Process Cooling Systems Inc. has broken ground on a project for its new headquarters in Leominster, Mass., that will allow the company to expand its engineering and manufacturing operations.
The 59,000-square-foot facility will include 49,000 square feet of manufacturing and a 10,000-square-foot office. The new headquarters, located in the Southgate Business Park on Research Drive, will replace Process Cooling's current 18,000-square-foot building on Nashua Street in Leominster as well as its second manufacturing and warehouse facility in Fitchburg, Mass.
Construction is expected to be completed in spring 2019.
Dan Rudy, project manager at Process Cooling, said the company is estimating a total investment of $6 million to $8 million in costs associated with the new facility, including office buildout, moving equipment and personnel development.
"We have outgrown our current office and manufacturing space, and that is limiting the expansion of our business," Rudy said in an email interview. "The plastics industry is fast paced and timeline driven, and we would rather turn down a job than miss a customer deadline."
Over the next five years, the company plans to add 16-20 new jobs for positions in office administration, mechanical and electrical engineering, and CAD as well as welders, fabricators, pipefitters, panel builders and service/refrigeration technicians. The company currently employs more than 60 full-time workers.
"This expansion will allow us to streamline our workflows and improve deliveries while maintaining the quality of the equipment and systems," Rudy said. "We will also create a more efficient manufacturing operation with the ability to store materials and manufacture equipment in one location.
Rudy said the new facility will also allow the company to grow its engineering and manufacturing departments to keep pace with business growth and provide additional space for staff training and development.
In addition, the company is planning to grow its Chesnee, S.C., facility, which offers light manufacturing capabilities, installation crews and a central parts inventory for customers in the southeastern United States.
"Our manufacturing and installation departments are busy, and we have a very positive outlook on projects currently in the quoting phase," he said. "We are very optimistic about the future and if the quality of leads we received from the NPE are any indication, we should have a strong finish to 2018 and a strong start to 2019."
Process Cooling manufactures central cooling systems, such as portable chillers, central cooling towers and chilled water systems, for the plastics industry and a broad range of industrial markets.
Customers include injection molders, blow molders, profile, film and sheet extruders, compounding extruders, thermoformers and recyclers, among others.
"Our goal has always been to help our customers succeed and grow their domestic operations to strengthen our country's manufacturing industry," Ted Rudy, Process Cooling's president, said in an email interview. "This investment in our new facility is a necessary step in that direction. … We are fortunate that we'll be able to continue to grow in the community where we live and work."