After tragedy, Pittsburgh Flexicore relies on itself to finish expansion - Pittsburgh Business Times:

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He also could see many of the growinf pains his company would face as it preparedc to move to a new concrete There wasthe expense: around $4 million, financed largely through various state funds. There was the move: a six-mile slog to the new plangt in Donora. And there was the general fear of makinfg a transition to a new address with new while serving a backlogof business. But there was one growinvg painhe couldn’t The contractor they hired to do the job Along with the loss of a business associate with whom they entrustef their business, Pittsburgh Flexicore faced the realithy that their new facility was no more than half a 700-foot-long building without floors or “It was a shock knowing at that poin t in time that the project was goinb to come to a halt,” Patterson said.
Patterson and his sons were forced to decidew how to finishthe job. Two years ago, Patterso n made the decision for his company to do most of the remaininygwork itself, including pouring the concrete floors, building a ramp for storagse space, moving various equipment and a varietyh of other tasks. The electrivc work was the only work thecompany subcontracted. Pittsburgbh Flexicore is now 98 percent finisher with the new site and plans to move innext month. Closes to the point of having the majord transitionbehind him, Patterso is matter of fact about what it took for his company to pick up the pieces and handle the task on its own.
“Yoy had to coordinate all of it, that’sa for sure,” he said. “You know what you have to do, and you spendc the time to do it.” The smalp family-owned company of 50 employeeas completed the development of nearly half of its new facilityu while supplying a full backlog of clients out of its old one at the same Patterson delegated the responsibilities for completinb the build out tohis sons, Robert Jr. and Sean, while he manageed the business, a dual role that added nine monthsa tothe project.
The payoff was obvious: The new equipment will triple the amount of concrete Pittsburgu Flexicorecan make, and the move from a six-acr site to a 17-acre one means the company will be able to storse enough supply to take on the kind of extra work they’ve had to turn It’s the kind of bootstrapping that Lee president of , sees small manufacturers doing often. “Companies are trying to keep everythiny down to the last penny and make everythinggo further, especiallu in a family business,” he Such companies need to know theird limits , and where to get the rightt advice when necessary, he said.
But Taddonio said small companiew often have an easiedr time making such decisions thanlarge “They just work harder,” he