BlueScope Buildings in Annville (400 N Weaber St.) broke ground Saturday on a $14.2 million expansion, adding 34,000 square feet to the steel building systems manufacturer, in an event also celebrating the facility’s 50th anniversary.
BlueScope North America head of corporate affairs Mark Hein explained that the addition will expand the facility’s product range by extending the width of product that can be manufactured while removing employee interaction with steel. He said this will increase output, make employees safer, and open up opportunities to hire skilled workers in other parts of the business.
BlueScope employees, their families, and members of the public gathered for a shovel ceremony including a retired member of BlueScope’s original crew, the longest tenured active employee, and the business’s newest hire. Speakers said this choice was made to represent the Annville location’s past, present, and future.
“We’re celebrating our past, generations that helped build what we got here today, it’s gonna celebrate the people that continue to work every day in the plant and do what we do, and it’s also celebrating future generations and what we’ll have built for them to come,” said plant manager Luke Wampler.
State Rep. Russ Diamond presented the business with an official Pennsylvania State House of Representatives citation celebrating the anniversary and expansion, calling the business a “generational employer” that will “continue to be here.”
“That’s greatly appreciated for economic stability here,” said Diamond. “We don’t offer these citations to just anyone, so this is kind of a big deal.”
The facility was built by Butler Manufacturing in 1976, and Butler was acquired by BlueScope in 2004. Manufacturing for BlueScope Buildings North America vice president Murali Dodla said the expansion represents continued investment into the Annville location, which employs around 200 people in manufacturing and around 60 in the front office.
“Generations of people work here,” said Dodla. “What this reflects is really BlueScope’s commitment in this facility. This is a very important facility in our manufacturing network; it’s in the right location, we ship a lot of stuff around this area, and this new paint line is only going to help with improving our safety first, number one thing, and quality, and of course throughput.”
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