Sandpaper manufacturer to expand in Va. Beach

Hermes Abrasives USA, the U.S. subsidiary of Hamburg, Germany-based Hermes Abrasives, will invest $5.6 million in a Virginia Beach expansion that will add an estimated 30 jobs, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Wednesday.

Hermes Abrasives manufactures coated and bonded abrasives and grinding tools. The company will return its narrow belt production line to its Virginia Beach facility, which moved to Mexico in 2019, and will add new manufacturing assembly lines and machinery to improve efficiency and output, Hermes Abrasives North America President Brad Sorgen told Virginia Business. The transfer of work from Mexico to Virginia will be complete by the end of September, he added.

Virginia competed with Mexico for the project. Hermes Abrasives USA has had a Virginia Beach facility since 1981, and it manufactures 60% of Hermes’ product portfolio at that location, its U.S. headquarters. It is also the flagship facility for the company’s industrial-scale sandpaper product, primarily used in the automotive and woodworking industries.

“Hermes Abrasives has demonstrated a 40-plus year commitment to Virginia, and the return of its belt production line from Mexico to Virginia Beach sends a clear message that the commonwealth has the right combination of assets for manufacturers to locate and grow,” Youngkin said in a statement. “Hampton Roads offers the skilled workforce, logistics advantage and business climate that international leaders like Hermes need to thrive, and we look forward to their continued success in the commonwealth.”

Sorgen said the positions being added include operators, assembly technicians and associated administrative staff to manage growing business operations at Hermes’ North American headquarters. The company has a manufacturing or sales presence with major offices in Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Germany, Singapore, China, Mexico and Virginia.

“Hermes Abrasives has proudly called southeastern Virginia home for over 40 years. Though we have grown and changed with the times, we are excited about the potential expansion and development that we have planned over the next five years,” Sorgen said in a statement. “With nearly $6 million in planned capital investment, Hermes is looking to increase its overall manufacturing footprint to better service its hundreds of customers throughout North America.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the City of Virginia Beach and the Hampton Roads Alliance to secure the project for Virginia and will support Hermes Abrasives’ job creation through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program, which provides consulting and funding to companies creating jobs to support employee recruitment and training activities.