Honored on June 29 as the Kansas Governor's 2010 Exporter of the Year award, custom reaction injection molding (RIM) shop Osborne Industries Inc. (Osborne, KS) will host Kansas governor Mark Parkinson on Sept. 24. Osborne earned the export recognition from the governor's office based on a number of criteria, including increased employment due to global activities; marketing innovations on a global scale; international introduction of new product lines; and fostering a network of global distributors and offices. Osborne was selected from five finalists by the Kansas International Trade Coordinating Council.
Founded in 1973, the employee-owned company began exporting equipment in 1979, and its reach now extends to 39 countries. Exports have grown 73% since 2006 and currently account for 24% of Osborne's sales. Osborne, which employs 90, is a custom liquid molder of thermosetting resins via resin transfer molding (RTM) and RIM. The company, which became employee owned in 2001, now covers 242,000 ft2 of manufacturing, warehouse, and office space spread over 10.5 acres.
Osborne beat out Bio-Microbics (Shawnee), Chemidex (Overland Park), Premier Pneumatics (Salina), and Research Products (Salina). Premier Pneumatics is familiar to the plastics industry, as well as any company dealing in bulk materials, as a manufacturer and tester of complete pneumatic conveying systems, including vacuum conveying and pressure conveying. From 2006-2009, the company's export sales increased 48%, including a 25% increase from 2008-2009. In late 2008, Premier's exports were primarily limited to Canada and Mexico, but since then, the supplier says it has added 24 new companies to its export portfolio due in part to its acquisition by the K Tron Group.—[email protected]
