U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands, and state Rep. Steve Toth, R-The Woodlands, toured the Wildcat PPE facility just north of Hwy. 242 on March 22 to observe how the company has been creating jobs and manufacturing American-made personal protective equipment, such as surgical gown and caps, in The Woodlands area.

After opening in early April 2020, the protective equipment provider has grown to over 2,000 employees and is now producing around 1 million certified surgical isolation gowns per week, according to President and CEO John Houston.

"We want medical resilience," Brady said. "We need to protect this industry."

Based on The Woodlands Area Economic Development Partnership 2020 major employers list, this would put Wildcat PPE at the fourth largest employer in the area. Although the 2021information from the EDP is not yet available, previously published information shows the top employers were Conroe ISD, Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical and ExxonMobil.

Houston said the company started out by responding to the immediate local need with area hospitals. The 200,000-square-foot facility was repaired and renovated in two weeks once it was purchased in April 2020, Houston said.