PPI announces $7.5 million expansion

The Brillion News

BRILLION – Professional Plating, Inc., a major player in the City of Brillion’s industrial base, announced Tuesday that it will begin a major expansion program in December.

The program is actually three linked projects, which will be pursued concurrently.

All will take place at the company’s current site, which borders Northway Drive, on the north side of West Ryan Street (U.S. 10). One new structure will be on the east side of Northway.

“It will be to the east [of the current plant] and north of the Wenzel Building,” said Professional Plating General Manager Larry Dietz.

The work will add over 60,000 square feet to the plant, bringing PPI’s total footprint to 210,000 square feet.

With the expansion, PPI will be adding a new zinc rack plating system that will begin production in the summer of 2016.

The value of the investment – a new building and the associated equipment – will exceed $7.5 million.

Professional Plating currently employs 190 people. The additional investment will result in up to 20 new jobs.

Keller Inc., of Kaukauna, was chosen as the design and build firm to handle the project. Keller has handled all of Professional Plating’s prior four expansion projects.

A Michigan firm, Jessup Engineering, was chosen to provide the new zinc rack plating line.

Professional Plating will also be relocating an existing 10,000 square foot building. It will go from the current location on the Northway Drive Campus to a new site across the street on Northway Drive.

That structure will also be modified and developed into a stand-alone industrial warehouse facility.

“The warehouse that’s going in there may lead to some additional industrial growth,” Dietz said. “Our small part in that larger footprint will potentially lead to other economic growth for Brillion.”

Professional Plating Inc. was established in 1979 when Bob and Pat Endries, founders of Endries International, sought a more reliable source of plating for the fasteners they supplied to their customers.

“Our team members are what drive our business,” Dietz said. “The ongoing growth and continued success of our company is a strong testament towards our team and our owner’s commitment to being a great company.”

Dietz also cited the company’s customer base, which is extremely diverse, as a factor in its success.

“We are blessed to have a very diverse group of customers, and we appreciate their trust in our team and the value that we provide to their companies,” Dietz said. “We serve over 400 different customers.”

Some, like Endries International and the Ariens Company, are major customers.

“They may be in our top 30 customer list, but they are not our largest,” Dietz said.

By diversifying its customer base, Professional Plating is not dependent upon one customer or one sector of customers for its business.

In a farmer’s terms, Professional Plating doesn’t have all of its eggs in one basket and is able to weather ups and downs in the business cycles affecting its customers.

PPI is owned by its founder, Bob Endries.

“The growth at Professional Plating is a strong reflection on the team that has been involved in any way, from our beginning in 1979 up through the years,” Endries said. “We are proud to continue to also expand our footprint and our commitment to the Brillion community and surrounding area. We appreciate the support of the city and (Calumet) county and we are very much looking forward to continuing to be a strong and thriving player in this area for a long and strong future.”

HOME GROWN HISTORY

1979 – The company was founded with a zinc plating operation consisting of a barrel line.

1983 – The company expanded its zinc plating capabilities by purchase a rack plating line.

1988 – The plant expanded by 12,000 square feet, adding an Acrylic E-Coat line and a new quality control laboratory.

1991 – The company added an Epoxy E-Coat line to expand options for its existing customers and attract new customers to its base.

1993 – A new building was added to allow for expansion of the rack zinc capacity, by adding a second line, more office space, increased customer storage and a separate maintenance area.

1998 – The company added a state-of-the-art powder coating system, including a 10-stage pre-treatment system.

2002 – The company updated its wastewater treatment capabilities, expanding it to 5,000 square feet.

2009 – The company built a 65,000 square foot addition, bringing the plant to 150,000 square feet total, and added a fully automated state-of-the-art zinc barrel plating line, with environmentally-friendly all-RoHs-compliant finishes.

2013 – The company retired an older rack zinc plating line in favor of a new, custom-built plating machine that improved efficiency and enhanced output quality.