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A large crowd gathered on Friday morning for a long-awaited ribbon cutting. After two years since the initial announcement of coming to Bainbridge, A-1 Industries (formerly A-1 Roof Trusses) held their grand opening ceremony. After a prayer led by county commissioner Dennis Brinson, company president and CEO John Herring attended and spoke at the ceremony. “I can’t tell you how much it means to me, I might get a little emotional here, seeing my family over here and my family over there,” Herring said. Herring described how the company was founded 45 years ago, and how his goal was for A-1 to be a “100-year company”.

“Our mission is to use technology to change the way America builds homes,” he said. “What you see here today is just a skeleton of what this will be in the future.”

Herring reiterated the company’s promise and commitment to employing 130 people, with 55 employed so far. “What I’m gonna tell you is we’re gonna see you all grow, we’re gonna give you the tools you need, we’re gonna give you the education and the training, and we’re gonna give you everything it takes to make you the best of the best, individually, and in this industry.”

A1’s revenue is projected to surpass $100 million in revenue this year, and the Bainbridge facility is expected to eventually employ close to 400 people. “You know by opening this facility, we’re doing in the first four months, what it took me 20 years to get to a long time ago,” he said. Herring concluded his speech by thanking both the state of Georgia, as well as all the city and county government officials present, in addition to Decatur County airport and those that helped build the facility.