Manitowoc plastics manufacturer lands federal contract to aid physics research

By: Michelle Turcotte, Herald Times Reporter

Name of business: Extrutech Plastics, Inc.

Ownership: Chief Executive Officer Hilmar O. Skagfield owns Extrutech Plastics in Manitowoc and Skandia Window Fashions based in Tallahassee, Fla., with additional plants in San Diego and Thomasville, Ga.

Origins of business: Greg and Debbie Sheehy founded Extrutech Plastics in 1992.

"We began with one used extrusion line in a rented building in Manitowoc," President Greg Sheehy said. "The business was acquired by the Skandia corporation in 2004 as a subsidiary."

Skandia, which began in 1966, manufactures high-quality interior window coverings for residential and commercial markets. Their initial working relationship with Extrutech began when they needed plastic parts to produce plantation shutters.

"It is a great fit," said Skagfield. "We had a lot of chemistry and a similar way of running a business. Extrutech is run by great people and we've been extremely pleased."

Location: 5902 W. Custer St., Manitowoc

Phone number: (920) 684-9650 or 888-818-0118

Web site: www.epiplastics04.com

Hours and days of operation: 24 hours per day, Monday to Friday

Services provided-products sold: The extrusion process is a heat and pressure combination. An over-simplified description of the precise process is resin is first heated, pushed through a stainless-steel die, and then a calibrator that cools and sizes the panels.

Extrutech Plastics manufactures plastic wall and ceiling panels, doors, decking, molding and trim, door and window frames, interior shutters, storage sheds and several specialty and custom extrusions.

Their latest custom order is a huge undertaking, literally and figuratively. Extrutech Plastics recently was awarded a $9.3 million contract with Fermilab funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Extrutech will manufacture more than 25,000 51-foot reflective extrusion panels for Fermilab's NOvA neutrino detector project.

"It's mind-boggling when you look at the numbers," said NOvA project manager Chuck Grozis, Extrutech's senior project engineer. "Lay the panels end-to-end and you have 242 miles of extrusions, enough to go from Manitowoc to Chicago and back, with two miles to spare."

The stacked PVC panels will form an elongated cube more than 50-feet tall — the detector. It will weigh 14,000 tons when its cells are filled with more than 3 million gallons of mineral oil, or liquid scintillator.

Neutrinos first measured in Fermilab's "near detector" in Batavia, Ill., will travel through the earth to the "far detector" (manufactured at Extrutech) in Northern Minnesota.

The Illinois lab, a unit of the U.S. Department of Energy, conducts basic research in particle physics. The NOvA experiment is designed to learn more about neutrino properties, which are among the most abundant particles in the universe.

"This is a one-of-a-kind detector," Grozis said. "A detector this size has never been built anywhere before."
Extrutech is adding an extrusion line just for the NOvA project to its existing 20 production lines because a larger extruder is required to manufacture the 51-foot panels.

Grozis said the extruder should arrive this month and production begins in May. The project also requires Extrutech Plastics to increase its staff with new quality control, material handling and warehouse employees, and increases business for their suppliers.

How has business changed since opening: "Extrutech was started in 1992 with one extruder and 4,000 feet of rented space," said Sheehy. "It has grown to 21 extrusion lines with over 100 product lines in a 162,000 square-foot modern manufacturing facility with 48 dedicated employees."

Who are the customers and from where: Extrutech Plastics primarily serves the agriculture, building and construction, office furniture, electrical systems and car wash industries.

They specialize in plastic wall and ceiling panels for use in wet or sterile environments such as car washes, food processing plants, laboratories and clean rooms. Extrutech's products have been installed in all 50 states, plus Canada, Mexico, Australia, England, Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Who or what is the competition: Other plastic extrusion companies.

How is marketing done: The Extrutech Plastics sales staff attends about 24 trade shows yearly throughout the U.S. and Canada promoting their products. They also advertise heavily in national trade magazines, send thousands of product samples and literature to potential customers, and run a Web site that draws thousands of requests each year.

"Our strongest asset, though, is our staff," Sheehy said. "We have a very strong sales and customer service staff that cares about each customer. We answer each phone call with a human voice by the third ring, which we think is very important in building good relations."

Sheehy also believes strong word-of-mouth from customers is important. "Once our customers install our products, they love it and become our best outside sales force," he said.

What are the keys to future success: Extrutech Plastics' mission is to listen to customers and provide high-quality products at a fair price and on time. They strive to improve their operation by implementing the latest technology in their manufacturing and office systems.

"Never say, 'good enough,' always strive to improve something," Sheehy said. "The most important key to success is always being truthful with your customers and your employees 100 percent of the time. Trust builds relationships that last a lifetime."

Factors under control or not under control of ownership: As with any business, economic fluctuations and government regulations are out of the control of ownership.

"Costs continue to rise for all businesses, just like for our families, but we are not able to raise our selling prices to match these new costs," Sheehy said.

"We do have control of the quality of the products we produce and sell, and the manner in which we conduct our business," he said. "We are a faith-based company and always try to do what is right."

What is the role of creativity: Sheehy said Extrutech seeks to be creative and unafraid to take risks in the products they offer to expand their customer base.

"Creativity is huge," he said. "If you're not innovative and able to create new products … the competition, both domestic and foreign, will sneak up on you."

What is challenging or frustrating: Sheehy said it is frustrating to see the U.S. manufacturing base slowly moved overseas to low-cost countries.

"We are slowly losing our manufacturing edge," he said. "We need to promote domestic manufacturing in our schools so the young understand how important it is to our economy and the overall strength of our nation."

Sheehy adds he would be open to bringing in students from local technical and high schools to tour the plant for that very purpose.

What is enjoyable: Sheehy has enjoyed watching the company he founded grow over the years.

"Watching the younger employees grow in their positions and take a real heartfelt interest in the success of the business is enjoyable," he said. "Extrutech has that core staff of people that really make the company hum today and into the future."

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