Perham, Minn.-based Industrial Finishing Services Inc. recently completed a $4.5 million expansion to its trio of painting and coating facilities, effectively quadrupling the firm's capacity to do what officials say it does best: painting things no one else can.
``That's how we make our living,'' IFS sales manager Dan Hoffman said by telephone.
With the expansion, the $10 million company brought its manufacturing and warehouse space to more than 100,000 square feet, and now has the capacity to handle upward of $25 million in business.
In addition to the Perham headquarters, IFS also has painting facilities in nearby Deer Creek and New York Mills, Minn. All three plants are within 20 miles of one another.
The company specializes in electro-coating, chromate, powder and liquid coating services.
While plastic parts were just a fraction of the company's business during its formative years, that segment has grown from 25 percent, to about 60 percent of IFS' coating work, Hoffman said.
``And I expect it to become 75-80 percent, just because of the capacity of the system,'' he said.
IFS' resume includes the iconic John Deere green tractor housings, which the company paints for molder Bemis Manufacturing Co. of Sheboygan Falls, Wis.
IFS President DuWayne Roberts said the painting industry has become more specialized. The company's recent expansion will help it capitalize on new business opportunities, he said. The company is growing by 35 percent annually.
``It's pretty admirable to be experiencing that kind of growth in not the rosiest of economies,'' Roberts said.
The company will continue to pursue new markets including large truck parts, other automotive applications, and lawn and garden products.
``There are a lot of other areas we can capitalize on, given the flexibilities [of] our system,'' Roberts said. ``I think we'll be successful moving forward.''