Quality Checked Plastics
Quality Checked Plastics constructed a 74 by 155-foot production/storage facility next to their processing building in the Industrial Park. The new building adds 11,500 square feet of space.
In the new building, additional production work for a particular contractor will also be done. “Instead of contracting out the washing of recycled plastic flakes, we will be able to do it ourselves,” Steve Lind, plant manager, said.
Their present facility has three sorting lines. Once the new facility is complete and ready for use, Quality Checked Plastics will be able to increase their production staff to 52, adding 15 more employees.
The company operates two shifts, 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 2 to 10 p.m. They ship out about 1.2 million pounds of recycled plastic per month.
In 1995, Quality Checked Plastics added a 60 by 84-foot facility enabling them to add the third production line plus the building also serves as rough storage of the product. The finished product, ready for shipping, is stored in the main building, a 12,000 square foot structure.
Quality Checked opened its plastic recycling facility in Paynesville seven years ago. “We are very happy with the Paynesville community and have found the city and Stearns County easy to work with when planning expansion projects,” Lind added.
Quality Checked Plastics receives the majority of its plastic bottles and jugs from a six-state area: North and South Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Nebraska.
The company hopes to have the new facility up and running by June 1.
Family Eye Clinic
The Family Eye Clinic, located in downtown Paynesville, added about a 1,000 square feet to its facility this winter.
Dr. Randy Norris, owner, said he realized because of their growth, they needed the additional room so they added onto the back of the building expanding their work space.
As a result of the remodeling project, the front entrance was changed. When a person entered the building before, they would turn left and enter the waiting room. Now customers need to turn right to enter the waiting room.
“By changing everything around, it gives us better movement between the various areas,” Norris said, “and helps the staff and patients move better from one area to the next.
The remodeling project created a larger dispensary/fitting area, doubled the space of Eye Looks Optical, added a break room for employees, a contact lens room, an office for Norris, and a second exam room with space for another. The equipment in the exam rooms was upgraded as well. In addition, three computers were added to the office to speed up billing and bookwork.
As a result of the remodeling, Norris will be extending office hours. The office is now open Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Tuesdays, 8 am. to 6 p.m.; Wednesdays, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Saturdays, 8 am. to noon.
Norris said within the next five years he would like to be in the office three days a week and cut back his hours in Willmar. “I’m thrilled with how the remodeling turned out,” Norris said. “My wish for the future is for the business to continue to grow.”
Touchless Car Wash
A new business in Paynesville is a Touchless Car Wash. Paynesville has had car washes before, but this one is a touchless car wash.
Glenn Odberg, Paynesville, leased the car wash space from Jim Guenther at Jim’s Standard at the intersection of Highways 55 and 23. The floor of the old car wash was torn up before Christmas and the new touchless car wash opened in the middle of February, replacing the old brush style car wash.
“We tried to simplify the car wash as much as possible,” Odberg said. “All a person needs to do is drive up, punch in the type of wash they want, and pay the machine.”
A person has three options when it comes to car washes: 1) a wash and wax; 2) a wash, wax, and blow dry; and 3) the ultimate, an underwash, double wash (passes around the vehicle twice), wax, and blow dry.
Odberg said the car wash will take almost any size vehicle (cars, pickups and vans) except large trucks. The car wash will be open the same hours as the gas station: 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
M&M Lumber
M&M Lumber, located on Highway 55, on the east edge of Paynesville, is expected to finish their expansion project by the end of this week. Due to the addition of rental services to their current lumber business, they turned warehouse space into a display area. The expansion gives them an additional 2,000 square feet of work space.
The remodeling project started Jan. 6. An employee training was held in mid-March for the rental equipment. Around the first of April, M&M started their new service. “We still need to paint the floor and put away merchandise,” Dick Michaelis, owner, said.
Compressors and accessories, ceiling and floor remodeling equipment, compaction devices, concrete, electrical, and lawn and garden equipment, pressure sprayers, and paint supplies are just a few of the numerous hardware equipment available for rent.
Koronis Tire
Koronis Tire, Paynesville, finished adding their new storage area in March. Located on east Highway 23, Koronis Tire added a new line of farm tires creating a need for additional storage space. The new area measures 40 by 60 feet.
The new area will be used for storing their new line of farm tires and has greatly increased their service capacity. The original shop measured 60 by 120 feet,
Koronis Tire, which originally opened in 1974, recently decided to add 100 different new sizes of tires, as well as some additional sizes of their existing lines. They also took on the Titan brand of farm tires and Multi Mile auto and light truck tires which they had previously not sold. The new lines and sizes naturally prompted their need for the additional space, Dan Binsfeld, owner, said.
Rothstein Implement
Being landlocked in downtown St. Martin, Rothstein Implement had outgrown their space and moved their entire operation to the new industrial park located on the north edge of town on Dec. 7, 1996.
Rothsteins, which originally opened in 1940, is now able to accommodate much larger equipment and with greater efficiency. “We more than doubled our space,” Gary Rothstein, owner, said. “We’re now more efficient with the overhead cranes and we have more room to repair larger equipment.”
The new shop, equipped with overhead cranes, measures 86 by 140 feet and the parts area is 80 by 100 feet.
Rothsteins will be adding more employees in the future as they get more settled into their new quarters. Their hours of operation are 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7 am. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays.
AMPI
Due to environmental regulations, AMPI, located on River Street, built a new truck loading bay to the existing business. The trucks, which haul condensed whey, were being subjected to dust and other environmental factors while being loaded in the open air. The new truck bay, 70 by 35 feet, was added to combat the problem.
Koronis Parts
Ed Webb owner of Koronis Parts, on County Road 181, erected a 72 by 200-foot cold storage warehouse. The building has been in the planning for two years and Webb wanted to keep it close to his home base, located across the road.
Koronis Parts delivery trucks and vans will be stored in the warehouse as well as snowmobile parts.