Injection molder and mold maker Century Mold Co. Inc. of Rochester, N.Y., is expanding operations to the tune of $1 million, according to Vice President William DeMars. The company recently added a new, 950-ton Toshiba press at its Rochester plant, and expects delivery of two 650-ton Toshibas in April.
Century also makes all its own tooling at Rochester.
Also, the firm will gain 13,000 square feet at its plant in Shelbyville, Tenn., increasing production and warehouse space there to 25,000 square feet. That operation, which does custom molding and mold maintenance and repair, will grow to accommodate mold making within one to 11/2 years, DeMars said in a Feb. 15 telephone interview. But, he said, Century has not decided whether it will expand at its current, leased Tennessee site, or build a larger facility.
The company will add three more injection molding machines, at Shelbyville, bringing its total there to eight, all Toshibas. The five presses already at the plant have clamping forces of 90-190 tons. But, DeMars said, ``With this expansion we're moving that up to 610 tons.''
Century has an extensive product line, but its biggest market is automotive, for which it molds under-the-hood parts, such as different variations of radiator end-tank components. The firm is a second-tier supplier to General Motors Corp.'s newly named Delphi Automotive Systems, formerly its Automotive Components Group Worldwide, based in Pontiac, Mich.
Among its other automotive customers are Calsonic Manufacturing Corp. of Shelbyville and Atoma International of Newmarket, Ontario, a unit of Canada's Magna International Inc.
The large-tonnage machines will give Century the capability to make larger parts, including shroud and heating, venting and air conditioning components, DeMars said.
``A lot of the tools we're building today are multicavity tools that are going to necessitate large-tonnage machines,'' he said.
DeMars reported 1994 sales of about $22 million. Sales have grown about 25 percent a year for the past four years, and DeMars said he expects sales to hit $27 million for fiscal 1995, ending May 31.
The Rochester plant, with 180 workers, will hire as many as 20 more this year, according to DeMars. It currently operates 32 presses with clamping forces of 30-950 tons. Shelbyville, which employs 30, will have a work force of about 50 by year's end.
The 17-year-old private firm designs prototypes and production tools, does insert and injection molding as well as decorative painting. Its other markets include computer and business machines, electrical/electronics and medical.
