Sep 23, 2005. /Lesprom Network/. As hurricane Rita approaches the Texas coastline, demand for structural panels such as plywood remains high. Georgia-Pacific Corp. continues to work to meet the needs of customers in the storm-affected areas. During hurricane events, Georgia-Pacific holds structural panel prices at pre-storm levels in declared disaster areas where supply has been adversely impacted until there is adequate product supply in the affected areas. This is in keeping with the company’s long-standing natural disaster policy. Georgia-Pacific is shipping sheathing-grade plywood - the material most often used to board up windows and doors - into areas in the projected storm path. The company will also work to provide post-storm repair needs. GP is currently operating available plywood facilities outside the path of the storm at full capacity. In Texas, Georgia-Pacific has plywood and studmill facilities in Cleveland, as well as gypsum facilities at Acme and Sweetwater, packaging and Color-Box facilities at Waxahachie and Fort Worth, a corrugated sheetfeeder facility in Denton, and a chemical facility in Lufkin. The company has more than 1,000 employees in Texas. Headquartered at Atlanta, Georgia-Pacific is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and marketers of tissue, packaging, paper, building products and related chemicals. With 2004 annual sales of approximately $20 billion, the company employs 55,000 people at more than 300 locations in North Americaand Europe. Its familiar consumer tissue brands include Quilted Northern®, Angel Soft®, Brawny®, Sparkle®, Soft 'n Gentle®, Mardi Gras®, So-Dri® and Vanity Fair®, as well as the Dixie® brand of disposable cups, plates and cutlery. Georgia-Pacific’s building products manufacturing business has long been among the nation’s leading supplier of building products to lumber and building materials dealers and large do-it-yourself warehouse retailers.