Southern Champion Tray To Invest Nearly $85M In Tennessee Expansion

The paperboard packaging manufacturer will create more than 120 new jobs at a new manufacturing facility in Chattanooga, TN.

Southern Champion Tray (SCT) will expand its Chattanooga, TN operations by investing $84.9 million in a new manufacturing facility located in the Centre South Riverport Industrial Park. SCT’s purchase of the property is subject to the completion of due diligence which is expected to be complete by early first quarter of 2021.

As part of the expansion, SCT will create more than 120 new jobs in Hamilton County over the next five years.

Southern Champion Tray
(Photo: Southern Champion Tray)

“We at Southern Champion Tray are extremely appreciative of Mayor Coppinger, the Chattanooga Chamber, Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development along with TVA, for the support in our company’s growth,” said Brian Hunt, Chief Operations Officer, Southern Champion Tray. “This is a vote of confidence for every current SCT employee, as well as the 120 new employees that we will be adding. After 93 years of continuous growth, we are excited to build another facility to support many more years of serving customers with Great Packaging and Distinctive Service.”

The new manufacturing facility will convert paperboard into packaging products. Construction will begin in early 2021 and is expected to be complete by early 2022. In addition to this building, SCT will maintain three other facilities in Chattanooga.

SCT manufactures and distributes paperboard packaging products including food sleeves, trays, window boxes, cupcake inserts and others. More recently, the company has created a new tamper-evident packaging system for use by restaurants and food delivery services. The Guarantab®, dubbed “Fort Knox in a box,” securely locks the container so that customers will know their food has not been disturbed during the delivery process.

Headquartered in Chattanooga, SCT is a third generation, family-owned company. SCT employs more than 750 people and produces over 500 stock products for customers in the foodservice and baking industries. In addition, the company provides custom packaging solutions for customers across a number of industries.

“Tennessee’s economy will continue to rebound because companies continue to invest and create jobs in our state,” said Gov. Bill Lee. “Southern Champion Tray’s expansion will provide a boost to Hamilton County and surrounding areas, and I appreciate the company for choosing to grow in Tennessee.”

“Southern Champion Tray is a Hamilton County legacy company,” said Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger. “I’m thrilled about their decision to expand into Centre South Riverport Industrial Park, bringing over 120 jobs and over $80 million in investment. Southern Champion Tray’s expansion and investment will contribute to Hamilton County’s growth for years to come.”

Since 2015, Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNEDC) has supported 45 economic development projects in Hamilton County, resulting in approximately 6,700 job commitments and $1.8 billion in capital investment.

“Products manufactured at Southern Champion Tray’s Chattanooga operations can be found in homes and businesses across the country,” said TNECD Commissioner Bob Rolfe. “We are proud of the success this family-owned company has seen over the years and thank them for providing the citizens of Hamilton County with quality job opportunities.”

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