By Alex Mavro, Sasin SEC Interface was founded in the United States in as the world’s first mass-market carpet tile manufacturer. Its founder, Ray Anderson, was an innovator and inspiration to his team who led the company to billions in turnover after less than two decades in business. The company also expanded worldwide, including to Thailand, where it opened a plant in 1996. But early last year, after nearly 30 years of operation, Interface quietly announced the closure of their carpet tiles manufacturing plant in Chonburi, Thailand. The Thai plant continued to produce carpet tiles through Q1 2022, but the decommissioning process concluded by early 2023. The decision to consolidate regional production to plants in Taicang, China, and Minto, Australia, stemmed from a review of Interface’s global manufacturing operations and production capacity. This strategic move was designed to allow the company to optimize its manufacturing capacity, driving production efficiencies and savings in fixed manufacturing and SG&A costs. The consolidation directly impacted 188 Interface employees in production and non-production roles in Thailand. The company set up a team to assist its impacted employees while ensuring that the firm continued to provide exceptional customer service and support during the transition. To meet future capacity needs in the Asia-Pacific region, Interface is considering making small capital and people-oriented investments in both its Chinese and Australian manufacturing plants. Further information regarding these investments is expected to follow. All in all, a sad development for the floor-covering industry icon.