion. The Factory Michal Oron, Vice President - Business Development, General Counsel, told Benzinga that in the beginning, this factory "should serve North American markets, and of course it has the potential in the future to serve other geographies, but the idea now is to serve the North American market." The countertop maker, famous for its manufacturing of quartz for its products, looked at 75 locations in the U.S. before deciding on Richmond Hills. The city was chosen in part for its access to global port in nearby Savannah, as well as close proximity to interstates and highways. About $130 million was invested into the plant, which by the end of the year will have two fixed-production lines that manufacture products. The company has five lines in its Israeli plants. Oron said there is room right next to the U.S. plant when the time comes for further expansion. Quartz Quartz is the fastest-growing countertop service in the markets. Quartz is the most varied of all minerals and is the second-most abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust. Caesarstone says it is the original quartz surface manufacturer. Shiran said it brings the look of marble and other natural stones, but with the durability of Caesarstone. "It doesn't crack, stain or scratch," he said. "As widely acknowledged by consumers, the most important tool in the kitchen today is not a toll at all; it is your countertop. That is why people want to have Caesarstone, built to last." "Thank you for taking the kitchen, and the services worldwide, to a new era," Shiran concluded.