Harvard Industries Opens Rubber Mixing Facility In Virginia

15 December 1998

    WYTHEVILLE, Va., Dec. 14 -- Harvard Industries, Inc.
Friday unveiled a new rubber mixing facility in its
Wytheville, Va., operation in a ceremony attended by Virginia Governor Jim
Gilmore.
    "This new facility is just one more step in the strategic direction
Harvard is taking in broadening its base in the industrial and aftermarket
business," said Harvard CEO Roger Pollazzi. "This mixing facility has been
designed and equipped to produce many different types of compounds, which will
allow for growth, not just in the automotive, but industrial and aftermarket
business. An area like Wytheville, with its dedicated and spirited work force,
is where Harvard plans to invest and grow."
    The new 33,000-sq. ft. structure houses a world-class rubber-compounding
center and incorporates state-of-the-art technology.  It adjoins Harvard's
86,000-sq. ft. Kingston-Warren sealing plant, which makes molded glass run
assemblies, belt strips and a variety of seals, primarily for the automotive
industry.  The new mixing operation will also supply mixed rubber to Harvard's
two other Kingston-Warren plants located in Church Hill, Tenn., and Newfields,
N.H.
    "This facility adds an important dimension to our capabilities and is a
strong indicator of the direction our company is taking," said Harvard
President Jim Gray after dedicating the $8 million facility.  "This state-of-
the-art facility gives us greater control of the mixing process and provides
the resources to develop new compounds.  On the strategic side, it shows that
we are able to assess our needs and willing to add the capabilities we need to
provide the best products to the transportation and industrial markets."
    "Southwest Virginia's workforce is skilled and prepared to help this
company meet its challenges into the next millennium," said Governor Gilmore.
"We are excited that Harvard Industries has strengthened its ties to the
Commonwealth of Virginia."
    Harvard broke ground for the mixing facility in March and expects full
production by February. About a dozen new jobs have been created by the new
Wytheville plant.  The building is designed, however, to house a second rubber
mixer in the future.  With the addition of the second line, as many as 25 more
people could be hired.
    The centerpiece of the facility is a rubber mixer and process control
system and a carbon black handling system.  The rubber mixer has state-of-the-
art automation and advanced computer network systems to administer raw
material ordering, receiving, compound recipes and processing.
    Harvard worked closely with local and state economic councils to locate
the compounding center in Virginia.
    Harvard Industries, Inc., designs, develops and manufactures a broad range
of components for automotive original equipment manufacturers, the automotive
aftermarket and industrial and construction equipment applications worldwide.
Headquartered in Lebanon, N.J., Harvard's 4,500-plus employees at 15 plants in
the United States and Canada produce total vehicle sealing systems, a variety
of polymer products, high-strength steel assemblies and a wide array of high-
strength aluminum, magnesium and iron products.