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State Journal

NUMBER 99

A listing of the Top 100 Private Employers in the state for 2006 contains the names of many well known companies.  There are some that are not so well known, however, and the fact that they are on the list could be surprising to some.  So, we are going to introduce you to the TOP 100, working our way up from # 100.  You'll learn a lot about who employs the most people in the Mountain State.

NUMBER 99 is Wendy's International.  Yep, that's right, the square hamburger folks that Dave Thomas led for so many years prior to his passing is Number 99.

You may already know the Wendy's story, but we'll repeat it briefly here.  Corporate headquarters are in Dublin, Ohio, which is about 20 miles northwest of Columbus.  The first Wendy's restaurant opened in 1969 in Columbus and is still in business.  It serves thousands of customers each year.

More of Wendy's history in brief... The first franchise was sold in 1972, the company went public in 1976, which was the same year their 500th restaurant opened.  By 1978 there were 1,000 Wendy's restaurants.  Wendy's went global in 1988, and in 1989 Dave Thomas started appearing in those commercials we all have seen.  By 2001 there were 6,000 restaurants before Dave died in January of 2002.

Now there are over 9,900 restaurants.  Wendy's also invests in three additional brands (Tim Horton's, Cafe Express, and Pasta Pomodoro) and owns The New Bakery Company, which makes over 750 million sandwich buns.

Dave Thomas's inspirational story is known to many.  He dreamed of opening a restaurant from the time he was a child, and he started learning the business when he was 12.  His commitment to quality, fresh food, and variety was unmatched.

As an adopted child himself, Dave focused on adoption as a cause, and he also supported other community organizations that help children.  Today, Wendy's sponsors the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Wendy's Wonderful Kids, Wendy's Animal Welfare Program, Wendy's Three Tour Challenge, and Wendy's High School Heisman Program.

Dave has been quoted as saying, "When I first got into the restaurant business, I never dreamed of creating a restaurant chain that would provide jobs to so many people.  I'm gratified to know we gave people an opportunity to make a living or career in this business.  By going after my dream, people had the chance to make their own dreams come true."

Many West Virginians are among those to whom Dave and Wendy's have provided career opportunities.  Thank you, Wendy's!

Read the past article about  Number 100...

Number 100 is Century Aluminum of West Virginia, Inc. located in Ravenswood, West Virginia  in Jackson County. The Ravenswood facility employs 660 people, and their products are molten primary aluminum and low profile primary aluminum sow.

Century's corporate offices are located in Monterey, California.  The company was formed in 1995 by Glencore International of Switzerland as a holding company for its aluminum producing assets.  Ravenswood Aluminum Corporation, which was an integrated producer of rolled aluminum, was one of those assets.  1995 also was the year that Century Aluminum became publicly owned.

The company started initiatives at Ravenswood to increase its profitability through investments designed to improve efficiency and enrich the mix of rolled products.  The name of Ravenswood Aluminum Corporation was changed to Century Aluminum of West Virginia, Inc. in 1997.

Century invested around $130 million at Ravenswood between 1995 and 1998.  The company has focused on acquiring additional primary aluminum capacity and achieving its goals of reducing costs and geographically diversifying its asset base.  It now has facilities in Hawesville, Kentucky, Grundartangi, Iceland, owns nearly a half interest in a plant at Mt. Holly, South Carolina, owns a 50% share of a refinery in Gramercy, Louisiana, and has bauxite assets in Jamaica.

Century Aluminum is a company that is really going places.  An interesting little tidbit on their website even says that Australian winemakers are studying new methods of sealing wine.  In the first year of their study, testing showed that aluminum screw taps scored best!  Wow, a whole new market for aluminum may open up, and some of our residents may be a part of the process.

Thanks for employing 660 West Virginians and helping the economy here, Century Aluminum!  Good luck to you.