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ECONOMY Jeld-Wen reaffirms its commitment to Klamath Falls Company has 1,000 employees in Klamath area, 2,000 in Oregon Comment By Holly Dillemuth Herald and News MailTribune.com By Holly Dillemuth Herald and News Posted Oct. 25, 2015 at 12:01 AM By Holly Dillemuth Herald and News Posted Oct. 25, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News KLAMATH FALLS — Although the administrative headquarters of Jeld-Wen moved to Charlotte, N.C., the company’s CEO and President Kirk Hachigian said Klamath Falls remains the “nucleus” of the $3.5 billion company. The window and door manufacturer, initially owned and operated by the late Richard “Dick” Wendt and later purchased by Canadian investment firm Onex, sells products in 20 countries. Despite the company’s reach, Hachigian expressed a deep commitment to the company’s roots in Klamath Falls. “We’re not leaving Klamath Falls,” Hachigian said. In a wide-ranging interview with the Herald and News on Wednesday, Hachigian made clear the company’s intentions to keep much of the operations in Klamath County and Oregon. Hachigian took the helm of the company in March 2014, succeeding former CEO Philip Orsino. He spoke about the company’s history and strategic goals, as well as the company’s launch of an expanded customer support center in Klamath Falls. The company announced Thursday that it would double the size of its customer support staff in Klamath Falls, increasing to more than 40 customer support employees, with room for 60 total. The expanded customer support center will handle questions such as warranties or purchasing decisions, Hachigian said, and is representative of the company’s continuing commitment to the Klamath Basin. Also, Jeld-Wen has added 20 engineers to its research and development laboratory in Klamath Falls. The company employs roughly 1,000 employees in the city. “We still have the bulk of our production, manufacturing, engineering, customer service, customer care, accounts receivable, accounts payable, most of those functions are still all out of Klamath Falls,” Hachigian said. Jeld-Wen purchases ponderosa pines from surrounding forests to manufacture its doors here. Hachigian noted the company is highly efficient in its process. “One hundred percent of the log is used for construction purposes,” he said. “Nothing is wasted.” Jeld-Wen facilities are also located in Chiloquin, Bend, Stayton and Portland, with 2,000 employees total in Oregon; there are 10,000 in North America and 20,000 worldwide. “They have different operations in each of those facilities,” Hachigian said. “Some of them are windows, some of them are doors, some of them are mills.” A need for efficiency and struggles during the recession led the company to relocate its administrative headquarters to Charlotte in 2013, which houses approximately 100 to 150 staff. He noted the company fell on hard times during the recent recession. “They took on a lot of investments and ancillary businesses,” Hachigian said. “They invested in timber lands, they invested in some different resorts and golf courses. “We all know what happened in the banking crisis of 2007, 2008, 2009, and so the business had too much debt. It wasn’t able to survive the downturn. There were a lot of financial stresses on the organization.” Onex, a Canadian private investment firm, bought the company in 2011, and invested about $800 million in Jeld-Wen. “The business has made a remarkable turnaround over the last five years,” Hachigian said. “Our sales today are about where they were pre-crisis. Our profitability today has been restored to about where it was pre-crisis.” Hachigian emphasized the shift in headquarters to North Carolina doesn’t mean a loss of commitment to Klamath Falls. “It’s still the epicenter of all the innovation globally for Jeld-Wen and it’s still a very, very important cultural and functional part of the organization,” he said. Hachigian said the East Coast location puts the headquarters close to key Jeld-Wen operations as well as a much larger airport. “Klamath Falls is a difficult location to service a global enterprise,” Hachigian said. “In Klamath Falls, it’s just difficult to get to most of the country. You have to have private transportation.” Hachigian said many of Jeld-Wen’s major customers are located approximately within 500 to 1,000 miles of Charlotte, providing efficiencies in company travel. Jeld-Wen owns one aircraft, down from five before moving the administrative headquarters to Charlotte. By Holly Dillemuth Herald and News MailTribune.com By Holly Dillemuth Herald and News Posted Oct. 25, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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