American Mattress Manufacturers and Unions are at the Forefront of Providing Immediate Assistance in Response to COVID-19

WASHINGTON, April 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- US mattress manufacturers, including Brooklyn Bedding, Corsicana Mattress Company, Elite Comfort Solutions, FXI, Inc., Kolcraft Enterprises Inc., and Leggett & Platt, Incorporated are fully engaged in responding to the COVID-19 situation. Our companies and the US mattress industry as a whole have the capacity, experience, supply chain, and geographic reach to meet demand for mattresses across the country. Across many US states, mattress manufacturing plants remain open as essential business. Our facilities are mobilizing swiftly to meet the special needs of the COVID-19 response, with hard-working and resourceful Americans quickly redesigning processes and specifications to build emergency hospital beds – already more than 30,000 per day with the capacity for many more – as well as a variety of other non-traditional products, including converting sewing operations to manufacture safety masks, isolation gowns, privacy curtains, disinfecting wipes, shoe covers, filters, and other safety and protective supplies. 

"The US mattress industry is here – we have the capacity to meet the entire US market's demands related to COVID-19 and we are broadly located across all regions of the United States.  Collectively, we are able to quickly produce and deliver on immediate needs, including hospital beds which are often at different size specifications than our typical offerings and have different cover requirements.  We can produce to order based on specific needs and deliver when and where beds are needed," said Karl G. Glassman, CEO of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated, "as opposed to the time it takes to import mattresses from other countries."

"Our operations are also supported by a largely American supply chain, meaning that every mattress we produce also benefits American workers manufacturing textiles, foam, innersprings, machinery, and other components, as well as many transportation and retail workers," said John Merwin, CEO Brooklyn Bedding, "and give me two hours on the phone and I can find you 50,000 mattresses a day of capacity right now in the United States and we could start that production tomorrow," he continued.   

Earlier this week, American mattress manufacturers and labor unions filed a petition requesting unfair trade investigations be conducted on imports from eight countries that are relative newcomers to the US market. "US mattress manufacturers and unions filed this case in order to protect the tens of thousands of American workers who manufacture mattresses in this country," said Yohai Baisburd, counsel to the petitioners. 

The filing of this petition has no negative impact on America's COVID-19 response. In fact, the need to preserve US manufacturing capabilities is never more apparent than in crucial moments like this. Contrary to what others might say, neither the availability or pricing of imported mattresses is immediately impacted by the filing of a case as no duties can be imposed for at least 4 months. 

SOURCE The Mattress Petitioners