Feb, 23 2010 | HarborTech Adds Workers, Wins Prize
BRUNSWICK - Composites manufacturer Harbor Technologies LLC has nearly doubled its work force in recent months, with 12 new hires already on board and an additional four expected within weeks.
The company — which makes composites for the marine and infrastructure markets — has experienced an increased demand for its composite pilings and floats, and anticipates additional growth due to the success of its award-winning Hybrid Composite Bridge Beam.
The expanded work force — which currently numbers 32 employees — is part of the “aggressive growth” hoped for since the company was formed seven years ago, sales and marketing director Erik Grimnes said Monday. Additional growth is anticipated, he said, based on the number of bids and projects seen recently.
Earlier this month, Harbor Technologies received the 2010 American Composites Manufacturing Association Award for Composites Excellence in the category “Infinite Possibility” for the Hybrid Composite Bridge Beam.
anufactured at the company’s Brunswick plant, the beam is essentially a hollow fiberglass shell with an internal arch, Grimnes said Monday. Once a beam is installed, a concrete truck fills the hollow shell, saving installation costs for the contractor.
According to company literature, the beam has an extended service life with minimal or no maintenance.
Harbor Technologies is currently manufacturing 64 of the beams for the Knickerbocker Bridge in Boothbay, Grimnes said. “On the heels of that, we hope to have a number of other bridges in the country, which will hopefully facilitate the hiring process,” Grimnes said.
The company continues to see an increase in demand for its composites pilings and floats for the marine industry. In response to that demand, Harbor Technologies has hired more composites technicians.
Many of the recent hires trained at the Maine Advanced Technology Center program at Southern Maine Community College in Brunswick. Others were former employees of boatbuilders, who Grimnes said “are good with their hands, and with equipment and tools.”
“They certainly have the skill sets needed because they come from the composites background,” Grimnes said. “It’s been very rewarding to pick up people who work in that struggling business.”
bbrogan@timesrecord.com