Pipe distributor Isco Industries LLC opened a new fabrication plant near its Louisville, Ky., headquarters, its seventh such facility, and the latest in recent efforts to expand its footprint.
Isco, which claims to be the largest distributor and supplier of high density polyethylene pipe products, opened another new fabrication plant near Baltimore last year, as well as three distribution hubs in Lincoln, Neb.; Lomira, Wis.; and Crossfield, Alberta.
In total, the company has 20 North American distribution centers and employs more than 200.
The company is also in the midst of renovating its corporate offices near downtown Louisville.
The pipe distributor consolidated operations at three smaller facilities in Louisville into a new 20,000-square-foot building, according to an Isco news release.
Isco sells smooth-wall pressure pipe in virtually every available diameter, including 63-inch-diameter pipe, which is new to U.S. pipe makers this year. Isco sells pipe made from a variety of manufacturers spread throughout North America. The company also fabricates and sells pipe fittings, and sells and leases pipe fusion equipment.
Isco President Jimmy Kirchdorfer likes his firm's position as a distributor of HDPE pipe - a product he feels is superior to competing materials, but still at the bottom of its growth curve with the least amount of market share.
``It's the fastest growing, but still small compared to metal and other plastics, like PVC,'' Kirchdorfer said in an Aug. 16 telephone interview. ``But it's the best product out there. We're putting all our eggs in the HDPE basket, so to speak.''
