Furniture manufacturer La-Z-Boy has a 1.2 million-square-foot factory in Dayton, Tenn., the company's largest facility in the United States.
The production plant, which makes about 40 percent of all La-Z-Boy furniture, employs 1,400 people. The factory produces more than 800,000 pieces of furniture every year, including its signature La-Z-Boy chairs, according to the Monroe, Mich.-based company.
The furniture maker recently marked the start of work on a $16 million innovation center next to its sprawling manufacturing plant. The 70,000-square-foot center will serve as the innovation hub for the entire company, according to La-Z-Boy.
The center is part of $26 million in improvements the company is undertaking in Dayton. About 115 more employees will be added to La-Z-Boy in Rhea County, officials said.
STEP 1 — Raw steel sits in the warehouse before being cut and machined into the standard La-Z-Boy recliner in Plant 6 at the Dayton facility.
STEP 1 - Raw steel sits in the warehouse before being cut and machined into the standard La-Z-Boy recliner in Plant 6 at the Dayton facility.
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Step 2 — STEP 2 Twenty-year veteran Jimmy Bledsoe builds the reclining mechanism for the standard recliner.
Step 2 - Twenty-year veteran Jimmy Bledsoe builds the reclining mechanism for the standard recliner.
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STEP 3 — Charlie Waldo builds the framework for the chair.
STEP 3 - Charlie Waldo builds the framework for the chair.
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STEP 4 — Jeffery Godsey works as a sub-upholsterer and inserts polyurethane foam into the recliner.
STEP 4 - Jeffery Godsey works as a sub-upholsterer and inserts polyurethane foam into the recliner.
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STEP 5 — Tim Goss, a cellular team upholsterer, assembles the seat.
STEP 5 - Tim Goss, a cellular team upholsterer, assembles the seat.
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STEP 6 — Rick Johnson, quality technician, inspects operation of the recliner before moving it to shipping.
STEP 6 - Rick Johnson, quality technician, inspects operation of the recliner before moving it to shipping.