Spartanburg, SC, Mar. 25--The U.S. textile industry may be down, but nowhere near out, at least for companies like Milliken & Co, according to the Greenville News.
Founded the year the Civil War ended, the company is known globally for its innovation and commitment to quality--the same attributes seen in Roger Milliken, its chairman and grandson of founder Seth Milliken.
Earlier this year, a new line of medical nurses' scrubs made of Milliken's StainSmart fabric reached market. The fabric "not only repels stains but resists them," said David Kirkpatrick, director of sales for Milliken Uniform Fabrics division.
In late 2002, the company created a stir in the auto industry with a new fabric, both waterproof and stain-resistant, for seat covers. Introduced in the 2003 Honda Element, the fabric can be cleaned with a hose.
The company has been researching soil-release characteristics for more than 30 years, spokesman Richard Dillard says.
Last summer, another company division unveiled Elasto-guard, rubber compounds imbued with antimicrobial properties to prevent the growth of bacteria, fungi and yeasts in industrial processes in the food, medical and pharmaceutical industries.
The company holds more than 1,800 patents--82 issued in 2002.
Started in Portland, Maine, as a woolens manufacturer, today Milliken & Co. is one of the world's largest privately held textile and chemical makers. It has more than 14,000 employees in 65 facilities worldwide working with more than 38,000 products.
This year, Fortune ranked Milliken as the 16th best company in the nation for which to work. The company and its principal routinely show up on other lists.
In 1989, Milliken & Co. won the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. Eight years later, the South Carolina Quality Forum inaugurated the "Roger Milliken Medal of Quality."
Roger Milliken, who will turn 89 in October, annually makes Forbes magazine's list of the world's richest people.
Born in New York City, he was educated at the Groton School and Yale University. He became company president in 1947 upon the death of his father, Gerrish, and its chairman and chief executive officer in 1983.
Considered the dean of the domestic textile industry, Milliken is the recipient of 12 honorary doctorate degrees from universities throughout America and of dozens of industry and civic awards, including membership in the American Textile History Museum's Hall of Fame, South Carolina Hall of Fame and South Carolina Business Hall of Fame.
