Ecore to invest $25.5M in manufacturing, recycling facility in Alabama

Ecore International, a Lancaster, Pennsylvania-based rubber recycling company, has announced plans to invest $25.5 million to open a manufacturing and recycling facility in Ozark, Alabama, where it will produce flooring and surfacing products from reclaimed rubber from used truck tires.

As part of the project, Ecore says it is purchasing an existing building in Ozark and will add 84 new full-time jobs in the city.

“Since its inception, Ecore has transformed over 2 billion pounds of rubber waste into surfaces that make people’s lives better,” CEO Art Dodge says. “All Ecore manufacturing facilities are certified zero waste, amplifying the company’s commitment to environmental stewardship.”

Ecore’s Lancaster and York, Pennsylvania, manufacturing facilities were certified in November last year from Underwriters Laboratories after completing 2020 Zero Waste to Landfill audits. The audit credited a landfill diversion rate of 99 percent in Lancaster and 100 percent in York, with both sites achieving 22 percent waste diversion tied to energy recovery.

The company says it is the largest converter of reclaimed rubber in North America, with its largest raw material being scrap truck tires. In 2021, it recycled more than 100 million pounds of truck tires into products for markets like nursing homes, fitness centers, recreation centers and schools.

“Ecore is a champion of sustainability, with a primary goal of creating products that improve lives and the environment,” Alabama Department of Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield says. “Its new tire recycling and manufacturing facility in Dale County will help this impressive company extend its mission while also providing good-paying jobs for citizens.”