By Andrew Wagaman

November 21, 2017 - Victaulic is investing tens of millions of dollars over the next two years to increase and modernize its manufacturing operations in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

John Malloy, president and CEO, said Monday that the maker of mechanic pipe-joining systems is adding a second shift at its Forks Township manufacturing plant and is building a state-of-the-art, 400,000-square-foot facility at the Hecktown Road Business Park near the Route 33 interchange in Lower Nazareth Township.

The second shift in Forks will create 45 to 50 new jobs in 2018, Malloy said. Victaulic decided the time was right because of greater demand for its products over the past year.

Victaulic also is making a capital investment to further automate its painting operation at its Lower Macungie Township facility, which is producing at full capacity.

Malloy said the investments were “the best illustration” of the company’s commitment to the Lehigh Valley.

“We have increased in size substantially over the last 15 years, and we’ve been able to fill positions in large part because of the quality of educational institutions in the Lehigh Valley and Pennsylvania,” Malloy said. “We’ve also been able to recruit people from around the country because of the quality of life here. We realize we need to continually work to make our operations more competitive, but we’ve found that the Lehigh Valley works, and we have every intention of staying here.”

Victaulic produces 80 percent of its domestic sales in the United States, and the company anticipates it will be making closer to 100 percent here over the coming few years, according to Malloy, who has served as CEO since 2002.

Nearly a thousand of Victaulic’s 3,600 global employees work in the Lehigh Valley. The company serves a variety of industries such as mining, oil, gas and chemical, fire protection and water and waste. Its products are in nine of the 10 tallest buildings in the world and other landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower, Apple’s headquarters and, locally, PPL Center.

For the past two decades, Victaulic has partnered with Cast-Pac Inc. of Hanover Township, Lehigh County, for light assembly operations of its products. By 2019, Cast-Pac will move its operations to the new Lower Nazareth facility, on 28 acres Victaulic is purchasing just east of the Route 33 interchange.

Victaulic expects to get the necessary development approvals by the end of the year and begin construction next year, Malloy said. The facility will use the latest robotic and optical technology to keep pushing the limits of quality control for Victaulic castings and finished products.

“We can take an image of a piece of metal going by in a millisecond, and the camera can tell if it’s been cast perfectly or not,” Malloy said. “It’s very intriguing technology.”

Malloy said the new facility may create another dozen new engineering jobs.

Victaulic also is investing in its construction piping services team, which helps project engineers and contractors solve construction problems upfront using 3D modeling software. Finding solutions on a virtual construction site can cost 10 times less than fixing a problem in the field.

“There’s a revolution taking place in software for construction, and while we are still in the early stages, we’re leading the charge,” Malloy said.

The nearly century-old company also expects to continue expanding its international operations — it has facilities and sales support in 120 countries.

Union workers at Victaulic approved a five-year labor contract in 2016.

“I like the fact that they want to put money into both the Forks and Alburtis facilities,” said Jerry Green, president of United Steelworkers Local 2599. “Of course, any time you have modernization, there’s the potential for loss of human manpower … there are still some things that remain unanswered, but we plan on working out the kinks over the course of the next year or two.”

Deanna Caldwell, general manager of Cast-Pac, was not available Monday to comment on the move, a company representative said.

Malloy publicly announced the investments Monday night at an Lehigh Economic Development Corp. event that Victaulic hosted at its guest house down the road from its Forks plant.

Most people know Victaulic’s name but don’t understand its significance to the local manufacturing industry and its international reach, said Don Cunningham, president and CEO of LVEDC.

“To hear that they’re embarking on an expansion here is fabulous,” he said. “A lot of people assume we don’t make things anymore in the Lehigh Valley, especially heavy manufacturing. That’s just not true, and Victaulic is leading the way in proving otherwise.”

Victaulic's Pipeline of Activity 

• Building 400,000-square-foot facility for assembling operations near Route 33 and Hecktown Road interchange in Lower Nazareth Township.

• Adding second shift at its Forks Township manufacturing facility, which will create up to 50 new jobs. 

• Making a capital investment in its automated painting operation at its Lower Macungie Township facility. 

Victaulic CEO John Malloy on Monday announced the company's plans to invest tens of millions of dollars over the next two years to increase and modernize its manufacturing operations in the Lehigh Valley.

Photo by Monica Cabrera, The Morning Call