Valencia, Calif.-based Valencia Pipe Co. will open a 51,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Walla Walla, Wash., to meet demand in the Pacific Northwest and Canada from homebuilders and consumers.
The division of VPC Global closed on the purchase of buildings and land with rail access on May 4 and will begin installing extrusion lines as soon as possible. The plan is to replicate the company's Kingman, Ariz., facility and start production in 60 days.
The 160,000-square-foot Kingman plant opened in 2017 to produce ABS pipe in diameters of 1½ inches to 6 inches for drain, waste and vent applications as well as underground medium density polyethylene gas pipe. The facility now has 20 extrusion lines.
A second manufacturing plant with six to eight lines is needed to meet increased demand across the board, VPC CEO Andrew Dervin said in an email.
The company sells to retailers and plumbing and irrigation wholesalers.
"Despite the COVID pandemic and resulting supply chain disruptions, we have enjoyed significant growth in the past several years," Dervin said. "I believe there is no better time than the present to expand our manufacturing capacity, particularly as home builders attempt to catch up with the burgeoning new home demand."
VPC currently manufactures ABS DWV pipe with a cellular foam core and a solid wall in Kingman as well as PVC and MDPE pipe in diameters of a half-inch to 2 inches.
VPC also operates a 170,000-square-foot distribution facility in Valencia.
In addition, the company sells steel pipe and HomeFlex-brand corrugated stainless steel tubing, pipe, fittings and connectors for gas appliances. The HomeFlex products are manufactured overseas for VPC.
The new facility in Walla Walla previously housed an agricultural operation. Dervin said the building only needs some minor infrastructure improvement to accommodate extrusion processes. He expects "immediate setup of six lines with Phase II adding more."
Dervin said the new facility represents a multimillion-dollar investment that will create 25 jobs in the near term and up to 50 over time.
The company has 60 employees in Kingman and 150 overall.
Valencia was No. 61, with sales of $51 million, in the most recent Plastics News ranking of North American pipe, profile and tubing extruders.