Record 2012 sales for a key client translated to a huge new workload for Design Molded Plastics (DMP), but instead of being overwhelmed, the custom injection molder responded, and was rewarded with a Supplier of the Year recognition in April.

Vitamix, a supplier of high-performance blenders for home cooks and professional chefs, saw its net sales jump 52% in 2012 over 2011, and they have more than tripled in the past four years. The 92-year-old fourth-generation family-owned company is in the midst of a $10-million, 51,000-sq-ft expansion of its world headquarters in Northeast Ohio, where all its products are assembled. It opened a 175,000-sq-ft operations facility at the end of 2012.

As Vitamix's sales soared, DMP (Macedonia, OH) began running parts for it on a 24/7 basis, shipping product daily its Olmsted Township, OH facility to keep the its production lines running. In 2012, DMP shipped 2,779,616 individual pieces to Vitamix, including top shells, containers with handles, housings, pedestals, lids, drive sockets, muffler caps, agitators, motor fans, and more, a DMP spokesperson told PlasticsToday.

"DMP developed several new tools quickly to allow an increase in production to provide Vitamix with parts," the spokesperson said.

DMP, which has been supplying Vitamix with plastic components for 15 years, recently expanded its facilities to more than 100,000 sq ft. The spokesperson said that in December 2011, DMP bought a new 48,000-sq-ft facility, adding that space to its original 62,000-sq-ft site. In November 2012, DMP purchased four robots and five new injection molding machines to support greater production, and at that time, the owners also announced plans to construct a 20,000-sq-ft addition that would be completed in the fall of 2013.

Founded in 1985 and still family-owned, DMP supplies molded components to the medical, automotive, protective equipment, home appliance, and electronic products sectors. The company has injection molding machines, including verticals, ranging in clamp force from 88 to 950 tons, with automation utilized throughout its molding sites in Cleveland and Akron. The spokesperson said Vitamix falls under its kitchen appliance category, which is dominated by the blender maker, and accounts for 21% of its total business.

Vitamix blender