The Harris Group Changed Its Name and Its Future

July/August 1989

The leaders of Harris Press and Shear wanted the company to grow. They changed its name and two years ago began expanding within the markets they knew best.

By Madelyn R. Callahan

Madelyn R. Callahan is a Washington, D.C., writer who specializes in business issues.

Three hundred years ago England's celebrated Bard made Juliet immortal with this line: "What's in a name?" In today's business flux of mergers and acquisitions, no playwright would risk such a question, for fear that more than a few companies' principals would answer back "plenty." If that happened, spokesmen for the Harris Group, a manufacturer of scrap processing and recycling equipment, would surely be among them.

In early 1989 the Harris Press and Shear Division of the American Hoist and Derrick Company changed its name to the Harris Group, a division of AMDURA (formerly the American Hoist and Derrick Company). The new name preceded the addition of some new faces, some new products, and a few new facilities.

On May 19, Harris announced its acquisition of Amfab Resources, manufacturer of a high-volume transfer compactor for solid waste. Add this Woodburn, Oregon, operation to the Group's other facilities and offices in St. Paul, Minnesota; Cordele and Baxley, Georgia; and Swindon, England. And in addition to the compactor, Harris directs the manufacture and sale of Harris shears, TG and TGS metal balers, HRB balers, Harris cranes, and the recently acquired line of Selco balers.

The search for a small company like Selco began three years ago, prompted by desires to "grow Harris," says Harris President Floyd Tuominen. "The strategy was to develop within the markets we knew best. And Selco was the number one small baler line and still is, as HRB and Harris are number one in their markets."

To accommodate the need for production capacity, the Selco division is expanding its 60,000-square-foot Baxley facility by another 27,000 square feet. Located 90 miles east of Cordele in Baxley, Georgia, the division employs about 100 people to manufacture small to medium-sized balers. Selco's product line includes more than 100 models of vertical, horizontal, and two-ram balers. "With Selco and HRB, we're able to serve the industry--from the smallest baler needs to the largest, such as those used in high-volume paper and waste recovery," Tuominen says.

He says the self-contained company appealed to Harris on many levels. "We were seeking to acquire a company in the smaller baler range as compared to the Harris equipment. And because of the product name and product range, we sought out Selco." Selco's previous owners are valuable additions to Harris; "They're the type of people we like to surround ourselves with--highly motivated specialists in the market," he says.

Other efforts in expanding best-known markets resulted in the development of the Harris hydraulic counterbalancing crane. The leading equipment manufacturer saw "a definite need for this type of product," says Tuominen. Through its U.K. operations, Harris found the crane manufacturer and signed a license to manufacture and market the machine, which it secured with North American patents. Harris has begun manufacturing the crane in its Cordele facility.

According to Tuominen, the crane is designed specifically to increase the efficiency of a scrap processing operation. Used primarily in the U.K. and Europe, the all-electric crane is favored for its outstanding efficiency, he says. "Its patents are based on the hydraulically movable counterweight that keeps the crane in balance. So it reduces the counterweight requirements. And because it's totally electrically powered, it costs less to operate."

Another addition is Harris's new assembly building in Cordele, Georgia, located on several acres. The company has recently enclosed the assembly area in one structure that is 165 feet wide and 400 feet long. It will house the assembly of all Harris equipment as well as truck and rail loading activities.

Also among the innovations are Harris's employee training and enrichment programs. Since 1987 more than 100 new hires joined the company. The need for training became evident when foremen and leader people were found training people on the floor of the plant. In cooperation with local technical institutes, Harris's human resources department and floor superintendents developed continuing education programs for everyone at Cordele, from foremen to management staff. This ongoing effort, says Tuominen, "has been worth every hour and every cent."

For the 100-year-old company and its customers in the U.S., South America, Great Britain, and Europe, improving service meant expanding further.  And that, after all, has much to do with the new name.

The leaders of Harris Press and Shear wanted the company to grow. They changed its name and two years ago began expanding within the markets they knew best.