Branstad, Government and Economic Development Officials Cut Ribbon on Accumold Expansion
ANKENY, Iowa – Accumold, a global leader in the design, development and production of micro-engineered parts for various high-tech industries, cut the ribbon today on its second expansion since 2011.
Gov. Terry Branstad and other government and economic development officials were present to dedicate a 40,000-square-foot, $10-million expansion that will result in more than 200 employees in the next three years. The addition is a robust/hardened facility capable of withstanding an F-5 tornado.
Noting his involvement in previous Accumold celebrations, Branstad said, “This is a habit I’ve gotten used to and one I enjoy very much. Few things make me happier than to see Iowa businesses grow and thrive as much as Accumold has.”
Branstad said the new facility was about more than the success of a company. Citing former congressman Jack Kemp’s admonition that “economic growth doesn’t mean anything if it leaves people out,” Branstad added that Accumold’s growth “means so much to so many people.”
“This latest expansion created work for architects and engineers, construction workers, plumbers and electricians. It will result in the creation over 200 high-skill, good-paying jobs over the next few years and, in fact, the company has already hired more than 100 people,” the six-term governor said. “These are jobs that challenge people to innovate, create and to help set the pace in the medical, automotive, defense, aerospace and telecommunications industries. The technology and advances developed by Accumold’s people improve the lives of millions of other people around the world every day. And, something tells me they’re just getting started.”
Ankeny Mayor Gary Lorenz recalled the city’s start as a coal-mining town and outlined its evolution into a rapidly growing, economically diverse community. He described how Accumold was founded in a nearby rented garage in 1985 with a commitment to develop micro-molding parts and technology that didn’t even exist at the time.
“Since our founding days, Ankeny has survived adversity in the form of tornadoes, the Farm Recession of the 1980s, the recession of the last decade and more. But we’ve always come back stronger thanks to our ingenuity, our perseverance and our commitment to make tomorrow even better than today,” Lorenz said. “Those are the very traits I admire in the entire team here at Accumold.”
David Maahs, Executive Vice President of Economic Development at the Greater Des Moines Partnership, said that the expansion is big news for the entire region.
“Greater Des Moines’ success stems from our ability to work together as a region, as well as the leadership that our corporate community shows,” Maahs said. “Accumold has long been a great corporate leader, and their success has benefited not only the City of Ankeny but the entire Greater Des Moines region.”
Accumold President and CEO Roger Hargens attributed the company’s success to its philosophy of “never waiting for things to change.”
“Instead, we have changed them ourselves. We constantly evaluate what we do and then change what we need to change so that we are more innovative, more efficient, more productive and more competitive to stay ahead of the pack every day,” he said.
Hargens said the expansion, which has the capability to be a stand-alone facility because of its unique features, represents a “vastly different change in our operations and our approach to business.”
“As we approached this latest expansion, we changed things ourselves because our customers who already rely on us needed to know that we will be able to deliver uninterrupted as we always do, no matter what Mother Nature or anyone else might throw at us,” he said. “We’re able to do that because of our extraordinary employees, an investment team that we think is the best in the business, our customers who truly are strategic partners who collaborate with us at every turn to design exceptional products and our partners in the public sector and educational community.”
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Since its inception, Accumold’s mission has been the production of super-micro, ultra-precision, plastic injection-molded parts with components that often measure in mere microns. Parts manufactured by the firm are critical components for the medical, micro-optics, electronics and other high-tech emerging industries. They can be found in personal communication devices, telecommunications, surgical tools, hearing aids, medical devices, antennas, connectors and more. To produce those parts, Accumold builds specialized molding machines engineered to handle volumes from prototypes to millions per year while maintaining consistent, precise tolerances that are unique in the industry. For more information about the company, log on to www.accu-mold.com.
