CLEVELAND — A major chunk of the International Exposition Center-- also known as the I-X Center of Cleveland-- will soon see new life.
According to a statement from Purell's parent company, GOJO Industries, the company will soon be moving in to occupy roughly 700,000 square feet of the massive Cleveland structure.
"GOJO has been an essential business throughout the pandemic, producing and shipping 300% more PURELL® Hand Sanitizer globally, than in 2019," a GOJO representative said in a release sent to 3News. "In response to the immense demand, GOJO activated two million square feet of manufacturing space and doubled the number of plants in North America, including two new facilities in Maple Heights and Navarre, Ohio."
GOJO, which currently operates out of Akron and Cuyahoga Falls, has signed a two-year lease for a large chunk of the I-X Center property, which they will use to ramp up production of their in-demand products.
President and CEO of the company, Carey Jaros, says that due to increased need and the importance of their work, the decision was a fairly easy one to make.
“Today, our amazing team is making and shipping over 1B doses of PURELL® products every week,” said Jaros, President and CEO. “PURELL® brand products are #1 in hospitals and the most trusted by consumers, schools, businesses, and communities. Our 30 years of scientific leadership and innovation, only the highest quality ingredients, and our relentless pursuit of the safest, most effective formulations mean that especially in times like these, the only brand of hand sanitizer people want is PURELL®. The dramatic steps we’ve taken to increase availability, including employing creative solutions like utilizing the I-X Center, are allowing us to serve frontline workers, schools, businesses, and to make PURELL hand sanitizer readily available again to consumers on the retail shelf and online."