Daniel Defense hosted a ribbon-cutting to celebrate the official grand opening of its new, state-of-the-art facility in Black Creek, Georgia.
More than 200 guests included local and state dignitaries, first responders, business owners, members of the community and the entire Daniel Defense workforce. The celebration included tours of the new facility along with remarks from Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal, Chairman Noah Covington of the Development Authority of Bryan County, and owners Marty and Cindy Daniel. Daniel Defense is located in north Bryan County in south-central Georgia near Savannah.
Deal spoke on the excitement surrounding the expansion in addition to addressing the growth of industry within the entire state of Georgia.
“I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Marty and Cindy Daniel for quite some time now,” Deal said. “Theirs is a family indicative of so many of Georgia’s values: hard work, perseverance in the face of difficulties, generous, and strong character.”
Deal said Daniel Defense is just one of many companies that have found great success in doing business with Georgia.
The new Daniel Defense facility spans 300,000 square feet and offers room for growth. (Photo: Daniel Defense)
“One of the milestones I’m most proud of for this state is that we have been named ‘No. 1 for Business’ in the nation five consecutive times," he said. "That’s a coveted distinction that we aim to keep, but it can sometimes mean different things to different people. When we say No. 1 for business, some people might assume that we’re only referring to “big” business or to the Metro Atlanta area. But small, quality businesses like Daniel Defense right here in Black Creek, make up the bulk of all employers in this state.”
“In fact, of the more than 700,000 registered businesses in Georgia, 99.8 percent are categorized as a small business, meaning they have fewer than 500 employees," Deal added. "If that’s not impressive enough, consider this: 94.1 percent of Georgia businesses employ fewer than 50 individuals! And 75.8 percent employ fewer than 10.”
Daniel Defense is Hiring
With a current workforce of more than 200 employees, Daniel Defense is one of the largest employers in Bryan County. It is currently hiring to meet growing market demands. The company’s new 300,000-square-foot manufacturing facility will be able to accommodate the growing production and sales demand while also offering room for further expansion and improvement.
Chairman Noah Covington of the Development Authority of Bryan County also noted the company’s substantial growth in his remarks to the crowd.
“We have enjoyed watching Daniel Defense grow since they originally located in Bryan County in 2009,” Covington said. “We are honored that they chose to consolidate all of their operations into a new, state-of-the-art facility in Interstate Centre here in Bryan County. The quality jobs that are created and the capital investment that is made through projects such as this reverberate throughout the entire community, and we look forward to continuing to work with Daniel Defense to help them grow for many years to come.”
Daniel Defense President and CEO Marty Daniel closed the ceremony with a reflection on the past 17 years and the rapid growth that was experienced during that short period of time.
“You see the beautiful new building here, and you must think that we’re accomplishing a lot of great things,” he said. “But what’s really most important about this new facility is that we have all of our employees in one place. This was such a necessary step, and we’re really excited about that. We were out of space, and our workforce spanned across two neighboring states. Now we’re in one location, and we have room to grow. This was a huge step that we needed to take to be ready for the opportunities that our market has given us. We have the potential to triple our revenue in this new location.”
Daniel closed the ceremony by thanking every person in attendance, and those who couldn’t make it, for their substantial involvement.
“Many of our employees, friends, customers, and vendors that were a part of our journey are here with us celebrating today," he said. "There are so many people who have been beside us this entire time helping us to get to where we are today. And for that, we will always be grateful."
