Majona continues to see growth

As Majona Steel Corporation continues to grow and expand, executives with the Osceola company invited a state U.S. Department of Agriculture leader to see the changes.

USDA Rural Development’s Iowa State Director Bill Menner took a tour of the plant Tuesday, along with representatives from Heartland Energy Solutions, Iowa Area Development Group and Clarke Electric.

“(We wanted to show them) how Majona is diversifying into new markets and products, and the growth opportunities associated with these endeavors,” said Majona President Bryan Hoffa.

Majona’s mission statement is “we build anything steel.”

About Menner

Menner was appointed in July 2009 by the Obama administration. As the state director, he has had the opportunity to travel to companies across the state that USDA has either assisted or could assist through its business programs. This year he has visited more than 20 industries in Iowa.

Menner oversees an organization that provides housing, community facility, energy and business support across rural Iowa. In 2010, USDA Rural Development invested more than $800 million in loans and grants in rural communities and businesses in Iowa.

Recent growth

Although Majona is staying busy, the future hasn’t always looked so bright for the 40-year-old company. It emerged from the recession after laying off 60 percent of its workforce in 2008. The employment level was down to 30 workers.

The company now employs 82 people and operates two work shifts. They have plans to expand.

“With new product lines we are anticipating opening up a third (weekend) shift later this year,” said Hoffa. “The third shift would be a day shift working Friday through Sunday.”

The plant still needs to hire some welding positions on second shift and then would begin hiring some employees for a third shift so the company would have about 100 employees overall.

Menner said he visited three companies (including Majona) in the past couple of weeks that have recovered and exceeded their prerecession employment levels.

“In each case, the companies were forced to lay off workers and revisit how they do business,” said Menner. “In each case, they have emerged stronger and more diverse. That is clearly the case with Majona and

bodes well for its long-term viability.”

Projects

Majona has partnered with Heartland Energy Solutions for the creation of mid-range wind turbine tower structures with “extremely tight tolerances,” which will open the company up to a national and international industry.

Hoffa said the company has been contacted about the towers because there aren’t a lot of other manufacturers in the Midwest who have the newest equipment and capabilities to build these specific towers.

The company has already built one prototype tower and will be building a second one this summer. Hoffa anticipates increasing production of the towers this fall.

Majona has also built a prototype for a tub grinder and will be sending it to Florida in July for testing.

“Tub grinders are used to turn debris into mulch, just like a stump grinder, only on a bigger scale,” said Hoffa.

The company anticipates marketing the product both in the U.S. and internationally.

The company also recently became certified by the Federal Department of Transportation to manufacture trailers that can store and transport hydrochloric acid. These trailers would be used by oil, gas and chemical companies.

According to Hoffa, there are few companies in the U.S. that have this DOT certification.

Majona also recently became certified by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The certification took several months to complete, and a couple of days of auditing by a national board. The certification allows Majona to produce pressure vessels up to 10,000 psi.

“With this certification, Majona anticipates continued growth in pressure vessels and storage tank systems for commercial, agricultural, industrial and energy industries,” said Hoffa. “Very few companies are both ASME and DOT certified.”

Additional growth opportunities

Hoffa said he sees some growth opportunities for the company to manufacture storage tank units and transport trailers for the Bakken and Williston oil fields in North Dakota.

Because of the company’s certifications and equipment Hoffa said he believes there is some potential to begin manufacturing pipeline for the energy industry.

“We are in the process of becoming an API (American Petroleum Institute) certified company,” he said. “This will allow increased market potential for our steel fabricated tank products.”

Menner responds

Menner said he was impressed with the entrepreneurial spirit present at Majona.

“It was clear that there were great lessons learned during the recent recession,” he said.

USDA Rural Development, along with Clarke Electric and others, were involved in the initial development of the industrial park where Majona is located. Menner said he sees a continued relationship with Majona as the company grows.

“I could see us working directly with Majona, if it seeks to access Rural Development programs, through a loan guarantee with a local bank or using a pass-through loan via a rural electric or telephone cooperative,” he said. “These are ways we can support the development and expansion of small businesses in rural communities.”