ORANGE, TEXAS (Aug. 20, 11:40 a.m. ET) — Flat die maker Cloeren Inc. CEO jumped onto a big excavator to break ground for a multimillion dollar expansion of the company’s Plant 2 site in Orange, Texas, in a ceremony held Aug. 14.
The expansion, scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2013, increases the size of the plant to 37,500 square feet, from the current 27,500 square feet. The larger space will accommodate several new machine tools, including a multi-axis computer numerically controlled mill, slated for commissioning next March.
Employees at Plant 2 cut steel and do machining and grinding operations. Also in Orange, Plant 1, a 60,000-square-foot factory nearby, does assembly and polishing. The company also has facilities in Eau Claire, Wis., and Marshall, Texas.
Combined square footage of all the plants is about 200,000 square feet.
“While business remains fickle, overall business recovery continues on a gradual upward trend, and this expansion positions us to take advantage of developing business opportunities,” Peter Cloeren said. “While the industry trend may be to offshore, we believe we can compete efficiently and effectively by keeping out manufacturing consolidated at our home base in the USA.”
Cloeren is a family owned maker of extrusion dies, coextrusion feedblocks and related technology.
