FRI just keeps on growing

When the recession hit in 2007, many businesses floundered, but one local business continued to grow.
Fort Recovery Industries found itself in need of a new facility for its increasing work in aluminum high-pressure die casting.
“(There was a) growing market for more aluminum high-pressure die castings, particularly in automotive for higher gas mileage requirements, a drive toward more aluminum components,” said Barry Hounshell, vice president of manufacturing. “It is a growing market all by itself on that front.”
It just so happened Portland had a ready-made warehouse in its Industrial Park sitting vacant.
Moving to its new address on county road 100 North in 2011, the plant started with just a handful of employees working one machine.
It’s now installing its sixth work center, bringing its employee total to 40, with shifts around the clock five days a week.
The casting plant produces parts spanning automotive and appliance, as well as office furniture, electrical components, plumbing and refrigeration, through the process of shooting and clamping hot metal into a cold chamber to produce different pieces.
“I would be surprised if you don’t have a Fort Recovery Industries part in your home or your car,” said Hounshell.
The vast amount of prospective units that can be made means the opportunity for future expansion.
While the company isn’t planning any outer development, the Portland plant still has room for five to six machines to be installed in its building, which provides an opening for investment and addition of local jobs.
“They’re an astonishing operation in that regard, continuing to make investment and reinvestments in their company and their people,” said Jay County Development Corporation executive director Bill Bradley. “They’ve done a really good job trying to reach out and expand their markets.”
But that reinvestment can only happen if workers are available for the jobs that are created, which Jay County takes advantage of through local manufacturing training at Jay County High School.
While Fort Recovery Industries provides apprenticeship programs and training to those hired, Hounshell is impressed with what JCHS is teaching its students, especially in the thriving environment of manufacturing.
“From manufacturers, we’re very excited about that. It’s a need in the area,” said Hounshell.
“With manufacturing leading the economic recovery right now, those are the positions we need to be growing people into and preparing for, and the schools and the community leaders have recognized that.”
These roles are continuing to grow in Fort Recovery Industries’ workforce, with a high probability of additional machines being installed in the coming years, but with company executives unknowing of how large it could become.
“We’ve definitely helped the job market as far as a place to get a job,” said plant superintendent Matthew Minnich. “Really a lot of our roles are not minimum wage jobs; they are paying good wages for high technical jobs.”
Bradley agrees it’s nice to see the community recognize where the economy is prospering and how that can affect the workings of the county by keeping students after graduation.
“When you look at a county like Jay County, you still have about 30 percent of your workforce in manufacturing. I like to say you make and you grow things,” said Bradley.
“We want to become … a community that understands advanced manufacturing, be a participant in the future of manufacturing … which means skills.”
And if the community continues on the path it’s on and the demand remains high, Hounshell sees no quit in how much Fort Recovery Industries can grow and expand.
“We do expect growth to continue, little doubt, and continue to make investments in the community.”