Hickory-Morganton-Lenoir, NC - HK Research Corporation, America's leading gel coat expert, has announced that due to a significant increase in demand for the quality products they manufacture, they recently completed an expansion of their Hickory, N.C., production facility.

"While efficiently manufacturing large quantities of whites and other bases has never been an issue, the current marine market demands have increased the need for custom-tinted gel coats. The expansion of our plant has enabled us to make a significant increase in our production capacity to keep up with growing customer demand for custom colors in random quantities," explained David Higgins, VP of Marketing and Sales, HK Research. "Increasing our batch production capabilities by over 100 percent allows us to shorten our lead times, while offering greater flexibility in the gel coats we produce."

The expansion increased floor space dedicated to gel coat production by a factor of more than 50 percent. The company added 10 new state-of-the art variable speed large tank mixers, eight variable speed multi-drum mixers and two powerful grind/shear mixers as part of the expansion. Six custom stainless steel mixing vessels were designed and purchased, specifically for the custom color operation for batch sizes up to 13-drum quantities. Several modern high-capacity precision scales were also added so these gel coats can be compounded with superior accuracy.

These additions give HK Research the ability to produce a greater volume of its gel coats on a daily basis. The company also recently purchased land adjacent to its production facility, where it plans to build a material warehousing site in the future.

Based in Hickory, N.C., HK Research has the largest facility in North America designed exclusively for premium polymer coating manufacturing. HK Research's fully automated facility produces the world's most advanced, consistently reproducible coating products for marine, aerospace, transportation and pool and spa industries. Barrel to barrel, HK Research's coatings deliver superior protection that lasts, maintains a new appearance longer, and adapts easily to the production process, saving time and money on every run.

For more information on HK Research or their products, visit their new website at http://www.hkresearch.com or call (800) 334-5975.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
David Higgins, VP - Sales and Marketing, HK Research Corporation
908 Old Lenoir Road, P.O. Box 1809, Hickory, NC 28601
(800) 334-5975 • (828) 328-1721
www.hkresearch.com