April 3, 2006
MiBiz West
Karen Gentry

SPRING LAKE — TGW ERMANCO Inc., a supplier of material handling systems and equipment, opened an assembly and technology center (ATC) on Grand Haven Road near its corporate headquarters in Spring Lake. The 70,000-squre-foot facility in the former Concord Plastics Corp. plant expands the company’s current office and manufacturing space by 75 percent.

The center was needed to handle the assembly of TGW ERMANCO’S new ULC (Unit Low Conveyor). The building will also will also accommodate The Conveyor Institute classes and a demonstration and application testing area for operating carton, tote and unit load systems.

TGW ERMANCO Vice President Gordon Hellberg said his company is rolling out ULC at NA 2006 in Cleveland, a material handling show. The new conveyor system could lead to “considerable growth” for the company and more employees.

“We will have a demonstration booth for ULC, which will be the centerpiece of our booth at the show,” said TGW ERMANCO Director of Business Development Dave VandeKopple.

TGW-ERMANCO began manufacturing ULC in its Spring Lake facility early this year. ULC is a rugged unit load conveyor that has been made by TGW in Austria and used in Europe for more than 25 years. VandeKopple said that production of ULC in the United States will make this unit load handling technology available in North America with short lead times complemented by U.S. –based engineering, application, parts and service.

The ULC line is comprised of all the modular components and accessories needed for a complete unit load handling system. Technologies include transportation and accumulation conveyors, transfers, lifts, transfer cars, turntables and accessories. ULC can transport and accumulate loads up to 3,300 pounds.

The first conveyor system shipped in early March to a North American customer. A second much bigger order with a large quantity of conveyors scheduled to be shipped this month.

The new ATC in the former injection molding facility follows on the heels of the acquisition of ERMANCO Inc. by Austria-based TGW Transporterate GmbH last August. The company also acquired the intellectual property of Quantam Conveyors LLC, making the company the exclusive manufacturer of narrow belt sortation technology in North America.

“One of the things we were known for was more light- to medium-duty conveyors and conveying systems. One of the great things about the merger with TGW is that one of their strengths is heavier loads and pallets,” Hellberg told MiBiz. Combining TGW and ERMANCO helps “keep the rich history of both brands.”

TGW ERMANCO’s customers are systems integrators primarily in the automated distribution centers. Hellberg said U.S. operations will become more like Europe’s, which are regarded as more efficient and automated.
“I believe we’ll see more automation in how we do order fulfillment,” Hellberg said.

Since the acquisition the number of employees in Spring Lake increased from 180 to over 200. New employees include engineers, project managers, designers, sales staff and assemblers. Hellberg said the company expects continued annual growth of 10-15 percent.

TGW is a leader in automated materials handling and storage systems with an emphasis on mechanics and logistics. The company has subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Spain and employs 500 worldwide. TGW and its business partners provide installations ranging from small material handling solutions to fully automated distribution centers.

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This article appeared in the April 3, 2006 issue of MiBiz, read by upper management executives in West and Southwest Michigan. Print subscriptions are free to qualified individuals who do business in West and Southwest Michigan. For further information about MiBiz Network, visit www.mibiz.com.