A manufacturer with a history in Auburn that goes back to 1938 is making a new effort to raise its profile as it prepares for future growth.
Auburn Gear will open its doors to the public Oct. 17 for tours and an open house inspired by, but not held on the same date as, National Manufacturing Day.
“Even as many years as I’ve been in the community, I run into people in Auburn and Fort Wayne that don’t know who Auburn Gear is,” said Marty Palmer, who has been CEO for more than seven years and is a partner in the business.
As it looks to begin hiring after the first of the year, and moves toward its goal of doubling its revenues by 2020, Auburn Gear is raising its profile as part of its growth strategy.
“As you’re recruiting, it really helps to have a knowledge in the community of who you are and what you do to drive interest,” Palmer said.
The company wants to send a message, especially to high school and middle school students, that there are good jobs available in the manufacturing sector.
The plant was founded as Warner Gear, a division of Borg-Warner. It was sold to George Callas in 1982 and became the privately owned Auburn Gear Inc. Investment firm, North River Capital bought the majority stake in the business in September 20140 and it is now Auburn Gear LLC.
It was Auburn Gear’s growth potential that attracted North River Capital’s investment, said partner Grant Shultz. The firm isn’t interested in buying companies that need to be turned around. It wants companies “that have the ability to grow, but may just need some capital,” he said.
The company began its life as a manufacturer of gears for automotive and marine uses for Borg-Warner’s transmission group.
But in the late 1960s and 1970s, it transitioned to become a specialty provider of planetary gear drives used in agricultural, marine, construction and military applications.
“We were really innovative in North America in starting that whole product line,” Palmer said. Auburn Gear also produces high performance differentials for off-highway racing and other “weekend warrior” markets.
The company has a diverse base of about 250 customers. About 85 percent of its business is in North America, but it also sells internationally.
“We tend to be designing a very diverse, custom solution. Very rarely do we sell any planetary solution to any two customers,” Palmer said.
Customers provide specs. Then, Auburn Gear designs and produces whatever is needed to meet the customers’ needs.
“We’re vertically integrated. We can do every application or process in-house except paint,” Palmer noted.
Depending on the customer, Auburn Gear may make a few dozen or a few thousand of any particular piece. It has designed many of its castings and forgings so they don’t have to be retooled every time, giving it a quicker turnaround on products. While a major production program for a company such as John Deere might be 18 months to two years in the making, smaller programs can go from design to prototype in just eight weeks, Palmer said.
The company has invested in advanced manufacturing equipment – including robotics – to produce its products more efficiently. Its business also requires mechanical engineers and skilled computer numeric controlled equipment operators. In the past, it has done a lot of its training in-house, Palmer said, but now it is working with Ivy Tech Community College Northeast and other institutions to try and bring more new workers in with at least two-year technical degrees.
The company’s revenues doubled between 2010 and 2015, and its workforce increased 40 percent, to about 175. Although Palmer didn’t want to provide specifics on wages, he said the company does wage surveys each year to make sure it is competitive.