West Coast Castings Inc has been a favored supplier of Naval
Electronics Inc for many years.
It is a pleasure to have this complementary page on our website and to
work with Ted over the years.
He has been more than just helpful in forming new procucts and
improving our old products.
With thanks, Lyman Duggan President Naval Electronics inc.
West Coast Castings, Inc. Contact: Ted
Boerger West Coast Castings, Inc. (WCCI)
1211 44th Ave. E.
Bradenton, FL 34203
Foundaries form foundation for West Coast Castings Inc.
Jane Meinhardt Staff Writer: Tampa Bay Business Journal
BRADENTON -- When Ted Boerger moved to Bradenton and set up his
employee-owned foundry, he did not know what a "lanai" was or how to
pronounce it.
That was in 1997.
He and West Coast Castings Inc. have come a long way since then.
The company casts brass alloys and aluminum, using sand-casting
techniques based on methods developed centuries ago. Fittings for
lanais are among the many aluminum parts that West Coast manufactures.
Boerger, an industrial engineer from Ohio who wanted a company, bought
a business, later merged it with another foundry and eventually
purchased the property and buildings where West Coast is based off 44th
Avenue East.
"This is a company assimilated from several smaller foundries," Boerger
said. "We don't have to do much soliciting of business. We have
customers from the predecessor companies and a reputation for making
good castings."
The company's reputation and customers have resulted in profit.
In 1997, the company's revenue hit approximately $800,000. Last year,
it posted revenue of $1.2 million.
The company currently employs 16 but employed as many as 25 last year.
Boerger said 2002 represented a banner year, requiring more employees.
Sales have tapered off some this year, but he said the company had a
"good" first quarter.
Besides of the inherited customers, Boerger and his wife, Sue,
attribute growth to the company's employee-owned structure. It is an
arrangement Boerger extensively researched when financing and setting
up his company, which is based on an Employee Stock Ownership Plan.
Boerger previously managed a Sidney, Ohio, company, which had a foundry
and manufactured cookware. When the company spun off the foundry, he
tried but failed to purchase it.
During the process, he consulted experts at the Ohio Center for
Employee Ownership at Kent State University and decided to acquire a
business through an ESOP.
This allowed him to use his 401(k) and individual retirement account
investments to help finance the purchase of West Coast without tax
penalties by investing in company stock.
Boerger also got a $160,000 loan through the former American Bank for
working capital and did an asset transaction, he said.
"The company gets to use tax-protected money to pay off the principle,"
he said. "As debt is retired, shares are distributed to employees
accounts. It was a creative way to take over a small business, and it
creates a positive spin for employees."
He is president and owns the majority of stock in the company with his
wife, who handles West Coast's human resources and accounting.
Boerger, who recommends shopping for bankers who understand the
business being purchased, used a banker who assisted a former foundry
owner.
Boerger's business plan is based on a 3 percent to 4 percent annual
revenue increase. West Coast has far surpassed that.
One reason is working capital, Boerger said.
"I think underfunding is one of the biggest problems small businesses
have," he said. "Through my experience in working with other companies,
I know to be aware of working capital needs."
His largest customer is a Georgia company that buys aluminum parts for
electrical switching gear. His second largest customer is a company
that makes dental examination chairs.
West Coast takes smaller orders and performs cost-estimates for new
designs in order to compete with foreign companies and plastic
component manufacturers.
West Coast also provides spectrographic analyses of metal.
"Versatility is what casting is about," Boerger said.
To reach Jane Meinhardt, call (813) 342-2476 or send your e-mail to
jmeinhardt@bizjournals.com.