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Picanol of America moves, changes name
Greenville, SC -

In conjunction with Picanol of America’s move to a new location here recently, its name was changed to GTP Greenville. The name was changed to reflect the parent company’s ‘Global Textile Partner’ (GTP) concept, which it introduced in 2001 to embody its new customer-oriented organisation based on business units. The purpose of the GTP business unit, which is 100 per cent owned by Picanol N V but independently managed, is to act as a global service company by working closely with the customer at the local level throughout the entire textile industry.

“In the future we want to offer a broad range of products and solutions that respond to the textile manufacturers’ needs,” said James Thomas, president of GTP Greenville.

GTP is primarily active in the weaving segment, but the long-term objective is to open it to the entire textile industry. While in its present start-up phase GTP is mainly linked to Picanol, it plans to work with other OEMs in the future.

GTP Greenville moved to 1801 Rutherford Road here, the location of its recent acquisition, Steel Heddle, Inc. “This move gives us the additional space we need to provide the range of services and products our customers deserve and expect for the future,” Thomas said.

The first step in GTP’s roll-out came at the beginning of the year when Picanol acquired the textile division of Steel Heddle and Verbrugge N V of Roesclare, Belgium, both producers of accessories for textile machinery. At the end of April, the joint venture Frecomm (90 per cent GTP, 10 per cent Ferber) was established in Milan, Italy. Ferber is active in the areas of transport and logistic systems for the textile sector.

In May, for the benefit of GTP, Picanol acquired the Mexican company Articulos Metalicos Pegaso S A, a leading local reed manufacturer. About 160 employees are being transferred from Picanol to GTP.