Please do not leave this page until complete. This can take a few moments.
Due to our new system upgrade, we are requesting all existing users to update their password. Create a new password
Two hundred more jobs are on tap for a second medical swab production plant that is now under construction, thanks to a $51.2 million infusion of federal CARES Act funding to meet demand for coronavirus testing.
Puritan Medical Products of Guilford on Monday announced its second major manufacturing expansion in Pittsfield.
The new facility will be located at the former San Antonio Shoe manufacturing site and is expected to increase swab production by an additional 50 million per month.
The facility will complement Puritan’s first manufacturing plant, at 129 North Main St. in Pittsfield, which was retrofitted earlier this year to produce 40 million foam-tipped testing swabs per month.
“As one of two major manufacturers in the world, and the largest manufacturer in North America, of the swabs required for COVID-19 testing, we realize our obligation to produce as many as we possibly can,” Timothy Templet, executive vice president and general partner of Puritan, said in a news release.
The goal is to have the second plant operational by January.
Together, the two plants will bring Puritan’s total production of flock tip swabs and foam swabs to at least 90 million per month and will create 600 manufacturing jobs.
The two plants are funded by government grants in order to increase COVID-19 testing supplies. In August, Puritan was awarded the additional $51.2 million, to expand its existing COVID-19 flock tip testing swab production facilities, under the CARES Act.
In April, Puritan received a $75.5 million grant that was used to retrofit a 95,000-square-foot building owned by Cianbro and leased by Puritan to produce COVID-19 foam-tipped swabs. Construction started at the first facility on May 1 and was completed just two months later, Peter Vigue, chairman of the board of the Cianbro Cos., said in the release.
“More than 700 construction professionals worked on the project to meet the production start-up for Puritan,” Vigue said.
When the first plant is at capacity, it will create 400 jobs.
Puritan partnered with the federal government and with Cianbro Corp. to retrofit both of the Pittsfield plants. Design and construction planning on the second facility started in late September.
The retrofit will bring together more than 650 individuals, including Cianbro employees, subcontractors, engineers and architects. The schedule for completing the retrofit is considered extremely aggressive.
The new plant will provide an additional 200 jobs in Pittsfield, for a total of 600 jobs when both Puritan manufacturing sites are fully operational.
The total of 600 Puritan new hires in Pittsfield must go through the company's safety and quality standards training program as part of the onboarding process.
Upon receiving the second grant, Puritan evaluated various sites in central Maine.
After collaborative discussions, family members of the San Antonio Shoe founder Terry Armstrong, through property management firm MTC Holdings Inc., also of San Antonio, agreed to donate approximately 29 acres of land and their former buildings in Pittsfield to the Pittsfield Development Corp. Pittsfield Development then contributed approximately 11 acres of land and the former manufacturing buildings to Puritan.
Cianbro also helped coordinate the collaboration between SAS Shoe, MTC, Puritan and the Pittsfield Development Corp. for the second facility.
Ultimately, there will be 78,840 square feet of total building space, including 38,330 square feet in three separate “clean” room manufacturing spaces for the production of flocked polyester swabs. An adjacent three-story brick building will be demolished to create space for future possible expansion by Puritan.
The remaining undeveloped acreage will be retained by Pittsfield Development Corp. for future development that supports its mission to create economic activity and quality jobs.
Puritan earlier this year was thrust into the spotlight as a critical manufacturer in the supply chain for COVID-19 testing supplies because it is one of only two suppliers worldwide that produces the specialized swab CDC recommends for nasopharyngeal sample collection.
Demand for the swab and its transport medium skyrocketed, quickly exhausting supplies across the country.
Typically, the company makes more than 1,200 different types of swabs and collection devices for a variety of industries, normally producing over 12 million swabs per day.
Number of new jobs: 400-plus
Swab production capacity: 40 million per month
Number of new jobs: approximately 200
Swab production capacity: 50 million per month
Number of subcontracted companies: approximately 50
Manufacturing start date: Jan. 1, 2021 (expected)
Puritan Medical Products Co. LLC, based in Guilford, is a 101-year-old family-owned manufacturer of single-use products for controlled environments, diagnostics and specimen collection, environmental, forensics, and genetics, medical and microbiology media industries.
Founded in 1949, Cianbro Corp. is one of the nation’s largest 100% employee-owned construction and construction services companies. Headquartered in Pittsfield, Cianbro operates in more than 40 states and employs more than 4,000.
San Antonio Shoemakers was founded in 1976 by Terry Armstrong and Lew Hayden. The two met in Pittsfield, but their passion for making quality footwear led them to San Antonio, Texas. After working for a local shoe company, they struck out on their own with a vision of how genuine leather shoes should be made. They two pooled their resources to start their first factory in a corner of an unused aircraft hangar on the South Side of San Antonio. In 1985, SAS opened a factory in Del Rio, Texas.
Armstrong was born in Bangor, graduated from Carmel High School and learned to sew shoes in Pittsfield. He returned to Maine in 1984 and acquired Northeast Shoe Co. in Pittsfield. The factory closed in 2008 when the demand for high quality, hand-sewn shoes declined. Armstrong died in 2005 at his home in Texas and is buried in Carmel.
Pittsfield Development Corp. is a small group of concerned businesspeople who volunteer their time and personal resources to help new businesses move to Pittsfield, support and expand existing businesses, and promote economic development and jobs for the betterment of the community. The group was incorporated as a nonprofit organization in 1975 to assist an existing local business to secure crucial financing that would retain jobs in the town. Later, the Pittsfield Development Corp. took a more active step to promote the Pittsfield Industrial Park by obtaining Maine Guarantee Authority financing to attract potential businesses to the community. Following this, the Pittsfield Development Corp. obtained formal approval of its 501(c)(3) charitable status.
The Giving Guide helps nonprofits have the opportunity to showcase and differentiate their organizations so that businesses better understand how they can contribute to a nonprofit’s mission and work.
Work for ME is a workforce development tool to help Maine’s employers specifically target Maine’s emerging workforce. A free guide to job and career opportunities in Maine’s essential industries.
The way we do business can change in a moment. This Mainebiz podcast series features conversations with Maine business owners who found their life, their business, or their world suddenly upended in one day.
The Giving Guide helps nonprofits have the opportunity to showcase and differentiate their organizations so that businesses better understand how they can contribute to a nonprofit’s mission and work.
Work for ME is a workforce development tool to help Maine’s employers specifically target Maine’s emerging workforce. A free guide to job and career opportunities in Maine’s essential industries.
The way we do business can change in a moment. This Mainebiz podcast series features conversations with Maine business owners who found their life, their business, or their world suddenly upended in one day.
In order to use this feature, we need some information from you. You can also login or register for a free account.
By clicking submit you are agreeing to our cookie usage and Privacy Policy
Already have an account? Login
Already have an account? Login
Want to create an account? Register
In order to use this feature, we need some information from you. You can also login or register for a free account.
By clicking submit you are agreeing to our cookie usage and Privacy Policy
Already have an account? Login
Already have an account? Login
Want to create an account? Register
This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Our privacy policy
To ensure the best experience on our website, articles cannot be read without allowing cookies. Please allow cookies to continue reading. Our privacy policy