Officials with M2 Global Technology Ltd. say the company is on track to expand and grow during 2006.
At the top of the list, says president and CEO Doug Carlberg, is the company's move to its new 25,000-square-foot home by March of next year.
"Right now, we''''re just outgrowing the space. So it's time to move into a new facility," Carlberg said.
The new facility will allow the local company to bring all of its operations, including electronics manufacturing, welding, mechanical assembly and sheet-metal services, under one roof.
Currently, the company occupies two suites totaling roughly 18,000 square feet on the city's Northwest Side in the University Park business park located at 12500 Network Blvd. The company will be moving into an existing building on the Northwest Side, located at 5714 Epsilon. That space was previously occupied by Neo Nato Care.
The property, which was purchased for less than $2 M, is located on five acres, which Carlberg says will give the company "room to grow." M2 Global is projecting sales of $8 M for 2006, a 17 percent increase over this year's mark, he adds.
The company presently leases its existing two facilities on a month-to-month basis through Fulcrum Property Group Inc.
However, the company's growth surge comes after a bumpy period in its history. After September 11, Carlberg says the company spiraled into a downturn, like a lot of companies serving the technology sector.
"People were cutting back on their orders as the bottom fell out on the tech companies... we had to cut back," he says. "It really forced us to take a look at how we were doing business and how we could become more efficient."
During that time, employee count dropped down to 42. But now, he says, "business is picking up."
In the last year, Carlberg says the company has added about 20 people, bringing the employee count up to the mid-60s.
M2 Global makes electronics components, such as radar and television broadcast equipment, for the commercial telecommunications industry and for defense contractors. Helping to propel its growth this year are several new lines of radio frequency components that were developed and are being marketed by M2 Global.
The company was also officially accepted into the US Air Force's Manufacturing Technology Assistance Production Program (MTAPP) in February of last year. MTAPP is a small-business initiative that seeks to help companies better position themselves to receive government contracting.
Companies accepted into the program are helped to develop a continuous improvement plan and are provided with technical assistance. The Air Force program also provides these companies with a stamp of approval in terms of marketing them to potential suppliers.
Furthermore, the company was able to secure contracts to make products for Tucson, AZ-based Raytheon, Kerrville-TX based Mooney Airplane Co. and Falls Church, VA-based General Dynamics during the past year.
"What we've done is we are now a qualified supplier for those companies, and we are now making products (for them)," Carlberg says.
While declining to disclose dollar amounts on the contacts, Carlberg says M2 Global will be manufacturing electronic components for point-to-point microwave radar and commercial satellite up-link systems for these companies.
He says M2 Global has a one-year contract with each of the companies, each with an option to renew on a yearly basis.
In addition, the company renewed its contract with Melbourne, FL-based Harris Corp., an international communications and information technology company. M2 Global manufactures microwave radio components for the company.
Carlberg says the company's success in landing the new contracts is just a hint of what's to come.
"We've been very successful, and we continue to grow our customer base," he said.