K&B Industries sets up shop at new headquarters

Fig. 1. The floor of K&B Industries’ new 200,000-ft2 manufacturing facility promotes linear flow, which, the company says, also promotes higher efficiency.

Precision machining firm and premium, threader K&B Industries of Houma, La., has settled completely in at its new headquarters and 200,000-ft² manufacturing facility, on a 35-acre site in nearby Schriever, off LA 311 and U.S. Highway 90.

The manufacturing facility began full operation in September, while administrative personnel finalized re-location from the 41-year-old company’s across-town birthplace in late January. Complementing the manufacturing and adjacent, 130,000-ft², customer inventory service building, the new headquarters also includes some 12,000 ft² of administrative space, Fig. 1.

The manufacturing operation was transferred in two, relatively seamless phases, said Doug Hemstreet, V.P. of operations at the family-owned company. The firm holds ISO and API and premium threading licenses, encompassing well over 100 different connections, and services a diverse customer base.

“The south side of the (manufacturing) facility was fully up and running in five days. We followed three weeks later with the north side. After that, we were completely operational, with little to no interruptions in business,” he said.

The new manufacturing facility is dedicated primarily to turnkey jobs and those items requiring a quick changeover and fast turnaround.

Hemstreet said the company’s eclectic customer mix is helping it to cope with market conditions. “We’re seeing a downturn like everyone else, but we do not have a singular customer that makes up more than 10% of our business. We did that by design, as we want to maintain a very wide foundation and stay diverse.”