Freudenberg Household Products Opens New North American Headquarters with State-of-the-Art Green Facility
AURORA, Ill., Sept. 17 /PRNewswire/ — To underscore its commitment to sustainability, Freudenberg Household Products (FHP) has developed its new North American Headquarters in conjunction with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), to build a facility that is an environmentally responsible, healthy place to work. Officially opening today, the company designed and constructed the state-of-the-art facility using the USGBC Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System. FHP plans to join a short list of warehouse, distribution and manufacturing buildings in the Chicago area that are LEED certified – the nationally accepted benchmark for design, construction, and operation of high performance buildings.
FHP expects to receive LEED certification on the $25 million facility in early 2010. The certification recognizes FHP’s dedication to promoting all five areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
FHP is a division of the Freudenberg Group headquartered in Weinheim, Germany. The company’s Household Products Division is a leading international manufacturer of branded household cloths, mechanical cleaning products (mops and brooms) and laundry care products. It is best known in America for its O-Cedar brand and worldwide for its Vileda brand.
“The Aurora facility was designed to set a positive example of Freudenberg’s commitment to the environment and to making greener choices in our business decisions,” said Klaus-Peter Meier, Global President and CEO, Freudenberg Household Products, KG and spokesman for the Management Board. “Making housework easier and delivering superior services to our customers has been our highest priority since the launch of the first Vileda product in 1948. At Freudenberg, sustainability means bringing our ecological, social and economic values to life every day. For example, our Naturals product line offers household cleaning products made out of recycled materials.”
The new Aurora facility positively impacts the local economy, bringing about 375 associates to the area within the first year – including several who have elected to transfer from the company’s Northlake and Melrose Park (Illinois) facilities, which will no longer be operational. In addition to administrative offices, the facility houses manufacturing and distribution operations for the company’s range of household products.
“We are extremely proud of our new green headquarters in Aurora and the work we’ve done to achieve the goals outlined by the LEED rating system,” said Tim Molek, General Manager and CEO of Freudenberg Household Products U.S. “We have a long-term view on innovation and value – which together with our sustainability strategy – makes us the partner of choice for our retailers and the preferred brand for our consumers.”
A market leader, the FHP O-Cedar brand is the most recognized and trusted name in the cleaning tools category. Top customers include Wal-Mart, Costco, Target, Kmart, Ace Hardware and Walgreen’s.
About the Freudenberg Group
Freudenberg is a family business that offers its customers sophisticated technical products and service solutions. The Freudenberg Group is primarily a supplier of components with focus on seals and vibration control technology, nonwoven materials, lubricants, mechatronics and household cleaning products.
The Group employs more than 34,500 people in 53 countries and recorded sales of 5.3 billion euros in 2007. Visit our web site at www.freudenberg.com for more detailed information about Freudenberg.
About Freudenberg Household Products
Freudenberg Household Products is a leading international manufacturer of branded goods including household cloths, cleaning products and laundry care products, and is the leader in virtually all markets in which it competes. The business recorded sales of nearly $1 billion in 2008 with about 2,300 employees globally. Freudenberg Household Products is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Freudenberg Group.
For additional information, please visit us at http://www.o-cedar.com
SOURCE Freudenberg Household Products