American Air Filter International (AAF) unveiled its new “cleanroom” Thursday.
AAF CEO Peter Kurto was among the speakers at the event that announced 24 new jobs would be created with the opening of the cleanroom.
Kurto said they chose Columbia as the site of the project over multiple locations across the country.
“We looked at all of our facilities across the U.S. and we chose Columbia because of the local support, the local workforce and, frankly, the work ethic in Columbia,” he said.
Kurto also said AAF is looking to expand production of its new, cutting-edge airfilter, called Impress, and Columbia is on the list of potential sites. That expansion would create additional jobs for the area.
The cleanroom keeps the air from being contaminated by bugs or particles and functions as the production center for AAF’s high-end filters. The filters will be used by pharmaceutical companies, hospitals and nuclear power plants around the world.
[KOMU]