Area Development
Heavy duty vehicle lift leader, Stertil-Koni, a brand of the Stertil Group, reported that it completed a planned 36,000 square foot expansion at its U.S. production facility located in Streator, Illinois. The project is designed to deliver enhanced flow and efficiencies in the production of the company’s highly regarded heavy duty in-ground vehicle lifting systems.

The completion of the expanded facility follows the purchase in 2014 by the Stertil Group of a 4.5 acre parcel adjacent to Stertil ALM’s existing manufacturing plant. Moving swiftly, the company broke ground on the project in March of 2015 and anticipates full completion of the individual work centers and equipment to support those production areas by the second quarter of 2016.

Stertil-Koni USA Inc. President, Dr. Jean DellAmore, stated, “While many companies today may look overseas to outsource their manufacturing requirements in the face of heightened demand, the Stertil Group is investing right here at home in America -- in plant, equipment and employment. The expansion of our vehicle lift production facility in Streator is in direct response to the North American marketplace and reflects the strong growing demand for our entire range of products, notably our in-ground lifting systems.”

Allan Pavlick, Vice President of Stertil ALM said, “The plant expansion has been specifically engineered to improve the flow of goods through the lift manufacturing and assembly process, reduce the physical handling time in between the multiple work centers, and keep costs down by reducing product throughput. The net result will be even higher quality and value for our customers.”

Company officials said, the expansion also comes on the heels of several additional enhancements to the existing facility, including an additional 14,000 square feet of production space added in 2011, including a new training center. Stertil ALM also recently purchased and brought online a world-class cutting machine that utilizes a combination of plasma and oxy-fuel torches coupled with a state-of-the-art PC-based, touch screen controller for extremely fast, high-precision manufacturing – a major milestone in ALM’s strategic migration towards in-sourcing.

Stertil-ALM also purchased and installed an additional CNC machining center and a high capacity overhead crane to its facility in 2014.

Dr. DellAmore added, “The entire Stertil Group is extremely proud of our commitment to providing exceptional design, production and performance in the demanding world of heavy duty vehicle lifting systems. Our approach – one in which our engineers begin with the customers in mind, and then build the very best vehicle lifting systems to meet all their requirements – is aptly called ‘Freedom of Choice.’ We are extremely gratified that the marketplace response has been very strong and continues to grow.”