Therma-Tru Doors will invest $20 million in new equipment at its Butler, Ind., facility over the next three years to increase production capabilities of its fiberglass products for single and multi-family housing.
The Maumee, Ohio-based company also will add about 100 more full-time employees during that time period. The factory currently has a workforce of 720 people. They make entry and patio door systems, including some from steel, but company spokeswoman Kathy Ziprik said, “fiberglass is No. 1 with them.”
Growing demand for top-line products, particularly entry doors, led to the decision to bring in more presses, Ziprik added. The first pieces are expected to arrive during the third quarter.
In all, eight presses will be added, including two this year, four in 2016 and two in 2017, according to the Indiana Economic Digest. The company declined to discuss details about its production, saying that its presses are a proprietary system.
The company needs to expand production at the 33-year-old facility to keep up with orders or it would run the risk of losing business, Plant Manager Brian Wirges told the Indiana Economic Digest. He also said the Butler plant is seeing all-time record sales “and we're anticipating very similar growth the next three years.”
Therma-Tru, which is owned by Fortune Brands Home & Security (FBHS), has a second manufacturing facility in Matamoras, Mexico. The company sells its entry and patio door systems through a national network of distributors, lumberyards and home centers. It also operates a synthetic millwork and molding manufacturer called Fypon.
Door sales were up 13 percent for FBHS with growth in both its wholesale and retail segments, according to its earnings statement for the third quarter of 2014, which are the latest figures available. FBHS posted net sales of $304.5 million for the first nine months of last year and operating profit of $21.7 million.
Headquartered in Deerfield, Ill., FBHS also does business in the cabinet, plumbing and home security segments, selling brand products such as MasterBrand cabinets, Moen faucets and SentrySafe. The latter brand was recently acquired while the company's former Simonton Windows business was sold to Ply Gem Holdings Inc. for about $130 million as part of a plan to refine the FBHS portfolio.
In Butler, the City Council approved a 10-year tax abatement for Therma-Tru Doors on Jan. 5. In turn, the business agreed not to contest future tax assessments in addition to making the $20 million investment. The door manufacturer withdrew a previous appeal that would have dealt a $100,000 blow to the city's budget, according to Butler City Attorney Gerald McNerney.