Houston-based Nupi Americas Inc., a plastics fabrication company, will invest $7 million to expand its operation in Early Branch, S.C., where it expects to create 30 new jobs, mostly producing pipe fittings.
Founded in 2001, the subsidiary of Italy-based Nupi Industrie Italiane SpA manufactures multilayer thermoplastic pipe and associated fittings for hot water, cold water and gasoline.
Nupi specializes in pressure fluid transport systems produced from polypropylene random copolymer with modified crystallinity and temperature resistance (PP-RCT) for commercial and industrial applications; dual containment piping systems for the fuel market; and high density polyethylene fittings for the water, gas, industrial and fire protection markets.
Nupi Americas has had a warehouse for products, which are sold under the Niron, Elofit and Smartflex brand names, and an operations center in Early Branch for about nine years.
The operations center includes engineers to model any pipe spool required for commercial, industrial and municipal projects and a fabrication department to manufacture the sub-assemblies.
The initial South Carolina facility was 100,000 square feet, the company website says.
The latest expansion, which is the third at the site, will expand production capabilities with additional tooling.
"The journey began in 2016 when we acquired the Hampton County spec building, initially focusing on importing goods from Italy. In 2020, our first expansion doubled the facility's size and allowed us to begin manufacturing pipes domestically," Nupi Americas President and CEO Marco Genoni said in a news release.
The third phase of the expansion, which will add 50,000 square feet, represents a capital investment of more than $7 million, Genoni said.
"It will enable us to produce fittings in the U.S., creating 30 new jobs and reducing reliance on imported goods," Genoni added. "By increasing local production, we aim to better support the growth of our plastic pressure fluid transport systems."
The expansion project should be completed in 2028.