As part of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce’s (Commerce) commitment to legacy companies, representatives recently visited seven companies in South Central Oklahoma that were awarded funds through the Oklahoma Innovation Expansion Program (OIEP) and the Business Expansion Incentive Program (BEIP). The companies included Stillwater Milling Co., Ardmore Construction Supply, CNI Manufacturing, Valco Manufacturing, Sensia Global Manufacturing, Circulus Ardmore and Red River Pallet. During the visits, Commerce staff spoke with the companies about how they will utilize awarded funds to grow or diversify operations.  

Combined, these seven companies plan to create 32 new jobs and invest more than $2.4 million. The awards given to these companies, totaling $721,000, are anticipated to reduce costs, increase efficiency, increase production or increase their sales.   

• Stillwater Milling Co. (Davis) plans to use the OIEP funds to support increasing the capacity of the manufacturing facility in which the company blends feed ingredients to make a finished feed for livestock. The project will consist of erecting a building to house the upgraded electrical components for the manufacturing facility and one truck unloading pit will be upgraded to allow for more efficient unloading of trucks. The electrical upgrade will allow for re-working the rail unloading pits and possibly adding more pits and ingredient and/or finished product bins in the future. 
• Ardmore Construction Supply will use the awarded OIEP funds to go towards building expansion which will allow the movement of current Floor Truss Equipment into a different location. This transition will allow more fabrication area for other products. 
• CNI Manufacturing (Marietta) is using the awarded OIEP funds to support the expansion of its shop capabilities in multiple different areas which will allow for increased efficiency and more services.  
• Valco Manufacturing (Duncan) plans to use the awarded OIEP funds to help with the purchase of new aluminum and steel heat treat equipment for heat treating in-house. 
• Sensia Global Manufacturing (Duncan) will use the awarded OIEP funds to support the purchase of an additional CNC Mill-Turn machine which will allow the company to bring manufacturing of parts in-house that are currently outsourced to Taiwan. 
• Circulus Ardmore plans to use the awarded BEIP funds to support the installation of a dust collection system over the grinder and dry-cleaning machine. The dust collection system will help clean the air in the plant as well as make housekeeping easier creating a cleaner, safer work environment. By removing the dust in the plant, it will also extend the equipment life and quality of the product being manufactured.  
• Red River Pallet (Marietta) will use the awarded BEIP funds to help with the purchase of a new wood processing system which will increase output from approximately 1300 lbs. of product per hour to 3000 lbs. per hour. This will allow business expansion as well as remove an estimated 6700 tons of solid lumber waste from the current Oklahoma waste stream. 

“The OIEP and the BIEP are two of Commerce’s strongest resources available to Oklahoma businesses,” said Jon Chiappe, Director of Research & Economic Analysis Services. “Commerce is proud to be able to administer these programs in partnership with the Oklahoma Finance Authorities and Oklahoma Tax Commission. And we are excited to see how our legacy companies will continue to diversify the state’s economy and contribute to the growth of our state’s premier workforce.”  

“As a first-time participant in OIEP we didn’t know what to expect but the process has been very easy and everyone has been extremely helpful,” said Pam Moore, President, Stillwater Milling Company. “The OIEP is a great resource benefitting established Oklahoma companies and the communities they serve. Through OIEP we have been able to start a much-needed project sooner than anticipated. Instead of making a short-term fix, the funding has allowed us to do an entire project that will benefit us for years to come.” 

“It was nice meeting the OIEP team and learning ways they could help not only through the programs provided, but also by networking and connecting us with other manufacturers,” said Mark Ellis, President, ACS- Ardmore Construction Supply, Inc. “One thing about the meeting that caught my attention was when showing the team our facility and our equipment, Lesli noticed one of our specialty saws and called it by name, which surprised me. Sometimes it’s small things that build relationships. We’re looking forward to adding OIEP to our toolbox.”  

“The OIEP program has helped CNI Manufacturing expand our workforce and equipment capabilities,” said Jonna D. Kauger Kirschner, President, CNI Manufacturing, LLC. “We have succeeded in both areas. We have added equipment, expanded the tooling on our brakes and increased our workforce. This incentive program has moved CNI Manufacturing toward a more productive future as we continue to increase our capabilities and customer base.” 

“The OIEP provides us a way to purchase new equipment that will allow us to expand our capabilities,” said Roger Valdez, President, Valco Manufacturing. “It also makes it possible for us to do things in-house and not send our parts out of state, making lead times shorter and keeping dollars in Oklahoma. This also means we will be able to add more employees. Thank you OIEP!”

OIEP utilizes funds set aside by the Oklahoma Economic Development Pooled Finance Act (62 OS 891.1 et seq). Participating businesses are required to provide quarterly reports verifying employment levels and expenditures, as well as submit verification of purchase and installation of machinery and equipment. The full list of OIEP recipients can be found on the Commerce website at www.okcommerce.gov/OIEP.

BEIP assists Oklahoma companies making major capital investments in depreciable items like machinery, equipment and buildings. This incentive makes quarterly cash payment awards to help companies grow and boost business expansion investments in Oklahoma. A typical incentive award is to a manufacturing company with an existing employee base making an investment of $5 million or more to expand their Oklahoma operation. To learn more visit: https://www.okcommerce.gov/doing-business/business-relocation-expansion/incentives/business-expansion-incentive-program/