Ecore International says it plans to invest $25.5 million to open a regional manufacturing facility in Ozark, Alabama. The privately held flooring and surface company based in Pennsylvania is the largest converter of reclaimed rubber in North America, and its largest raw material is scrap truck tires.
As part of the project, Ecore says it is purchasing an existing building in Ozark, which it will equip to reclaim the rubber from used truck tires and use the rubber to manufacture flooring and surfacing products.
The company says it is partnering with the city of Ozark, Dale County and the State of Alabama to establish the manufacturing and recycling facility. In 2021, the company says it upcycled over 100 million pounds of truck tires — equivalent to approximately one million truck tires destined for landfills or illegal dumps — into manufactured products shipped nationally and internationally.
According to Ecore, markets for more products include nursing homes, hotels, fitness centers, recreation centers, retailers and schools.