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A company that manufactures cutting and grinding thin wheels is celebrating 50 years in Brownsville.
Saint-Gobain Norton Abrasives began operations in the city in 1976 as the Norton Company in a nearly 200,000-square-foot plant. It was acquired by Saint-Gobain in 1990. Today, the company employs more than 100 people and continues to be a “key part of the organization supplying North America with thin wheels,” according to the company.
Saint-Gobain’s global headquarters are in Paris and its North American headquarters are in Pennsylvania. Its Brownsville operation is located on Morningside Road near the Brownsville South Padre Island International Airport.
As part of its 50th anniversary celebration, the plant’s employees participated in a “Good360 Kitting” event, assembling 500 welcome-home kits for local affordable housing residents or those affected by disaster. The plant partnered with United Way of Southern Cameron County to distribute the kits.
“Brownsville has been so welcoming to us over the past 50 years and we are proud to be able to be a part of what makes this community so special — not only because our plant is here, but because we live, work and raise our families here,” said Plant Manager Sergio Mendez. “I am looking forward to continuing our close partnerships with so many outstanding customers and organizations as we work together to strengthen and build our community over the next 50 years.”
The plant has supported a number of local community organization over the decades, including the Moody Clinic and Big Heroes Inc., he said.
Saint-Gobain had $53.6 billion in sales in 2025. The company has 162,000 employees and locations in 80 countries.