Tessy Plastics Corp. is looking to buy a building in Auburn, N.Y., that housed a company that moved manufacturing to Mexico earlier this year.
Tessy, based in nearby Elbridge, N.Y., in the Syracuse area, has submitted a proposal to Cayuga County officials saying the custom injection molder is “very seriously evaluating” purchasing the building on a 31-acre site. Tessy initially would use the building as a warehouse, but the long-term plan is to manufacture consumer products, such as underarm deodorant packaging, there.
Deodorant packaging is a big market for Tessy. In its application to buy the building in Auburn, officials said the company manufactures 400 million deodorant containers a year, which are shipped to customer plants in the Carolinas for filling and distribution throughout the United States.
The company is adding a 250,000-square-foot expansion to its factory in Van Buren, N.Y. — nearly doubling the size of that factory — as it brings molding and assembly of the deodorant packaging into a central location.
Daikin Applied, a maker of commercial heating, ventilating and air conditioning equipment, moved from Auburn to San Luis Potosí, Mexico, in February, eliminating about 300 jobs in Auburn.
It's not the first time that Tessy has purchased facilities from local companies that had closed down. Tessy bought the Van Buren building in 2010. It had formerly housed the Syroco outdoor furniture factory.
Tracy Verrier, executive director of the Cayuga Economic Development Agency, said Tessy has remained in the Central New York area and invested in production there.
“They're a company that is based here and continues to grow here. And despite opportunities to go elsewhere, they've always stayed loyal to this area,” she said. Tessy's application to the Auburn Industrial Development Authority says the company employs 950 people in the region, and has invested $145 million in property and equipment there since 2005.
In its AIDA application, Tessy said it would acquire the Auburn building for $8 million, and invest another $2.8 million to do deferred maintenance, including cleaning, upgrading the sprinkler system, installing a new roof, racking, security, information systems and signage.
Tessy currently leases more than 200,000 square feet of warehouse space at several locations, and most leases are terminating in December, according to the application. If the sale goes through, Tessy would use the Auburn building for warehouse and not renew existing leases. “Thus, time is of the essence,” the company said.
The company has applied for sales and property tax relief to buy the building.
Longer-term, Tessy would add manufacturing at the Auburn facility — which the AIDA application said would require investing $7.5 million in equipment and another $790,000 into the building.
Tessy officials said the assembly of the deodorant containers uses high-speed automation.
“We really appreciate that they're looking to stay in the area and we're happy they've continued to grow,” Verrier said.