Baxter’s Anatolia Brings Job Opportunities For Those In County

Baxter celebrated the ribbon cutting of Anatolia Granite and Marble on Thursday afternoon.

The business is home to some nine computer-programmed CNC machines that customize slabs into kitchen countertops bathroom vanities, or fireplaces. CEO Temel Islamoglu said that he hopes to hire an additional 25 people to work for the company.

“We are still a strong country and we can still do a lot but we need to build everything inside the country,” Islamoglu said. “We need to produce, we need to manufacture, I would think, everything here, we need to give, especially to young people, opportunity and we need to give them jobs. Maybe Baxter is a small town, but there is a lot of opportunity here.”

Islamoglu said that he is seeking college-educated individuals, ideally with mechatronics backgrounds, to train on the machines. He said that jobs start at a $12/hr minimum, but depending on training level can reach up to $20 an hour. Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter said that a business like Anatolia will provide a great opportunity for students at TCAT or like programs to find jobs right here in the county.

“There are a lot of students who are in programs that are computer and design-based,” Porter said. “With all the training that they have to do to do that, it brings in those tech jobs from the university from TCAT in Lviginsto and those kinds of opportunities for these people to go and train and then come to businesses like this, I think it’s great and it’s a great opportunity for the citizens of Putnam County to get good-paying jobs here and not have to go someplace else.”

Islamoglu said that the entire production process if virtually pollution-free. He said that all of the machines that use some 350 gallons of water a minute to pressure cut the stone will then send the water through a cleaning process. He said that this process effectively reduces waste and keeps the space clean.

Islamoglu said that once production gets into full gear, the company will produce up to 40 or 50 kitchens a day.