Canadian manufacturer buys Vandalia site, plans 50 jobs

A Canadian manufacturer of moisture-resistant wall material has purchased a former warehouse and factory in Vandalia and plans to bring 50 jobs to the site when full production is reached.

Michael Panayi, president of Pinnacle Capital Partners, said improvements and renovations remain for the building in the next few months at 6161 Ventor Ave., the former home of Encon and Eco-Groupe, which also manufactured plastics.

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Pinnacle is financing MSW Plastics Inc.’s move to Vandalia, which will be the company’s U.S. headquarters.

The 61,208-square-foot building was sold for $1 million by Gaiser Properties Inc. to MSW RE 1 Inc., Montgomery County property records show.

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The sale was recorded last week. Chuck McCosh, president and principal of Springboro-based OCRD, was the listing broker in the transaction.

Moving equipment into the building could take several further months, but the earliest hiring will begin soon, Panayi said. Hiring of workers will probably begin in June, but MSW is already looking for a general manager for the location.

That new general manager can expect training on the company’s methods here and in Canada, where the company has about 53 employees.

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“We’re actually already talking to a few candidates, because that person is crucial for us,” Panayi said Monday. “They will be in charge of all the operations here — handling the training, coordinating the hiring of other people. It’s a very key position.”

He hopes to have the site in full production by Nov. 1 or so.

The company’s biggest product is a mold-proof, moisture-resistant wall material often used in barns, car washes, anywhere where water penetration is a concern.

MSW received $320,000 in development funds from Montgomery County to make the project possible. The county expected 35 new jobs at the site in what is thought to be an overall $11 million investment by MSW.

“We expect in full production that we’ll have 50 people,” Panayi said. “That’s based on our experience in Canada.”

He called the move “a wonderful opportunity to diversify our labor pool.”

Panayi was also involved in financing the move of another Canadian manufacturer to the area.

Hematite Inc. has built a 106,000-square-foot facility off Lau Parkway in Englewood, and the Canadian auto parts manufacturer is serving North American automotive original equipment manufacturers Toyota, Ford, Fiat Chrysler and others from that location.

Rich Hopkins, Vandalia spokesman, said he expects an MSW representative to meet Monday with Amber Holloway, Vandalia assistant city manager.