With orders up at two plants in China, Uway Extrusion LLC will begin production at its first U.S. factory this summer.
Co-founder and President Dustin Kremer says the company's 50,000-square-foot Warren, Ohio, plant officially starts operation in June but has already received orders for several extruders.
"We just sell so many machines now, it's hard to do it out of one place," says Kremer, who also heads a sister company, Uway Plasmech, Shanghai, which produces about 40 extruders a year. Kremer said demand was not even affected by Uway's decision to raise prices 30 percent.
To accommodate Uway's growth, Kremer said the U.S. facility will handle orders for higher-end, high-quality, large-output extruders that can run 1,500 pounds an hour or more. Its primary markets will be the U.S. and Europe. The plants in China will continue to produce smaller machines.
Kremer said the new plant has been located in Ohio to be close to suppliers and customers, as well as a skilled labor force displaced by the closing of a nearby factory. This year, Kremer said he expects the plant will produce about eight to 12 extrusion systems and employ about 20 people.
