In a $2.3 million project, Advanced Thermoplastic Composites Inc. has added equipment and more than tripled its space.
Primarily an aerospace supplier, the firm purchased a 19,000-square-foot building in Spokane, Wash., about four miles from its previous location. The company paid about $1.1 million for the site in late 2007 and has invested $200,000 in infrastructure improvements. Dan Jorgenson, president and chief executive officer, said the firm bought equipment worth about $1 million.
ATC acquired three 30-ton Accudyne compression presses to go with a 150-ton Accudyne it was operating. ATC had one computer numerically controlled, vertical machining center from Haas and added four more Haas mills.
The firm invested in two Techno CNC routers and two from AXYZ, with a third AXYZ en route.
Engineered materials units of Cytec Industries Inc. in Tempe, Ariz., and Royal TenCate NV in Morgan Hill, Calif., supply ATC with laminated woven fabrics. ATC makes hydraulic and electrical system brackets, flooring support systems and wing flex tabs and skirts for Boeing commercial aircraft including the 777, 737 and emerging 787 Dreamliner models. The firm also is exploring the lightweight-jet-aircraft market.
By August, ATC intends to operate a paperless production floor, optically scan parts to check dimensions and offer nondestructive-inspection scanning. It aims soon to incorporate a part maker's biometric data into each component for tracing the individual building the part.
ATC employs 12, is certified under the AS 9100 aerospace quality standard and had 2007 sales of $1.7 million.
By 2012, Jorgenson said he expects up to $10 million in sales.
