Maruchan Nearing Completion of Expansion Project in Virginia

---

Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). Maruchan Incorporated (Irvine, California), a division of Toyo Suisan Kaisha Limited (TSE: 2875) (Tokyo, Japan), is wrapping up construction activities at their soups and noodles plant in Richmond, Virginia.

The $31 million expansion project began back in August of 2001 and Maruchan expects to have the facility operational and producing product by mid-September of this year.

Under the direction of contractor Taisi Construction Corporation (Cypress, California), the company added about 127,800 square feet of additional space for warehouse and production areas. Portions of the existing warehouse were converted into a manufacturing area and the company installed additional production lines to increase capacities of soups and noodles.

A large 36,800 square foot production mezzanine level was added as well and portions of the existing production area were re-designed to improve product flow throughout the plant.

The Japanese food manufacturer had special requirements for the production utilities and sanitary standards for the project and the involvement of local and international teamwork was needed to complete the project under budget and on time.

Maruchan Incorporated is engaged in manufacturing instant noodles and soups under the brand name "Maruchan" consigned by its parent company Toyo Suisan Kaisha, Limited. They also produce lines of vacuum packed cooked rice, canned beverages, and liquid foods.