Pliant Corporation, whose Washington plant is one of the county's largest employers, has completed its financial restructuring and has come out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

"We're very pleased that Pliant has come out of bankruptcy," said Donna Hardy, Executive Director of the Washington-Wilkes Chamber of Commerce. "They're not just a top industrial employer, they're a very important community partner, taking an active part in every aspect of the Washington-Wilkes community."

Pliant is known around Wilkes County as a great place to work, Hardy said. "Their employees have a wonderful work ethic, and their management works with projects all over the community like workforce development, and they take part in every charitable effort like the Relay for Life. They're the very best of neighbors, and we're glad they're over this hurdle."

"Today marks a successful completion of an important process," said Harold Bevis, Pliant President and CEO. "I am pleased we have now accomplished our objective of improving Pliant's balance sheet and cash flow, to enable us to continue executing our business plan and investing in our business on a sustained basis."

From the start, Bevis said, Pliant's goal had been to get in and out of Chapter 11 as quickly as possible, to minimize the cost of the process and the impact on the company. "I am proud to say that throughout the process, Pliant was able to continue its operations on an uninterrupted basis, and never needed to use the $70 million DIP credit facility. We are all excited about Pliant's future, and look forward to continue providing our customers with valueadded products, superior service, and leading-edge innovation programs."

Bevis expressed his appreciation for the work that led the company out of Chapter 11. "Thank you to all of our loyal employees, vendors, and customers for supporting the company during this time period. We believe Pliant's future has never been brighter."

Pliant filed a voluntary petition for Chapter 11 protection in January 2006 to implement "a pre-negotiated restructuring of its balance sheet." Pliant Corporation is a leading producer of value-added film and flexible packaging products for personal care, medical, food, industrial, and agricultural markets. The company operates 23 manufacturing and research and development facilities around the world and employs approximately 2,940 people.