A manufacturer of recycled content products is spending $8.9 million to expand its manufacturing capacity in Georgetown Township and add 40-plus jobs.

Cellulose Material Solutions (CMS) — a sister company of Nu-Wool Co. and based in Jenison since 2006 — said Tuesday, Oct. 12, it recently broke ground on a 54,000-square-foot warehouse and manufacturing expansion and 12,000-square-foot office space extension that will help CMS grow its operations and create over 40 new jobs in the area.

All phases of the manufacturing expansion project are scheduled to be completed in December, with products rolling off the new line by January 2022.

“This additional manufacturing line will triple the manufacturing output of CMS, allowing us to manufacture more products with high recycled content — specifically packaging materials that are used to replace EPS coolers and other nonrecyclable products,” said Matt Henderson, vice president of CMS.

CMS creates a variety of products, ranging from thermal packaging materials to acoustical panels to building insulation. Many of the products are comprised of at least 80% recycled content and can be recycled again at the end of their use.

Committed to a circular economy and turning waste into recycled content products, CMS currently processes around 8 million pounds of recycled materials each year.

After the expansion, CMS will be able to process 24 million pounds of recycled materials annually into products that contain 80% or more recycled content. Most of the material used in the CMS manufacturing process is recycled paper and recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic fibers.

“Currently, CMS processes an average of 350,000 pounds of recycled PET fibers each month, which is equivalent to approximately 12 million plastic water bottles,” Henderson said. “With the new line, we will triple this capacity, utilizing the equivalent of 36 million water bottles — a much better result than having those bottles enter landfills or waterways.”

Working with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Lakeshore Advantage and Georgetown Township, CMS has secured a combination of tax abatements and workforce training funds to support the project.

“We are delighted to bring additional jobs and financial support to benefit the economic health and quality of life of the West Michigan area,” Henderson said. “In addition, we are using as many local contractors and products as we can to complete this expansion.”

Hudsonville-based Miedema Metal Building Systems is the contractor on the project.