From Toledo Business Journal
TOLEDO, OH — After considering a number of competitive sites within a two-hour driving radius of Detroit, Egelhof Controls Corp., a German-based manufacturer serving the automotive and heating industries, has selected Toledo, Ohio, to house its U.S. headquarters and manufacturing operations. Cornel Broenner, currently at Egelhof’s production facility in Breitenbach, France, will relocate to Toledo to become the plant manager. Sales and engineering activities, which were established in metro Detroit in 2000, will also relocate to the new facility in Toledo.
Egelhof will lease 20,000 square feet of a 40,000 square foot facility currently under construction in North Cross Industrial Park. Bollin Label Systems, Inc., a Toledo company, will relocate to the other half of the building by May.
Egelhof has been awarded a 60 percent tax credit for a six-year term by the Ohio Department of Development in connection with this project. The value of the tax credit will be $171,509 over the term and the company would be required to maintain operations at the Toledo site for 16 years. Other state assistance committed for this project includes a $35,000 training program grant.
“We worked with the Regional Growth Partnership of Northwest Ohio,” stated Broenner. “They really helped us a lot in making this decision. They were pretty proactive and worked well with us.”
Broenner explained the incentives offered in Ohio ultimately were the deciding factor in selecting Toledo.
“For our size, Michigan did not provide very good incentives,” Broenner said. “They have their MEGA program, but it applies to bigger companies mostly. In Canada, from an incentive point-of-view, they are more focused on R&D credits than manufacturing.”
Egelhof looked very in-depth into Ontario, Canada, right at the end of the decision-making process. “There was a very high competition and we were very close to going to Canada. But the problem was the border,” Broenner explained. “A lot of political issues went into our decision-making.”
Egelhof plans to have its Toledo assembly line installed and operational by July. Approximately $2 to 3 million will be invested in the project. The facility will produce thermal expansion valves for the automotive market. Within three years, the company plans to have 35 employees at the site.
About 50 percent of the Egelhof Group’s current business is in the automotive market. The balance involves parts for thermostats for radiant water beaters, primarily in the European market where this heating method is more prevalent.
The parent company Otto Egelhof GmbH & Co. KG was founded in Fellbach, Germany near Stuttgart in 1938. Production facilities were then founded in Seltz, France in 1961 and in Breitenbach, France in 1980. Egelhof-China, located in Shanghai, was founded in 1998. Egelhof Controls Corp, was founded in Farmington Hills, Michigan in 2000. Suzhou-Egelhof was then formed in 2002 in China.
According to Egelhof, its facilities have been certified in accordance with the following standards: ISO 9001, QS-9000, VDA 6.1, ISO TS 16949, and ISO 14001. The certification of the Toledo facility is planned for May 2005.
Egelhof’s current customers in the automotive industry include: BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Fiat, Ford, OPEL/GM, Peugeot, Porsche, Renault, VW, and Volvo. The company also serves manufacturers of air- conditioning units such as Behr, Delphi, Valeo, and Visteon. Egelhof’s heating sector delivers parts to the following commercial market segments: non-freezing air conditioning units, pressure and temperature bellows, gas control units, safety engineering, and ventilation. Copyright Telex Communications, Inc. Dec 01, 2004
Copyright 2005 Toledo Business Journal. All Rights Reserved.
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