Ashley executives and local government officials cut the ribbon on the Chapel Hill center.

Ashley Furniture Industries has completed the first phase in the development of its Chapel Hill Advanced Technology Center and is close to completing expansion of its Plant 4 manufacturing and distribution facility.

The Chapel Hill center is located in a former hospital and chapel that was first built in 1948 by Sisters of the Franciscan order and members of the community here. The company finished the remodeling of the top two floors of the 82,000-square-foot building and is in the process of remodeling the first floor. When the project is completed in the spring of 2017, the center will house Ashley’s design and information technology teams, along with other office staff.

“Due to the historic nature of this building and its tie to the community, we took every precaution to preserve its original exterior,” said Ashley Furniture CEO Todd Wanek. “We did our best to maintain some interior elements while updating it in function and design to create an inspiring workplace for our associates to meet our future business needs. This dedication is really a tribute to the four sisters who devoted their life to this facility.”

At the dedication ceremony for the center on Monday—which was attended by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, city officials, community leaders and Ashley executives—the company also said it is near the completion of the 155,000-square-foot expansion of its Plant 4 manufacturing and distribution facility. The project, undertaken because of the continued growth in demand for the company’s case goods and upholstery products,involves the addition of 36 loading docks and is slated to be fully complete on Nov. 1.

(Source: hfndigital.com  Author: David Gill)