United Industries Inc. hasn’t purchased the former Woodbridge Foam building in Tilbury it plans to operate as a state-of-the-art stainless steel tubing manufacturing facility, but signing a 30-year lease is an indication the company is here for the long term.
Officials with the Beloit, Wisconsin-based company spoke with local media Tuesday about its plans for the future.
“We’re very excited to get things moving up there,” said company president Greg Sturicz, adding the goal is to be in production by mid-summer 2023.
United Industries is looking to employ about 100 people ranging from mill operators to utility staff as well as a quality group and packing and shipping staff.
Sturicz said the company is doing research to develop its wage scale that will be competitive with the market.
This is United Industries’ first investment north of the border and the company is making a “significant investment” that has included adding 20,000-square feet of warehouse space along with bring in plenty of new, high-tech machinery.
“I think Canada’s been on the radar for a number of years,” Sturicz said.
Although the company has Canadian customers across all industries, he said the need to come here really came to a head over the last few years as supply chains became tighter.
“This enables us to have access to other parts of global markets more readily, let’s say, both on the supply side, obtaining stainless steel from different sources, as well as exporting,” Sturicz said.
Noting the company has good domestic suppliers in the United States, he added, “I think in Canada it opens some doors for us that we haven’t had, so there are some opportunities there that fit nicely with the growth plan.”
The company initially looked to expand in the Windsor area, but broadened its target zone due to the tight real estate market, which resulted in finding the Tilbury location.
The 140,000-square-foot facility and its location appealed to the company, but also the fact it is in a smaller community.
Jim Hoyt, vice-president of engineering and manufacturing, who led the site-selection team, said the company didn’t know a lot about the area, so Jamie Rainbird, manager of Chatham-Kent Economic Development was called on to provide some information .
“He pulled his colleagues together and we got a real thorough understanding really of what the community’s about, the workforce is about, the work ethic,” Hoyt said. “It really appealed to us as complimentary to our most success organizations where it’s a less dense population.”
Hoyt said people in more rural areas “they know how to fix stuff, they know how to solve problems, they’re mechanically inclined.
“They show up to work in the morning, they give a solid day’s work for a fair wage,” he added.
Rainbird said from the beginning of his time dealing with the company it’s been made clear “they want to be known as an employer of choice.”
United Industries is also known for working with local suppliers.
Sturicz said since the story was reported in local media last week, he’s received a number of calls and emails as well as contacts through the company’s website.
“It obviously shows the level of interest and that’s good for us,” he said.
Hoyt said the operation can’t afford to a lot of downtime so it looks for suppliers that it can reach out to and get an immediate response.
He said operation will need to call on tool and die, welding, and sheet metal shops along with chemical supplies and coolant and lube businesses.
“It really is our intent to create as many as these business relationships as we can as close to the plant as we can,” Hoyt said. “We like to leave a positive footprint in the areas that we do business.”
Since United Industries doesn’t serve the consumer market, Sturicz said most people don’t realize how integral stainless steel tubing – particularly the high purity grade it produces – is to their day-to-day lives.
He said the product is required in the manufacturing of microchips for cell phones, food processing, production of medicines, exhaust systems for automobiles and even the beer many people enjoy.
He added United Industries is proud to provide the steel tubing for Molson Brewery facilities.
“We intend to be there a long time and we intend to service these products for a long, long time,” Sturicz said.