Laird Technologies Unveils New Operations in Warren
WARREN, Ohio -- London-based Laird Technologies is in growth mode across the company's entire global footprint -- a footprint that encompasses a new manufacturing and distribution plant here, executives formally announced Thursday.
"We think it's got real potential to be a growth driver for Laird," says CEO David Lockwood, in town to celebrate the opening of the new plant during a ribbon-cutting Thursday. "Our new home here will enable us to continue to deliver innovative products to the customers with reliable fulfillment and speed."
Four years ago, Laird acquired what was then Sharpsville, Pa.-based Cattron Theimeg, a manufacturer of remote controls and wireless communication devices used in the rail, mining, and other assorted heavy industries. "Cattron has some good niche positions, but in its existing facilities with its existing balance sheet, couldn't deliver on it," he said.
Once acquired, Laird made the appropriate investments in Cattron and also started to think about expanding the business' operations, Lockwood said. The operation in Sharpsville wasn't conducive to streamlining a modern global presence.
Earlier this year, the company announced that it would relocate the Sharpsville operation and some 160 employees to an 80,000-square-foot space in North River Road here where Delphi Corp. once operated a distribution center.
"We've given it the financial backing to address the markets -- investing heavily in R&D, investing in this facility -- giving it production capability as well and investing in global sales," Lockwood said. "It provides a big-systems view of the world."
Laird, which employs more than 9,000 worldwide, has operations on four continents. Earlier this year, the company opened new operations in Shanghai and Hanoi and recently announced its intention to open another plant in South America, Lockwood said.
The Warren complex is twice the size of Sharpsville and allows for better and more efficient flow of product and parts, Lockwood noted. As it stands, Laird will lease space and share the building with a Kellogg's distribution operation that operates out of the rear of the former Delphi plant.
Among the other amenities on North River Road are remodeled offices and workstations for engineers; production, inventory and manufacturing capacity on a single floor; research and development operations; and a data collection center that can interpret and analyze a client's information and make recommendations
A day before the press event, Lockwood said that the Warren plant placed its first order from an acquisition the company made in South Korea several months ago. "That shows how global it is and how quickly we can integrate people from around the world,” he said. “The Korean leadership was here working with Warren so that both businesses could flourish."
Mayor Doug Franklin said that his administration would work to ensure that Laird's move to Warren benefits the company and the city. "We realize the decision to come to Warren was a hard decision, a complex decision," the mayor said. "I promise you, you'll never regret the decision to move to Warren, Ohio."
Franklin praised the work and collaboration of development agencies such as the Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber, especially its vice president for economic development, Sarah Boyarko; Warren City Council; JobsOhio; Warren Redevelopment and Planning Corp.; and the Warren Community Development Agency.
"This is a major investment by Laird," Franklin said. "It shows that they see the value in locating in the city of Warren and they see our city as a good place to do business."
The city provided incentives such as giving six acres next to the site, that gift contingent upon the company expanding within three years; waiver of tap-in fees for city utilities; a 63% rebate of net income tax for new employees; and a 63% credit on the net profit tax.
"For us, this is not just the end of a transaction, but the beginning of what we hope will be a very long-term relationship," said Kristi Tanner, managing director of JobsOhio. "We know they'll be a great partner with the city and the county."
Rick Morse, senior vice president and general manager for Laird's wireless automation controls unit, said the new building enables the company to increase its presence in a market he says is getting stronger every day.
"Wireless is a technology that is finally being accepted in the world of industry," Morse said. "As we've accepted it in cell phones for the last 10 years, it's now to that point where we're seeing the opportunity for use of wireless control in an industrial basis."
Laird's Warren operation manufactures safety controls that are governed by wireless remote systems, Morse said. "It's applied from everything from a railroad locomotive to an underground mining machine," he said. "Things where you would want to put the operator at a safe distance, but at an appropriate vantage point."
That could, for example, be remotely operating a ladle filled with molten metal or a large overhead crane from a safe distance. Or, as company officials demonstrated, the technology could be used to operate machines such as skid loaders to perform work in hazardous areas.
The plant in Warren also manufactures devices that allow machines to wirelessly interact with one another and does a sizeable amount of repair work for devices used in the field.
"About 40% of our business is maintenance," said Frank Rudge, vice president of aftermarket. The average lifecycle of a remote device is between 10 and 25 years, he said. "That's because the parts become very hard to get," and the devices need to be replaced.
New and growing markets likely mean additional expansion at the North River Road plant, Morse said. The company has committed to add at least 55 jobs at the plant over the next three years, but those numbers are very conservative, the executive stated.
"In the very short-term, we're investing heavily in internships," Morse said. That way, the company is able to groom and train potential employees who will have a solid understanding of what Laird does and how it operates. "These are good high-tech jobs. We've got good connections with Youngstown State [University] and some of the other tech schools."
Morse said the company, through its engineering and manufacturing operations in Akron and Cleveland, has enjoyed similar partnerships with other universities in northeastern Ohio.
As for the commitment of 55 new employees, Lockwood said that he would "be very disappointed if that's all we achieved" after three years.
Earlier this year, The Ohio Tax Authority approved a 55% tax credit for the 55 new positions, which pay on average $54,000 annually. The new payroll would amount to $3 million, according to earlier reports.
Morse added that the company has options to double the size of Laird's footprint in the building should demand warrant. In addition, the company could add more space on the land next door owned by the city of Warren.
"One of the things that drew us here was not just the first footprint in, but also our options growing from that," Morse said. "I wanted to be sure we have options to double the size or triple the size."
Pictured: Kristi Tanner, managing director of JobsOhio, David Lockwood, CEO of Laird Technologies, Rick Morse, senior vice president, of Laird's Wireless Automation and Control Solutions division, and Mayor Doug Franklin.
Copyright 2014 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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