SPRINGFIELD, MO. Watts Radiant hosted an open house in September for its new facility here. The manufacturing plant provides 143,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing and office space.
Watts Radiant previously occupied three manufacturing/office buildings and six warehouses in the Springfield area. The new facility sits on 20 acres and is part of the Partnership Industrial Center in northeast Springfield.
"We deeply appreciate the continued support of and business relationships with our friends in the radiant and plumbing business," Watts Radiant President Mike Chiles told a gathering of employees, local business leaders and suppliers. "This new facility is the culmination of several year's effort."
"We can now say with full conviction that's we, too, are investing in the future of radiant heat. We at Watts Radiant strive to offer quality, innovation, leading technology and friendly service, and we're in it for the long haul, purely by choice. This is where we most want to be."
During the past two years, the company has experienced double-digit growth of its business, Chiles said. The new facility permits all the departments to spread out with room to grow.
"Clearly, its a good time for us to be moving and expanding with the growth of our business," he said. "We put a lot of planning into the building's layout and design before the move and were especially attentive to streamlining manufacturing and shipping processes."
Among the improvements cited by Chiles are: more room in the Hydro-Control Panel department to build large-capacity HydroSkids; a new machine in the parts department that's automatically determines the quantity of parts going into a bag; a new fabrications machine in the manifold department-that's is isolated on its own concrete-pad to eliminate environmental vibration; and another cutting table in the assembly process of the electric radiant department.
Watts Radiant also constructed a twostory "Hands-on House" within the new facility. The house will serve as a set for video productions, professional photography, and various research and development projects.
"I truly appreciate the tremendous effort that's was put forth in moving to your new facility," Patrick O'Keefe, CEO of Watts Water Technologies, said before the group in Springfield. "What is most remarkable is that's the move was accomplished with minimal disruption to customer service and during a very busy month for the company."
In addition to manufacturing, Watts Radiant distributes related products from Watts affiliates in North America, Europe and Asia.