HarbisonWalker International Breaks Ground for New Monolithics Refractory Plant at The Point Industrial Park in Lawrence County, Ohio

State-of-the-art refractory plant is scheduled to open in early 2018

Moon Township, Pennsylvania – June 8, 2017 – Today representatives from HarbisonWalker International (HWI), the largest supplier of refractory products and services in the U.S., joined with local business and government leaders at The Point Industrial Park in South Point, Lawrence County, Ohio to break ground for construction of its new, state-of-the-art monolithic refractories manufacturing facility.

“Our new South Point Plant exemplifies the future of our company and in many ways, the future of the US refractories industry. We’re leveraging our 150 years of leadership and expertise to reinvent how we produce and deliver quality monolithic products. The new plant will have a positive impact on product consistency and quality, availability, ordering, packaging and support. We are thrilled to officially launch this very important initiative today,” said Stephen Delo, chairman and CEO, HarbisonWalker International.

At the event, HWI also introduced Kirk Donges of TSHD Architects as architect for the building and Mullins Construction as the builder. Lawrence Economic Development Corporation (LEDC) will provide building construction management services.

HWI will begin posting job descriptions and requirements for plant leadership positions at South Point in Summer 2017. Remaining positions are still being determined. In the meantime, the company directed interested individuals to its website at http://harbisonwalker.staging.wpengine.com/south-point-plant/ for ongoing updates.

HWI announced in February 2017 that it is investing $30 million to build a technologically advanced monolithics plant as the next step in its strategy to continuously improve performance and respond to customers’ needs. The new facility will be one of the most technologically advanced refractories plants built in the U.S. and will be operational by early 2018.

The plant’s South Point location offers unique transportation, logistics, and business amenities that combine to create an ideal and cost-effective match for the requirements of the new facility. The intermodal transportation features at The Point will ensure efficient delivery of raw materials from nearby suppliers and finished products to customers. The site offers efficiencies that are not possible elsewhere. Close proximity to suppliers, a supporting infrastructure, incentives, and the potential for long-term partnerships in the area also led to the location selection.

HWI expects initial capacity at the new monolithic plant to be approximately 80,000 metric tons per year. The plant will feature new state-of-the-art automation and technology, and will utilize new lean techniques throughout its operations to maximize material flow efficiency and production. It will employ highly-trained and highly-skilled technicians and staff in a team-based environment. In addition, the facility will introduce advanced packaging technologies that are new to the North American market.

For HWI, the new plant will enable the company to further elevate product quality and consistency, and it illustrates the company’s forward-thinking strategy to harness new technology and invest for future growth.

Additional details about the new facility and construction plans will be announced as they become available. For more information, visit http://harbisonwalker.staging.wpengine.com/south-point-plant.