Sugar Land, Texas Grows Manufacturing Capabilities with New Expansions

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas). Sugar Land, Texas, which takes its name from the old Imperial Sugar factory on Highway 90 just southwest of Houston, and from the vast plantations of sugar cane in the area at one time, has been called one of the most desirable places in the nation to live and work, and the City of Sugar Land wants to make certain that description holds true to form. In the last few months, two more companies have announced expansions at Sugar Land facilities.

Naztec, Incorporated (Sugar Land, Texas), a small, family-owned and operated company that makes traffic control systems and provides the software that controls and monitors them – like the flashing signals we see around schools and hospitals – has decided to build a new 97,000 square-foot building to consolidate its headquarters and manufacturing operations from several present locations in Sugar Land. The new building will be on Park Two Drive in the Sugar Land Business Park, between Gillingham Lane and Park West Drive.

Construction is planned for some time in the next year and a half, but will have to be complete by January 2008 to be eligible for the tax abatement granted by the City of Sugar Land. The project has a total investment value of about $5.2 million. Naztec has not yet chosen a general contractor, but Powers Brown Architecture (Houston, Texas) has been selected as the architect for the project. Naztec’s expansion will add 25 jobs to the present 50 it currently employs.

Another company expanding in Sugar Land is Tramontina USA, Incorporated (Sugar Land, Texas), a subsidiary of Tramontina Brazil, a $1.5 billion a year housewares manufacturing company based in Brazil. Tramontina will invest $4-$6 million on a 175,000 square-foot expansion to its present 214,000 square-foot facility at 1400 Gillingham Lane, in the Sugar Land Business Park, where it will be assembling, packaging, and shipping the cookware made in its factory in Wisconsin. Besides the assembly lines and workstations, the company will also be purchasing new equipment and machinery to be used for this work.

Tramontina currently has 1.4 million square feet in several buildings in Sugar Land and has total assets exceeding $78 million. “We are extremely excited that companies like Tramontina and Naztec continue to expand their business presence in Sugar Land,” said Regina Morales, Sugar Land’s Economic Development director. “The City’s progressive economic development program coupled with excellent business partners creates a win-win scenario for Sugar Land’s business community by creating jobs and diversifying our tax base.”

Last year, Tramontina reopened a former Mirro plant, vacant since April 2003, in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, to manufacture its Emeril-approved cookware. The plant comes complete with a rolling mill to produce the aluminum for Tramontina’s pots, pans, and bakeware. During the first year of operation, Tramontina’s Manitowoc operation produced over twelve million units.

The company, contrary to what one normally expects from “globalization,” is transferring its aluminum non-stick cookware production from China and Europe to its Manitowoc and Sugar Land facilities, in order to better serve its North American customers. The shells of some of Tramontina’s pots and pans will be made in Manitowoc, then shipped to Sugar Land, where the plant’s 250 workers will finish them by adding handles, and package them for shipping. The expansion is expected to result in 60 new jobs for the company.

The architect for this project is Powers Brown Architecture (Houston, Texas), and the general contractor is E.E. Reed (Sugar Land). Construction began in early May on this project, with all subcontractor bid packages having gone out previously.

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