Brookfield-based
Milwaukee Tool plans to continue its recent expansion by adding a new service hub just south of Indianapolis.
The company said it would invest $6.75 million for the 150,000-square-foot facility in Greenwood, Indiana. The service hub will eventually employ more than 450 people and is expected to be operational by March 2021.
Milwaukee Tool also has a service hub in Greenwood, Mississippi, but the company said adding a second repair facility will allow it to improve service response times.
“As we grow, we continue to invest in the right opportunities and talent that will allow us to deliver the very best solutions and overall experience for our users and distribution partners,” said Steve Richman, group president of Milwaukee Tool. “We are committed to unprecedented speed, agility, innovation, and quality. This new service hub will play a critical role in our continuing to deliver on these commitments.”
Milwaukee Tool has grown dramatically over the last decade by emphasizing new product development in cordless power tools and expansion into new product categories.
The company added hundreds of employees at its Brookfield headquarters over the course of two expansions and is now in the process of expanding to a
second campus in Menomonee Falls.
Milwaukee Tool has also acquired two Wisconsin manufacturers over the years, Empire Level in Mukwonago and, more recently, Imperial Blades in Sun Prairie. In January, the company announced plans for a hand tool manufacturing facility in West Bend.
Milwaukee Tool reported a 13.3% increase in revenue during the first half of the year, including 12.8% growth in North America, when it revealed interim results in August.
Joe Galli Jr., chief executive officer of Milwaukee Tool’s Hong Kong-based parent company Techtronic Industries, said the company chose in ramp up its manufacturing process, accelerate product development and expand its sales force despite the onset of the coronavirus. He said TTI spent a great deal of time listening to customers and sales teams about the direction of the business in March and April.
“What became clear to us was yes, the virus was a global issue but that didn’t mean that our customers weren’t going to sell our products and consumers weren’t going to consume products,” Galli said during the company’s August earnings presentation.
He said TTI chose to invest “instead of boasting about our cost reduction programs,” noting a competitor had announced a $1 billion cost reduction program.
Connecticut-based Stanley Black & Decker announced a $1 billion cost savings program in April. The company’s tools and storage segment reported a 13.2% drop in revenue for the first half of the year, including a 16.5% drop in the second quarter.
Milwaukee Tool, on the other hand, saw 13.3% growth in revenue during the first half of the year, including a 12.8% increase in North America.
While Milwaukee Tool’s growth was better than Stanley Blacker & Decker’s decline, it was still a slowdown for a company that has averaged nearly 23% revenue growth over the last four years.
