By: Scott Way
North Carolina catamaran builder World Cat has announced an increase in production capacity with the purchase of a 265,00 square foot manufacturing facility in Greenville, NC. The company will continue to use its primary facility in nearby Tarboro, NC, where it's been headquartered since 2002, giving the company a growing total of 405,000 square feet of production space. World Cat is the world's largest maker of power catamarans.
The first models to be produced at the new Greenville facility are the center console 400CC-X, as well as the similarly designed dual console 400DC-X. There are also plans to produce an additional new model to be announced later this year. The company's wheelhouse are uniquely designed outboard powered catamarans in the 23'-40' range with its roots coming from the original Glacier Bay catamarans of the mid 1980's.
The Greenville location sits in convenient proximity to Tarboro and will allow for the easy transfer of materials and resources. The cities are just 25 miles apart, with both being a stone's throw to open water with the Pamlico River to the southeast and Albermarle Sound to the northeast. The Greenville facility will include a $2.5 million investment and is set to house 60 new employees, bringing the total number of World Cat staffers to over 300.
According to World Cat President Andrew Brown, “This new Greenville, NC location was ideal for producing our 40’ World Cat Custom flagship models, and further expanding our capabilities. With the continued growing demand for our catamarans, this move will allow us to effectively manage our customer and dealer expectations as well as provide support for new product development.”
