There's good economic news for the Erie area.  Sales are booming for a newly introduced product at Eriez Magnetics.  Sales have been so good that the company is doubling its manufacturing space for that product alone.

  

The product is called the new Xtreme Metal Detector.  There's a big  demand for this product all over the world from companies involved with food processing, pharmaceuticals, rubber, and plastics.  Employees at Eriez Magnetics have been very busy trying to keep up with the orders.


Food companies, such as Smith's, use the machine to find out if any metal got into their products during the production process. The rubber industry uses the machine to see if any metal got into the sidewalls of their tires.  Automotive companies use the machine to determine if things such as needles are left in air bags.  The list goes on and on.

The Xtreme Metal Detector is very popular right now because of its sensitivity. It can detect pieces of metal down to two millimeters.  The Asbury Road plant is now shipping seven or eight of these out every week.  But, the demand keeps coming in.  Charlie Ingram, V.P. of Sales & Marketing, says employees have been busy making space at the plant to accommodate the increased production.

"Those in the community who are in manufacturing would understand when I say expanding like this, within your existing facility, is somewhat like a sprinter changing shoes in the middle of a race.   Because, in fact, you are trying to move your facilities, your production equipment around, at the same time you're trying to meet customer demand for a growing market," he said.

Eriez Magnetics has hired a few new employees because of the increased orders. Ingram says existing employees should have some stability and job security for a long, long, time.