U.S. Liner plans growth
CRANBERRY TWP — The U.S. Liner Co., which has two plants, one in Cranberry Township and one in Harmony, is looking to add 60 to 70 manufacturing jobs in the next year.
The company currently has 100 employees, but its rising market share is leading to significant growth.
Jeff Meek, director of sales and marketing for the company, said company officials are excited for what is ahead.
"Right now we're in a David vs. Goliath kind of situation," Meek said. "We're competing against a $2.1 billion company and for a while we were just like a gnat on their shoulder, but now we're starting to take some of their market-share."
The driving force behind the company's rapid expansion has been innovation.
When company President Michael LaRocco created the product Bullitex in 1998, he had a unique product.
Bullitex is a thermoplastic composite material that is virtually indestructible that can be used to line RVs, trailers, refrigerated trailers and trucks. It can be used to replace plywood, recycled plastics and fiber reinforced polyester.
When company officials demonstrated Bullitex, they shot it with a .38-caliber handgun to show its strength since the bullet did not penetrate the lining.
But LaRocco had a problem.
"I knew the material was overpriced," he said. "And that's what Versitex was born out of."
Versitex isn't as strong as Bullitex, but it is lighter and nearly half the cost of Bullitex.
Versitex debuted in 2005 and has made U.S. Liner a standard with trailer manufacturers.
"We're at the point where our product does the talking for us," LaRocco said. "We're thinking ahead to see how we can innovate and stay ahead of the competition."
The company manufactures 20 million and 30 million pounds of product every year. Most of their customers are domestic, but they also do business in China and Canada.
"Working here provides a good, clean workplace for people to work in manufacturing," LaRocco said. "It's not like working in a steel mill where it's dirty, and you have to work with dangerous objects."
U.S. Liner's growth is a long way from its roots. In 1983, LaRocco started the business while he was attending Pennsylvania State University to get a master's in market research."I met a guy from California that had an idea, about a pad that would go between the pivot on a truck to eliminate grease," LaRocco said.Originally, LaRocco's business was based out of his apartment in downtown Pittsburgh when he was the only employee.The business continued to grow because he was constantly changing what he was producing. "My philosophy has always been: If you copy someone else, you're following them," he said. "I haven't been a follower at any point in my life."Indicative of how far the company has come, it was named a finalist for the Tech 50 by the Pittsburgh Technology Council.Meek hopes the company's success will make it more attractive to people looking for work in manufacturing."We want it to be a place where you wrap your arm around your buddy and say you have to work there," Meek said.
