KINGFIELD — In just over two years, the Poland Spring plant in Kingfield has grown, adding new jobs and producing the most bottled water out of the company’s 26 factories.

That success was celebrated Wednesday as the plant received a 2010 manufacturing excellence award, “Best Factory in North America,” from its parent company, Nestle Waters North America.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins toured the plant, joining local community leaders, plant employees and company officials for the award announcement.

As a testament of its success, within the last three months the plant has added 22 new jobs and its two bottling lines will soon begin operating 24 hours a day.

It now produces 50 truck loads or 70,000 cases of bottled water per day, Plant Manager Cameron Lorrain said during the tour. That number is expected to increase to more than 90,000 as the hours and employees increase.

“The Kingfield success story is indicative of what we all know about the quality and determination of our state’s work force — and especially the people of Kingfield and Franklin County,” Lorrain said. “My people make the difference … they are the best.”

Collins agreed, recognizing the dedication and work ethic of Maine workers as “a tremendous asset to any company.”

She also applauded the promotion of Maine’s natural resources, recycling levels at more than 99 percent and how the plant’s presence benefits other businesses.

From cardboard produced at IP in Auburn to using Cianbro and other local contractors to build the plant, the plant’s effects ripple beyond the employees who work there, she said.

Collins honored the Poland Spring plant for its investment in Maine with a congressional sentiment.  

 “In just over two years and in challenging economic times, you have turned Poland Spring’s newest plant into the Best Factory of the Year and have grown from fewer than 40 employees to 70 current workers. It is especially encouraging to see a business grow and create new jobs while remaining committed to environmental stewardship and community citizenship,” she said.

The plant, built in 2008, is also the first and only manufacturing facility in Maine to receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold status.

With an investment of more than $60 million from Nestle Waters North America and support from the local community, the plant opened in January 2009.

Since then it has nearly doubled the total number of employees and despite being the smallest NWNA plant in the United States and the most rural of all Poland Spring’s Maine plants, the Kingfield plant scored the highest on four basic criteria for manufacturing excellence, including cost management, quality, efficiency and safety, Brian Flaherty from Nestle Waters said as he presented the award.

Employees who’ve worked there since the day it opened also see the changes that have taken place.

“We’ve grown and grown into our positions,” Linda Neil of Strong said.

When the employees started, it was a scramble to produce 50,000 cases a day, Tom Wiencek, plant warehouse manager, said. Now that’s much easier because they’ve learned so much, he said.

Production climbed to over 90,000 cases a day produced last summer but not quite enough to earn the Best Factory award, he said.

Now the employees have the right to boast and the recognition of being the best among their peers.

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