Clayton business starts year with name change

By RICK MERCIER
Editor, Clayton News-Star

A major Clayton employer is entering the new year with a new name and – despite the weak economy – an eye on new customers.

On Jan. 1, Colonial Carton Co. became 3C Packaging. The new moniker, the company said in a news release, is intended “to align the name with the company’s evolving core purpose.”

“Changing the name to 3C Packaging will help CCC make the transition from a folding carton company to a packaging solutions company in the marketplace,” the Clayton-based firm said.

In addition to making folding cartons, the company’s “evolving services include pharmaceutical inserts and outserts, printed literature and unit dose compliant packages.”

Company CEO Joe Elphick said that although demand from some customers has slackened, it has been more than offset by additional customers.

“The growth of new customers coming on board has overwhelmed that decrease,” he said.

“We do a good job for our customers. We’re growing our business,” said Elphick, who founded the company three decades ago.

The company last year completed a 40,000-square-foot expansion valued at approximately $4 million. The addition freed up space for printing equipment – mostly for inserts and outserts for pharmaceutical products – and provides increased warehouse capacity.

The company, located at 1000 CCC Drive near Pine Hollow Golf Club, now has 115,000 square feet under one roof, Elphick said.

The expansion and additional customers have led the company to hire more workers at a time when many firms either have a hiring freeze or are laying off employees. The company has hired about 20 employees in the past six months and now employs a total of about 120 people, Elphick said. He said the company has a five-year plan that anticipates a workforce of 250 people by 2013.

Colonial Carton’s plant was destroyed in an August 2005 fire, but the company rose from the ashes and was reborn less than a year later.

In 2007, the Clayton Town Council and Johnston County Board of Commissioners awarded the company tax incentives worth an estimated $39,000 over five years to help with last year’s expansion.

In addition to pharmaceutical firms – which include companies with a local presence such as Novo Nordisk and Hospira – 3C’s customers include cosmetic and tobacco firms.

As part of the name change, the company is introducing a new logo, with the “CCC” part of the logo being replaced by “3C” and the carton outline replaced by an exclamation point.

The transition to the new name should be complete by the end of March.

To learn more about the company, visit www.3CPackaging.com.