UOS to Open Largest Service and Fab Facility for Rail, Utility, and Infrastructure Equipment
Kansas City, Missouri, November 12, 2015. Utility One Source (UOS) announced today it plans to open the largest service and fabrication facility for rail, utility and infrastructure equipment in the nation. UOS has already begun construction on the new facility, a state-of-the-art complex spanning 70,000 square feet that will sit adjacent to the Headquarters Campus in Kansas City, MO. The addition will expand UOS’ fabrication and service capacity to over 150 acres and 1,000,000 square feet, at the Kansas City campus alone. Equipped with three overhead cranes, wash bays, weight scales, testing equipment and staging areas, the new facility will serve as support for the growing demand for UOS’ products and services in the market. An estimated 30% of the new facility’s capacity will be dedicated to the fabrication and support of the company’s world-leading heavy boom truck and crane business; the remaining capacity will serve as the headquarters for UOS Rail, and will house all engineering, assembly, customization, service and refurbishment of their light, medium and heavy-duty hi-rail equipment.
Kansas City was a strategic anchor for the company’s rail operations, known for being the second largest hi-rail market in the country. This strategy has proven fruitful for the rail side of the business, which has more than doubled in the past year. “The new facility will expand the competitive advantage we have in the marketplace,” said Bryan Boehm, President of UOS Rail. “We’ve felt pressure for increased capacity since day one, and we can now fully leverage the superior suite of equipment solutions we supply the market, while optimizing the scope and breadth of our portfolio. UOS’ railroad and contractor clientele will experience optimized lead times, expanded solutions, unparalleled service, enduring innovation, and competitive prices, all improvements that will transcend UOS’ offerings, and become manifest in the superior performance of our customers.” The addition will net an estimated 60 new jobs for the area, and will likely expand even further in the future.
The project is long-awaited materialization of collaborative efforts made by Boehm and UOS President Fred Ross, who have worked with the city for the past several years to obtain proper permits for the land. For Ross, who is responsible for expanding the production capacity of the campus from 60,000 square feet to over a 1,000,000 since 2006, this is just the latest phase in a decade-long expansion project he’s ordered along Highway 24. Once an area blighted by industrial decay, the campus is now a panoramic view of vocational equipment lined wall-to-wall, with growing production facilities in-between, and, more importantly, the proud employer to more than 500 people. “This investment not only represents UOS’ commitment to being at the forefront of equipment innovation, but also our continued pledge to create jobs in all communities in which UOS operates,” Ross said of the latest addition.
At all stages of the construction process, UOS has prioritized the services of its customers, showing appreciation for their loyalty, and the contribution they’ve made to the company’s growth. The new facility is set to complete construction next to the Kansas City Headquarters on Highway 24 in February of 2016.
About Utility One Source
Utility One Source (UOS) is comprised of six industry-leading equipment providers; five family-operated businesses (Custom Truck & Equipment, Utility Fleet Sales, Forestry Equipment of Virginia, UCO Equipment, and TNT Equipment) and Load King, the known manufacturer of highly proficient and customizable trailers. UOS’ continued growth since its inception in February of 2015 represents the platform’s collective commitment to perpetual expansion of and dominance within each legacy company’s equipment focus. The platform boasts a truly unparalleled range of equipment and service offerings, and will pursue unending evaluation and optimization of its collaborative portfolio to ensure an indelible position at the forefront of equipment innovation within the utility and heavy equipment industries.