Groundbreaking Has Begun for Kent Facility Expansion

Kent Elastomer Products Inc., (KEP) is expanding its headquarters at 1500 St. Clair Ave., Kent, OH 44240 to accommodate a growing workforce. KEP – a leading U.S. manufacturer and distributor of elastomer and latex tubing, non-latex Free-Band® tourniquets, and dip-molded products – is experiencing exponential growth serving the medical, dental, food and beverage, sports and recreation, and other industries.

On Tuesday, September 11th, groundbreaking began on what will become an extended office area for KEP’s Kent facility. KEP Director of Engineering and Maintenance, Renée Onesti, helped to organize and facilitate the groundbreaking event which included comments from Mayor Jerry T. Fiala and KEP President Bob Oborn.

The expansion, which includes several offices and meeting rooms, will allow KEP to extend their office space and take advantage of more opportunities to grow as a business. KEP President Bob Oborn commented on offering more employment to the local community and extending opportunities for their team members as major motives for the expansion; “We have a lot of great people here that need to have an opportunity to be able to grow.”

At the groundbreaking, Mayor Fiala acknowledged the company’s sustainable approach to manufacturing and focus on employee safety which makes Kent Elastomer a great place to work and grow. Kent Elastomer Products sends a special thanks to Mayor Fiala; 4 Point architects, Mark Ferguson and Jonathan Morschl; and Phil Adkins and the Adkins Building Company construction team for their guidance, work and planning for the expansion project. A thank you also goes to Tom Wilke, Kent Economic Development Director; Brad Ehrhart, President of the Portage Development Board; Lori Wemhoff, Executive Director of Kent Area Chamber of Commerce, and other members of the Kent Area Chamber of Commerce for coming and showing their support at the groundbreaking.