Abrisa Technologies Invests in Glass Fabrication Business Model
Abrisa Technologies Santa Paula manufacturing facility is in expansion mode according to Jim Veler, President and CEO. Veler states "Our organization prides itself on providing our customers with the highest quality optical solutions available. He further goes on to explain, While other companies are just trying to weather this economic cycle, Abrisa Technologies is intent on reinventing ourselves as a modernized optical solutions company."
Abrisa Technologies has clearly been hard at work both internally and externally. Over the summer, the team at Abrisa Technologies has been busy capitalizing on lean manufacturing initiatives aimed at driving continuous improvement in both manufacturing and business processes. They have successfully reduced factory cycle times and customer service response times positioning the company to be not only customer service driven but highly competitive as well.
An additional internal investment was made when the company decided to take a bold step and consolidate their two glass fabrication facilities into one business entity. This move which will merge the manufacturing capability of the Sycamore Glass Components Division, located in Sycamore, Illinois into the Abrisa Industrial Glass Division located in Santa Paula, California will capitalize on the recent facility upgrades, while also streamlining purchasing efficiencies, improving buying power, shorten lead times, reduce overhead, and ultimately make Abrisa Technologies much more competitive, further improving upon customer satisfaction levels. Abrisa Technologies plans to maintain a large sales office and presence in the region in order to provide continued superior customer service to customers in the region.
Abrisa Technologies has made significant investments in the 100,000 square foot main glass fabrication factory in Santa Paula, California to better position the company in the strategic markets served. Expanding the clean room infrastructure, chemical strengthening and screen printing capabilities were instrumental in fueling the company's emergence as a key player in the North American industrial display market. The Santa Paula facility now has nearly 3,000 square feet of clean room area ranging from class 100 to class 10,000. All screen printing of optical products at Abrisa Technologies, including conductive, display, opaque and semi-transparent inks to custom colors using epoxy, enamel or ceramic-based inks are done within our clean rooms facilities. Typical applications include printing of gauges and instrumentation, display and touch panels, bus bars, icons, borders, logos, lettering, and more.
In addition to the clean room upgrade, Abrisa Technologies recently invested significant capital to increase their screen print capacity by 40% and increasing the panel size to 72h x 54h. In support of this larger format screen print capability Abrisa Technologies has purchased a large walk-in oven to supplement the existing thermal curing capability. The new oven has a curing temperature up to 500 degrees F, allowing for curing of large batches, improving the overall flexibility to complete longer product runs while increasing throughput. The oven additionally provides the company with the capability to cure large product up to 72in length.
According to Susan Hirst, VP and General Manager, "Re-investment in processing and fabrication technology, as well as upgrading our facilities overall capabilities is essential to not only maintain, but increase our competitiveness within the various markets we serve. In todayfs economy, only those optics companies that listen to the customer and respond rather than react will survive the fluctuating demand for fabricated components and optical coating services."
Hirst further states, "Additionally, these investments along with the successful customer engagements we have had in the market, have allowed us to reach an agreement with well known global glass manufacturers, to process, fabricate, and distribute their High Ion Exchange (HIE) substrates which best service the outdoor ruggedized display markets in North America. Based on these new agreements, which will be announced later this year, Abrisa Technologies has clearly positioned itself extremely well in the North American industrial display market."
According to Jim Veler, "Abrisa is emerging as a uniquely capable company in our targeted markets. Our aim is not just to reduce costs and become a lean operating company in order to improve our bottom line; it is to be able to offer an expanded portfolio of optics capabilities that target our customer needs in our target markets, while at the same time improving our customer service and responsiveness. Without them, Abrisa Technologies does not thrive and grow, with them and their continued product and service satisfaction, everyone wins."
About Abrisa Technologies: Abrisa Technologies is headquartered in Santa Paula, California and is comprised of three divisions that provide precision optical products and services. The divisions include; Abrisa Industrial Glass, Inc., Sycamore Glass Components, and ZC&R Coatings for Optics. As a market leader in optical coatings and high quality precision glass fabrication, Abrisa Technologies is dedicated to providing premier customer service and cost-effective products that fit each customer's exacting requirements. www.abrisatechnologies.com
