Georgia Pacific – A Roundabout Atlanta Partner

We are thankful for each one of our partners here at Roundabout Atlanta. As part of an Atlanta community that proudly works together to support each other, we are excited to recognize each one of our ATL partners in a blog post! Today we feature Georgia-Pacific. We’ll go over who they are, what they do and how they got started.

Who is Georgia Pacific and What Do They Do?

Georgia-Pacific, headquartered right here in Atlanta, Georgia, specializes in the manufacturing and marketing of paper products, including tissue, pulp, packaging, building products, related chemicals, and more. GP is considered a global leader in the industry. They have over 180 locations worldwide, employing more than 30,000 people across their various locations.

Georgia-Pacific focuses their products on four industry categories:

1. The first category is their office building and office restroom supplies which include soap dispensers, paper towels and paper towel dispensers, and trash receptacles. In addition to restroom products, you will also find GP products in office building cafeterias – products such as plastic cutlery and cutlery dispensers, napkins and various styles of paper cups and plastic lids.
2. The second product category they supply for is healthcare facilities, which includes hospitals, doctor’s offices and outpatient facilities. GP helps set the standard for proper hand hygiene with their soap dispensers, hand sanitizer dispensers, and paper towels, which are all vital in maintaining a sanitary healthcare environment.
3. Another major industry Georgia-Pacific supplies for is the foodservice and restaurant industries, including many of the same hygiene products and paper products mentioned above, as well as food and beverage containers and products for take out, delivery and drive-thru dining. One such product is their Auto Sealer which “delivers a hygienic, spill-resistant, tamper-evident, and sustainable alternative to snap-on drink lids”.
4. Finally, GP works with industrial and manufacturing products, which along with similar products used in the previously mentioned industries includes innovative products like the enMotion Touchless, Water-Resistant Towel Dispenser, which was “developed in accordance with food manufacturing’s strict standards…currently the only HACCP certified automated towel dispenser on the market, placing it at the forefront of industrial hygiene”.

So if you’ve ever been to an office building, healthcare facility, cafeteria, restaurant or industrial environment, you’ve likely used one of GP’s innovative products!

Georgia-Pacific’s Values

Beyond setting the standard for paper and hygiene products, Georgia-Pacific leads the industry in sustainability, with their products and facilities having gained numerous certifications and awards that recognize their innovation and commitment to sustainability, from 3rd party groups, local and federal government agencies, non-governmental organizations and customers. You can check out more about their awards and certifications in sustainability here.

Georgia-Pacific also recognizes the importance of community. GP is dedicated to making life better for the communities where they operate and has worked with thousands of community-based programs, disaster relief efforts, and service projects. They focus especially on investing in four impactful areas: education, environment, enrichment and entrepreneurship. Read more about how GP invests in communities here.

Georgia-Pacific History

Georgia-Pacific’s beginnings date back to 1927, when American businessman, Owen R. Cheatham, founded the Georgia Hardwood Lumber Company based out of Augusta, Georgia. Just 10 years later the company had expanded and was operating five lumber mills in the south. In the early 1940’s, during WWII, Georgia Hardwood Lumber Company was the largest supplier of lumber to the US armed forces.

Just a few years later they purchased a plywood plant, which was their first Pacific Coast facility, and the company was renamed Georgia-Pacific Plywood and Lumber Company. They continued to expand and grow and in 1956 they changed their name once more, to Georgia-Pacific Corporation. 1968 marked the year they made over $1 billion in sales and by the year 1973, GP had doubled those sales. In 1982, they moved their headquarters from Portland, Oregon to our hometown of Atlanta, Georgia, where it remains today. In just around 100 years, Georgia-Pacific went from a small lumber company in the south to a global industry leader in paper manufacturing and marketing.

When it comes to keeping your office, hospital, restaurant or workplace in tip-top shape, you can count on Georgia-Pacific in Atlanta. Beyond their innovative products that set the industry standard, Georgia-Pacific is a global leader in sustainability and community engagement. For this reason Roundabout Atlanta is proud to have Georgia-Pacific as a partner.