Industry demand drives new SNF Floerger facility
SNF Floerger is a producer of acrylamide monomer and polyacrylamide powders and emulsions. Polyacrylamides are water-soluble polymers that are commonly used to assist in removing impurities from water and in wastewater treatment applications. SNF products also are used to improve the extraction, efficiency, and overall water quality in the oil and mining markets. A privately-held French company, SNF Floerger is a leading supplier of water-soluble polymers, and its products are frequently used in municipal, industrial and wastewater treatment customers.
In 2008, company leadership began exploring locations in the U.S. for a new production site for its oil and gas market products. The facility was to be built to increase SNF’s production capacity and keep up with a growing demand. LED representatives reached out to SNF to identify a location in Louisiana for the company’s new facility. Partnering with Iberville Parish and the Iberville Chamber of Commerce, LED ultimately helped the company identify a 1,000-acre site available to accommodate the scope of SNF’s new production facility.
Though the company had not yet make a final decision on purchasing the site, LED and its partners remained hard at work compiling several solutions to support SNF. LED prepared to offer the company support for infrastructure upgrades at the selected site, like funding for a rail spur. Additionally, LED and its partners worked with the state Department of Environmental Quality to facility the necessary approvals through Louisiana’s expedited environmental permitting process.
SNF picks Louisiana, begins construction and employee recruitment
In June 2009, SNF formally announced that it had selected the Louisiana site in the town of Plaquemine, Louisiana to build its new facility, committing a capital investment of $350 million for the production plant that operates under the name Flopam Inc. SNF qualified for Louisiana's Industrial Tax Exemption and the Quality Jobs program. LED provided the company with the services of LED FastStart® — the No. 1 workforce program in the nation — to provide recruiting screening and training for SNF's new employees.
The company quickly made use of FastStart's services, which helped to fill available positions. As part of this process, FastStart worked closely with SNF to conduct a job fair, drawing more than 1,500 applicants. From there, screened applicants attended a one-day, pre-hire training session. This session helped the SNF team determine which candidates best suited the needs of the company. FastStart also provided SNF with operations training manuals, safety training manuals, quality training and supervisor leader training to ensure the company's staff was well-equipped to meet the demand for enhanced oil recovery components. By 2011, the company celebrated hiring its 100th employee at the site.
Success at Louisiana Site Warrants Reinvestment by SNF
SNF continued to invest in its Plaquemine site, which is the largest site by acreage in the SNF global portfolio. By 2019, SNF directly employed 390 people at the Plaquemine facility.
Nine years after breaking ground on the Plaquemine facility, SNF leaders announced that the company would make another major capital investment in the facility. SNF announced it would invest $375 million to expand at the Louisiana site. The company committed to retaining the 390 jobs already in place and adding 150 positions at the site.
“Since 2011, SNF has invested heavily in our Plaquemine, Louisiana, site and we continue to expand each year. Plaquemine is a strategic location for SNF globally and is driven by the availability of quality labor, access to key raw materials, proximity to our growing oil and gas markets, and favorable parish and state business climates. We are pleased with our choice to invest and grow with Louisiana.”
- John Pittman, President, SNF Holding Company
With the expansion, the company announced it was expanding its polyacrylamide production capacity, adding additional polyacrylamide powder and emulsion lines, one additional acrylamide monomer production line, and new purification equipment. Additionally, the company is making use of the available acreage at its largest site, and is developing infrastructure and logistics capabilities to support the increased manufacturing capacity at the site.