Hussey Seating, reinvesting in its business, buys Sanford industrial space
Photo / Tim Greenway
Hussey Seating President and CEO Gary Merrill announced Tuesday that the company has purchased a 45,000-square-foot industrial building in Sanford.
Hussey Seating Co., headquartered in North Berwick, has acquired a 45,000-square-foot industrial building at 90 Community Drive in Sanford.
The facility, much of which had been leased by Hussey for warehousing, is zoned for industrial use. The company invested in the property as part of a multi-year, $8.2 million project to enhance its manufacturing capabilities, according to a news release Tuesday. The Sanford site is nine miles, or about a 17-minute drive, from the North Berwick headquarters.
Hussey received a $2.8 million matching grant from the Maine Technology Institute in April 2018 in support of that effort.
“This move addresses one of our key needs right now — and that’s room to grow,” President and CEO Gary Merrill said in the release. “Our markets are strong and demand for our products is high. So we need additional warehouse space, as well as room to accommodate the development and implementation of the new tools and processes we’re planning to upgrade our manufacturing capabilities.”
Hussey Seating Co. manufactures seating systems for a variety of venues, including school gymnasiums, college and professional sport stadiums, arenas, convention centers and performing arts auditoriums. Its largest project comprised 120,000 seats for fixed systems at Arrowhead Stadium, home of the Kansas City Chiefs, and, next door, Kauffman Stadium, home of the Kansas City Royals.
Hussey has had continual year-over-year growth since the recession, and in 2017 earned record annual revenues of more than $100 million. Of that amount, 98% was generated outside the state of Maine.
Satellite facility
The bulk of Hussey Seating’s manufacturing activities will continue to be based in North Berwick.
“This new space is a satellite facility for us,” Merrill said. “The 300-plus employees at our North Berwick campus will continue to be our manufacturing base.”
Hussey has been leasing space in the building for over 10 years, gradually increasing its occupancy over time. At the time of closing, the company was the sole occupant of the facility.
“With our space needs increasing, at some point it just makes sense to buy rather than lease,” said Merrill. “This facility is a nice fit for us.”
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