LG Chem Industrial Materials Incorporated (Calhoun, Georgia), a subsidiary of LG Group (Korea), recently began civil site construction for a nearly $50 million plant to be located on a 35-acre site in Calhoun, Georgia. This new plant will produce acrylic chemicals and intermediates used in the production of consumer plastic and polymer products when it becomes operational in the early summer of 2005.
LG Group's own corporate engineering group in Korea completed most of the process design and engineering. Dean Oliver International (Tucker, Georgia) was hired earlier this year to provide A&E services and assemble the major bid packages for this project. LG Chem awarded a general construction contract to Fox & Bindle Construction Company Incorporated (Calhoun, Georgia) for the approximately 150,000-square-foot building this plant will occupy. A second large general construction contract will be awarded within the next several weeks for major portions of the mechanical and equipment installation phases of this project, with construction planned to begin later this year.
LG Group has been an aggressive growth-oriented company throughout Asia for several years, and this will be the company's first North American plant. Over the last four years, Industrialinfo.com has reported 23 major capital projects planned by LG Group throughout Asia, with a total investment value (TIV) of $2.5 billion. Seven of those projects are expected to begin construction next year and represent a TIV of $1.5 billion.