Preformed Line Products to complete Rogers expansion by year-end

by Talk Business & Politics staff ([email protected]) 1,151 views 

Preformed Line Products Co. (PLP) is once again expanding its Rogers operations.

The Cleveland-based company announced Tuesday (Oct. 11) it would complete its $16 million expansion in December of this year. It will add 82,000 sq. ft. to the Rogers facility and add up to 50 new jobs, the company said. The expansion will increase PLP’s manufacturing capacity and provide additional warehouse space.

Founded in 1947, publicly traded Preformed Line Products is an international designer and manufacturer of products and systems employed in the construction and maintenance of overhead and underground networks for energy, communications and broadband network companies.

The company opened the doors to its then 48,000-square-foot Rogers plant in 1969. It’s one of the company’s two domestic manufacturing centers. The other is in Albemarle, N.C.

“We are excited to expand our Rogers facility for the seventh time in the plant’s 53-year history,” said Dan Harryman, PLP plant manager. “This latest expansion will add to our plastic injection molding capabilities and provide much-needed relief in the warehousing and shipping areas of the plant. Business growth has been very strong, and this expansion will allow us to continue to provide our customers with the great products and service we are known for.”

The Rogers manufacturing facility currently employs over 450 people. Over the past 12 months, PLP has added more than 75 employees to its Rogers location, with the additional 50 additions coming as a result of the expansion.

“The growth of our Rogers facility has in many ways mirrored the growth of the Rogers and Bentonville communities during our first 53 years here,” said Rob Ruhlman, PLP’s President and CEO. “It has been the ‘work hard, play hard’ entrepreneurial spirit of the great people in the area that has made our growth from 48,000 square feet and 20 team members to what will be 423,000 square feet and over 500 members of the PLP family not only possible but a real pleasure. We are very thankful to have found a home here and proud to be a part of such a wonderful community.”

The plant, which opened in 1969, has undergone several expansions and upgrades over the years to accommodate increases in product offerings and overall product demand, the latest being in 2021.

PLP has grown from one location to over 20 and now employs over 3,000 people worldwide. It is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year.