AGY produces glass fiber used in aircraft, surfboards, handheld electronic devices
May 9—The glass fiber produced at AGY Holding Corp.'s plant on Wagener Road in Aiken can be found in aircrafts, automobile exhaust and ignition systems, surfboards and electronic handheld devices, just to name a few.
At the facility, "we have 1.4 million square feet under roof where we manufacture" and approximately 700 employees, AGY President and CEO Al Ridilla told the Rotary Club of Aiken on Monday at Newberry Hall.
"We take 30 to 40 million pounds of sand and convert it into roughly 300 million miles of glass fiber," he said. "About 94% of what we make, by weight, is sourced domestically. We're an American company. ... The only place we source outside the country is Turkey because Turkey supplies certain things."
AGY sells its glass fiber in a twisted form as yarn and a non-twisted form that is known as roving.
"From Aiken we're shipping product throughout the world," Ridilla said. "Last year, roughly 50% of our sales were domestic, 25% were to Europe and about 24% were to Asia."
AGY has around 200 customers for its glass fiber.
"One of the most remarkable things that probably isn't publicized is that the site [on Wagener Road] ... has reduced its carbon footprint nearly 90% over the last 12 years," Ridilla said. "AGY and the team has really been making the business a green business."
Ridilla expects the current year to be a good one for the company.
"When we look at 2023 for AGY, for Aiken and for all of our employees, we expect to hire more, we expect to keep who we have, we expect the business to grow," he said.
