Martin Guitar's Navojoa Factory Continues To Evolve And Grow As It Celebrates 25th Anniversary

NAZARETH, Pa., Feb. 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- C. F. Martin & Co. (www.martinguitar.com) marked the 25^th anniversary of its factory in Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico with a celebration attended by the Board of Directors and the newly released Road Series DRSGT and 000RSGT models.  

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140210/NY60877)

"The Navojoa factory has been an extraordinarily positive endeavor on all fronts," said Chris Martin, Chairman and CEO, C.F. Martin & Co.  "It has allowed us to expand our product line and reach different customers without sacrificing our standard of quality or our domestic workforce, and being part of the community in Navojoa is extremely rewarding."

"The Navojoa factory has been a fantastic success not only in business terms, but also in the very warm relationship we have developed with our counterparts there," said Bill Hall, a 38-year veteran of Martin who oversees the Navojoa operations from Martin's headquarters in Nazareth, PA.  "The craftspeople in Navojoa are very much part of the Martin family, and they produce instruments and strings of increasingly superb quality with each passing year."

The factory originally opened in 1989 to produce electronic accessories and a portion of Martin's guitar strings. Beginning in 1992, Navojoa began making Martin's Backpacker guitar. This project provided a foundation for developing woodworking and lutherie skills.

Since then, while becoming Martin's sole manufacturer for strings, the woodworking craftspeople have continued to evolve their skills with training from Martin, including training trips to the Nazareth factory, and now produce solid-wood models using the more demanding construction techniques associated with Martin's traditional, higher end models.

Announced in January at the 2014 Winter NAMM Trade Show in Anaheim, CA, the new DRSGT http://www.martinguitar.com/new/item/3457-drsgt.html and 000RSGT http://www.martinguitar.com/new/item/3454-000rsgt.html additions to Martin's affordable Road Series feature 14-fret neck to body construction with polished gloss Sitka spruce tops, which is a symbol of the factory's evolution in producing more sophisticated instruments over the past quarter century. Both models feature solid sapele back and sides and necks carved from "sipo," a close relative of mahogany. These newly evolved models emulate the appearance, integrity and tone of the Martin Style 18 models.  Each model also comes equipped with Fishman sonitone electronics with USB.  The USB port allows for easy plug and play with today's computer based recording packages.

When it opened in 1989, only 12 people worked at Martin's Navojoa factory.  Today it employs over 450 people, and the workforce has grown by 50% since 2010.  Located about 375 miles south of Nogales, Arizona, the factory is among the larger employers in Navojoa, a city with a population of approximately 140,000 people. 

Unlike many other U.S. companies that have opened manufacturing sites overseas, Martin has never laid off any of its U.S. workforce as a result of opening and expanding the Navojoa factory.

About Martin Guitar & Strings
C.F Martin & Co. (www.martinguitar.com) has been creating the finest instruments in the world for over 180 years.  Martin continues to innovate, introducing techniques and features that have become industry standards, including X-bracing, the 14-fret guitar and the "Dreadnought" size. One of the world's leading acoustic instrument makers, Martin guitars are hand-made by skilled craftsmen and women, who use a combination of new design and techniques along with those introduced by the company founder.

The company is also known for producing high-quality, popular acoustic guitar strings.  These include the Martin SP® LIFESPAN™ line, the fastest-growing treated string in the industry, and the Martin SP line, which uses an industry leading core wire to hold tunings better.

Martin guitars and Martin strings are the instruments and strings of choice for musicians around the world, from the icons of rock, country, folk and bluegrass to those just beginning their careers.  They can be seen across all segments of pop culture, from television (Glee, Psych, Raising Hope and American Idol) to the movies, on Broadway and in books, online, and gracing the covers of popular magazines on newsstands everywhere. Connect with Martin and Martin Strings on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, YouTube and via www.martinguitar.com and www.martinstrings.com.

SOURCE C. F. Martin & Co.