Company relocating HQ to Danville, Pittsylvania

BGF Industries Inc. will invest $7 million to relocate its corporate headquarters and R&D operation from North Carolina to Danville and Pittsylvania County.

BGF is a U.S. manufacturer of high-performance technical fiber materials for global markets.

BGF plans to build a 25,000-square-foot facility in 2019 in the Danville-Pittsylvania County Regional Industrial Facility-owned Cyber Park. The building is planned to be used as a headquarters and a research and development facility.

Public dollars were used to attract BGF’s investment.

Gov. Ralph Northam approved a $275,000 grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund to assist Danville and Pittsylvania with the project, according to a press release. The state’s Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission approved $620,000 in Tobacco Region Opportunity Funds for the project.

BGF is eligible to get state benefits from the Virginia Enterprise Zone Program as well as sales and use tax exemptions on manufacturing equipment. Funding and services to support the company’s employee training activities will be provided through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program.

BGF has a history that dates back decades.

The company formerly operated as Burlington Glass Fabrics and was one of the first weavers of fiberglass textiles in 1941, according to a press release. In 1988, it became the subsidiary of a French company. Today, the company has sales over $150 million and has developed more than 35 patents. BGF has manufacturing facilities in Virginia and South Carolina and 800 employees.