Seibold builds updated manufacturing facility

CHRISTIANSBURG, Va.--Systems integrator Seibold Security expanded another side of its business in early July as it completed the construction of a new manufacturing building here. Although the company focuses on its systems integration business, it also manufactures a product line called SuperVision, a line of access control and intrustion panels that Seibold acquired from Litton Industries in January 2002. Increased requests for the product was the driver for the development of the new location. "It has come down to seeing more demand for the Supervision product line," said Tim Seibold, vice president of operations at the company. "Our business has grown and we have to continually manufacture." The 6,000-square-foot location in the Christiansburg Industrial Park doubles the size of the company's previous facility located in Blacksburg, Va., which the company leased. The new facility is located on three and one-half acres and Seibold said there is additional room to expand if needed. The company, which services seven states across the country and employs 60 people, invested approximately $1.1 million in the expansion and plans to employ six people at the location, which will add support staff as well as individuals in manufacturing roles. Seibold said the area is an attractive locale for companies looking to develop new space. "The county we built the building in has a ton of industrial development and the area made it very attractive to keep the business down there." Seibold said the company's ability to use its own products with its integrated systems speeds up a process that would take longer in some cases. And it can quickly adapt to customization requests from clients. "We developed our own software, manufacture and we are an integrator," he said. "We can do what others can't do or it would take them a long time to get done." Another advantage of having a background on the software side is being able to be in the know on the hot topic of physical security and IT convergence. "Since we have our own IT people, typically when we are doing presentations there needs to be IT people in the room," Seibold said. "We have found a lot of luck with that as the market is shifting."