Performance Plastics Ltd. (PPL) of Cincinnati, Ohio marked its fortieth anniversary this year as a leader in the design and manufacture of high-performance thermoplastic components. The company works with specialized polymers and tight tolerances, and follows rigorous quality assurance protocols. It anticipates big growth shortly, based on its wealth of experience and cutting-edge products such as EnduroSharp® aerospace maintenance tools.
Nate Hendley
Town of Gilbert, AZ
Sunny Skies Ahead
In recent years, the Town of Gilbert, Arizona has experienced explosive growth while earning an enviable reputation as a productive, low-crime community with many charms. Once a sleepy agricultural community, the booming town is now home to over 271,000 residents. Its municipal government works hard to assist companies and maintain growth through careful planning and strategic investments.
New Path Construction and Consulting
Innovative Construction Firm Continues to Take New Paths
New Path Construction and Consulting has taken some, well, new paths since Construction in Focus profiled this innovative firm in April 2021. From launching a low-voltage division to spinning off a cutting-edge design business, work has continued apace at this Hanover Park, Illinois-based company. Most significantly, New Path has received some major industry recognition, placing 39th on the Inc. magazine list of the Fastest-Growing U.S. Companies in the Midwest, 2022.
Contemporary Office Interiors (COI)
Big Expansion Means Enhanced Client Service
Contemporary Office Interiors (COI) has gone national following a merger and acquisition that dramatically extended the contract furniture firm’s market reach. Announced on February 1, the merger with Business Interiors and purchase of Workplace Resource, both of Toronto, has transformed COI into “the leading contract furniture dealer in Canada,” reports a company press release. Thanks to the expansion, the business has grown from 130 employees to 210.
Sewer Equipment
Family Firm Marks 80th Anniversary with New Products, Big Goals
Sewer Equipment, a Dixon, Illinois-based manufacturer of sewer cleaning and vacuum excavation gear, just passed a huge corporate milestone. The family-owned firm celebrated its eightieth anniversary last year and continues to develop new products and set new goals.
AREPA
Saving Money and the Environment by Restoring Damaged Electronics
It is a common nightmare for anyone who owns a manufacturing or industrial plant that a disaster—natural or otherwise—strikes their facility, damaging specialized technical equipment. The inclination, in such situations, is to throw out any damaged electronics and buy replacements. If a company wants to save time and money, however, they could contact disaster recovery experts AREPA instead.
Telematics Solutions for Smarter Trucking
Enhanced Safety, Performance and Productivity
In decades past, long-distance commercial truckers faced limited options when it came to communicating with fleet operations managers. Once they hit the highway, truck drivers could radio in their location, mileage, and other performance indicators—provided they had a radio and clear reception. Beyond reports from the driver, there was no way an operations manager could monitor real-time truck performance while back in the office.
ArtiFlex Manufacturing
Positioned for Growth
From its Grand Rapids, Michigan headquarters, ArtiFlex Manufacturing, an innovative, vertically integrated enterprise, has big plans for growth based on partnerships with other businesses. The firm’s name—an amalgam of artisan and flexible—summarizes its unique approach to design and manufacturing, with the company organized into four groups devoted to innovation, tooling, automation, and manufacturing.
Globe Food Equipment
Moving Forward
These are busy times at Globe Food Equipment Corporation, a Dayton, Ohio-based firm which designs and manufactures commercial kitchen equipment. Since Business in Focus profiled Globe in October 2018, the company has introduced new products, adjusted to the market realities of COVID, and taken up distribution duties for a company called Varimixer.
The Town of Davie, FL
Growing, Dreaming and Building
A spirit of community and growth pervades the Town of Davie, located in Broward County, Florida, despite the challenges posed by COVID-19. The Town responded decisively when the virus struck, protecting residents and helping businesses. Now that the worst of the pandemic has hopefully passed, Davie is eager to finish a series of large capital projects and launch new developments.
New Braunfels Economic Development Corporation (NBEDC)
New Braunfels Continues to Bloom
New Braunfels was booming when Business in Focus profiled the Central Texas city in November 2019. The boom has not subsided despite COVID-19, and the city continues to attract new residents, new construction, and new developments. Over the past three years, several major companies have either expanded operations in New Braunfels or announced plans to set up in the city.
The Internet of Things and the Connectivity of Modern Life
Wired
Once viewed as the stuff of science fiction movies, ‘connected’ consumer goods have become ubiquitous. Using ‘smart devices,’ homeowners can remotely program their coffee makers and barbecues, download directions in the car and automate chores such as watering the garden. Smart gadgets connect via an online network known as the Internet of Things (IoT) to relay data and receive commands.
Hightowers Petroleum Company
Family-Run Firm Deals with COVID and Builds Its Business
Hightowers Petroleum Company (HPC) has successfully adapted to the challenges posed by COVID and shifting energy markets. Incorporated in 1984, this Middletown, Ohio-based, family-run gas and diesel wholesaler, profiled in the July 2019 issue of Business in Focus magazine, continues to be a leading African-American-owned fuel company, primarily serving the downstream petroleum sector.
Seafood Express Transport
Family Firm Sets New Standards in the Trucking Sector
Seafood Express Transport, a family-owned, award-winning trucking firm based in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, is gearing up for growth following an extremely challenging year.
Polyplex Corporation
Adding Capacity – and a New Manufacturing Operation
Polyplex Corporation Ltd. has been a global market leader in the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyester and metallized film markets for the past couple of decades. Polyplex’s’ entire growth in all these years has been through green or brown field expansions in diverse geographies and keeping in agreement with the group’s philosophy of “being where the customer is.” Polyplex’s portfolio of films are primarily used in packaging and industrial applications. Business has been very robust in part due to increased demand for packaged foods and medical packaging in the wake of COVID-19.
Lester R. Summers, Inc. (Summers Trucking)
Family Firm Weathers the COVID Crisis Amid Ownership Change
A few months ago, Lester R. Summers, Inc., a venerable, family-owned, heavy haul transport company based in Ephrata, Pennsylvania, met with each individual in its company to discuss the company’s response to COVID-19. The effects had hit Pennsylvania hard.
Allstates Rigging
Community Focus and Customer Commitment
Allstates Rigging – a woman-owned, turnkey rigging contractor based in Two Rivers, Wisconsin – is in expansion mode. The firm’s skills include forklift operations, plant relocation, and machinery transportation, and it recently acquired a machining facility to augment its services. As befitting the company name, Allstates works with clients across the USA.
Simard Suspensions
From a Forge to a Vocational Vehicle Suspension and Steering Powerhouse
Simard Suspensions designs, manufactures, and installs front and rear suspensions and steering systems for vocational trucks. The Quebec-based firm has a new assembly plant, a popular patented front tandem suspension system, and a culture of innovation. The company also does truck conversions and offers a cutting-edge line of modified vocational vehicles for off-road work.
Kaufman Container
New Markets and Machinery Take Center Stage for this Prominent Packaging Company
Kaufman Container has been a leader in the packaging industry for over 100 years, yet they continue to find new and innovative ways to evolve as a company. They have adopted new markets, invested in new state-of-the-art decorating equipment and have put an emphasis on sustainability. In other words, a lot has changed since Business in Focus last profiled Kaufman Container in 2016.
Metro Plastics Technologies
From Mood Rings to Big Growth
Now approaching its forty-fifth anniversary, Metro Plastics Technologies, Inc. of Noblesville, Indiana owes much of its initial success to a goofy disco-era fashion trend involving rings with acrylic stones that changed color. However, the company’s long-term success comes from doing excellent work, offering an array of custom injection molding services, and maintaining strong customer relations.
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