Congressman Jim Jordan Praises Celina Tent During Local Tour

CELINA, Ohio — Congressman Jim Jordan visited Celina Tent Monday, touring the local manufacturing operation and praising both the company’s growth and the work ethic he said defines west-central Ohio.

During the visit, Jordan spoke with WCSM about Celina Tent’s rise from a family-owned business into a manufacturer serving customers across the commercial, industrial, humanitarian and military sectors.

“This is West Central Ohio at its finest,” Jordan told WCSM. “Here you got a family who were just talking, you know, someone that needed a tent for something, and they said, well, we think we can do that. And Shazam! Here you have it, 30 years later, this amazing company helping our men and women in the armed services.”

Celina Tent traces its history to 1996. The company says it has since grown from a family-owned tent business into a national manufacturer that designs, engineers, manufactures, welds, sews, prints and assembles fabric structures for customers ranging from event professionals and industrial operations to the U.S. defense community.

Jordan called the company’s growth an example of what he sees as the traditional American entrepreneurial story.

“The American story. You got a goal, you got a dream, you work hard, good things happen,” Jordan said. “And that’s what’s happened here.”

The company’s military work includes shelters and other welded-fabric products. Celina Tent says it is a contract holder for the Humanitarian General Purpose Tent System and a Tier Two supplier of tent skins and related fabric components for the Department of Defense. The company’s Celina operation includes a 58-acre campus with more than 300,000 square feet devoted to manufacturing and distribution.

Federal records also show Celina Tent has previously been selected for Department of Defense contracting opportunities, including a Defense Logistics Agency multiple-award contract involving commercial shelters.

Jordan used the visit to offer broader praise for the region, telling WCSM that he has represented portions of west-central Ohio at different points throughout his political career.

“If the whole world were like West Central Ohio, we’d be just fine, because the communities over here are just a special group of people,” Jordan said.

He noted his longstanding connections to communities including Minster and New Bremen and said he previously represented all or portions of Mercer County while serving in the Ohio Senate and during earlier terms in Congress.

“This whole area is just amazing,” Jordan said. “Amazing people.”

Celina Tent continues to manufacture shelters for military, humanitarian, commercial and industrial applications, with the company describing itself as a small business with a worldwide presence in the fabric-shelter industry.