To better support their increasing base of customers and the changing needs of companies in the Precast, Pipe, Masonry, Paver and Hardscapes markets, Columbia Machine, Inc. and Haarup Maskinfabrik, A/S will be investing additional resources in the North American Market. 

Haarup will establish a new satellite operation to expand their presence in North America, enhancing the strong support Columbia and Turmac have provided the market for many years. The location of this new operation will be announced at a later date. New positions will be added in the areas of Sales and Service. Haarup will focus on the Precast and Pipe Markets. “We are glad for the opportunity to build on the success we have had in the North American Market. We look forward to expanding the products we currently offer to Precast and Pipe producers, which we are sure will have a positive impact on the daily operations.” said Haarup’s President Hans Christensen. 

Columbia’s Batching Division will focus on the Masonry, Paver and Hardscape Markets. In addition to investments in Sales, Service and Engineering to support these markets, Columbia will be introducing a number of new solutions, focused on color blending, rapid plant changeover, faster batch cycle times and enhanced product quality. “We are very happy about the success of our partnership with Haarup. Our two privately held, family owned businesses work very well together. We are excited about the additional investments we will be making to support the markets we serve together.” said Columbia’s President Rick Goode. 

Columbia and Haarup plan to increase inventory levels to support their large base of production plants. Both companies feel that spare parts availability is a key part of the high level of customer service they provide 24 hours a day 7 days a week. 

For more information on this exciting development, please stop by the Columbia booth (900 – Premium Exhibit Area) or the Haarup booth (1850– Precast & Pipe Exhibit Area)) at The 2012 Precast Show, March 1st – 3rd, Orange County Convention Center, Orlando, FL. 

Please contact Tim Goode at Columbia Machine, Inc. if you would like additional information. Phone: 1-360-694-1501 x. 553, Email: timgoo@colmac.com or www.columbiamachine.com 

January 12, 2012 

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For More Information: Kirk Stelsel kstelsel@precast.org (317) 582-2318

Vancouver Businessman Elected to National Precast Concrete Association Board

Stewart Luckman, Precast Sales Director for Columbia Machine, Inc. was elected to serve a 3-year term on the Board of Directors of the National Precast Concrete Association (NPCA) at its 46^th Annual Convention, held Oct. 12-14 in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

Columbia Machine has served the concrete products industry, providing solutions to a variety of markets and industries around the world, since 1928. A leader in mixing and batching technology, Columbia designs plants to match customers’ custom requirements,

With a degree in electrical engineering, Luckman ended up in the precast concrete industry by chance after answering an ad in local newspaper in his hometown of Warwick, England for a "service engineer". He moved to the US in 1993 and has called it home since.

The company has been an active member of NPCA, the national trade association representing the precast concrete industry, since 1990.

 

“Being a part of NPCA connects Columbia Machine with the industry in a meaningful way,” he said. “It’s really an honor to be on the board. It gives me an opportunity to give back to an industry that has given me a lot.”

Now in its 47^th year, the National Precast Concrete Association (www.precast.org) provides technical, educational and safety resources to nearly 1,000 member companies in all 50 states and seven Canadian provinces, representing the $19 billion precast concrete sector of the construction industry.

Article Courtesy NPCA

Columbia Machine has been working diligently with Clark Public Utilities over the past year and a half to significantly reduce its energy usage (primarily electricity). Columbia measures energy usage by using a statistical model that factors in production volumes and compares past energy usage against current consumption. Based on this model, Columbia has significantly reduced energy use per unit of output (termed energy intensity). Starting in April of 2010, Columbia started to show energy savings. From that time until the end of May 2011, Columbia has saved over 830,000 kilowatt hours of electricity. This equates to a 16 percent reduction in energy usage per unit output, on an annual basis. The biggest contributor to Columbia's energy efficiency has been the factory-wide upgrade in lighting.

Additionally, in June 2010 Columbia was introduced to a Clark Public Utilities and Bonneville Power Administration sponsored energy saving initiative by Michelle Missfeldt and Rich Miller, respectively, that is called High Performance Energy Management. Columbia has joined with several other industrial sites in the area to learn how to integrate energy management into their business practices. As a result, Columbia has focused on employee participation and soliciting energy saving ideas. These efforts have contributed to a significant portion of energy savings. Some of the new ideas include employee participation in fixing compressed air leaks, more energy efficient welders and turning equipment down or off during non production times. In July, Columbia's Energy Team reported on their progress at the final HPEM workshop and achieved the most savings of any company in the HPEM group. Bryan Goodman, Columbia's Executive Sponsor for the HPEM effort, also gave a presentation at the workshop to highlight activities implemented at Columbia.

Please contact Bryan Goodman at Columbia Machine, Inc. if you would like additional information on Columbia’s efforts to save energy.

Phone: 1 360 694 1501, email: brygoo@colmac.com, or visit our website www.columbiamachine.com

August 29, 2011

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The Batching Division of Columbia Machine Inc. has developed the new line of Concrete Spreaders that are ideally suited for the placement of concrete in many prestress applications. 

The Columbia Spreaders employ either hydraulic gates or VFD controlled electric driven augers to place the concrete.  Systems can accommodate both long line and carousel applications.  The Columbia Spreaders feature an integral concrete surge hopper, self-contained control system, on-board automation controls, on-board hydraulic power unit (for gate operation), floor mount or suspended rail supports with VFD controlled movement. 

Whether you are building a new plant or retrofitting an existing facility, look to Columbia Machine to bring you innovative new equipment to improve your plant performance, reduce labor costs and add more profitability to your bottom line.

August 30, 2011

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Columbia Machine, Inc. has expanded their operation in Mississauga, Canada with the addition of a new Branch Manager and Office in Montreal, Quebec.

Philippe Lafond has joined the Columbia team and will be focusing his efforts on the Canadian market. Philippe comes to Columbia with a wealth of industry and product experience having worked over 10 years with a competitive mold company based in Canada. Philippe is educated as a mechanical engineer and has earned a masters degree in Industrial Manufacturing.  

Columbia currently stocks molds, machine parts and palletizer parts in our Mississauga warehouse. With the addition of Philippe, Columbia increased technical support, engineering services and customer service in the Canadian market. Philippe will also promote our already successful Columbia Techmatik big board mold product line. 

Columbia has a well-established and loyal following of mold customers in Canada as well as around the world. As shown by Columbia’s commitment to continuous improvement and our persistent investment in our company, it is easy to see why Columbia Machine, Inc. is the world’s leading manufacturer of concrete products equipment and molds. If you have not yet experienced Columbia Machine, we invite you to see what it’s all about.

According to Kevin Brown, Director of Columbia Care, “The addition of Philippe as our Canadian Branch Manager is one of several strategic moves that Columbia has made recently to strengthen our team and improve our position in the market place. Even in the face of economic uncertainty, it is exciting to be part of a successful company that is continuing to grow and invest in our future success.”

Please contact Kevin Brown at Columbia Machine, Inc. if you would like additional information on the Columbia’s expansion in Canada Molds, or other fine Columbia products.

(Phone: 1-360-694-1501 or email: kevbro@colmac.com)

August 15, 2011

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Columbia Machine, Inc. announced that it filed an additional lawsuit against Besser Company alleging infringement of Columbia's patent which covers molds and mold technology. It is Columbia's belief that Besser Company has designed, built, and sold mold assemblies which infringe upon our patented technology in theses areas. The suit is intended solely to protect our intellectual property and we will pursue the matter at the direction of our legal counsel.
 

Columbia Machine, Inc. invests heavily in product development and in some cases we choose to patent developments that we think are unique to our designs. This lawsuit resulted from our monitoring of competitor activities through relevant trade channels and marketing events.

Please contact Dave Sharp at Columbia Machine, Inc. if you would like additional information.

(Phone: 1-360-694-1501 or email: davsha@colmac.com)

August 5, 2011

The Batching Division of Columbia Machine Inc. is now offering a new, lower cost batch plant control system specifically designed for the production of precast concrete. The system has been developed to offer a cost effective controls solution to meet the complex demands of today’s concrete plants while accommodating the pressures of their customer’s budgets for plant improvements.

With a base price under $15,000, the Century NX system is the perfect system to upgrade any precast batch plant to manufacture standard precast or SCC concrete. It features a simple user interface, flexible recipe based sequencing and panel mounted digital scale indicators for easy calibration. The Century system employs the latest industrial plc and touch-screen technology to provide the most reliable operation. The entire system is UL listed and constructed and wired to NEC and NFPA standards.

Retrofitting an existing plant or building a new one, the Century NX system will produce superior concrete with less training, oversight and maintenance. The advanced software allows the system to run unattended with batch calls coming from the plant floor or mobile concrete delivery systems. Material dosing algorithms with moisture corrections will tighten all your material tolerances which, in turn, will improve the quality of concrete the plant will produce. The Century NX system also comes with many upgrades and options to improve any plants performance such as plant floor call boxes (2 types), printing, electronic data storage, inventory management and web based apps to remotely check in on your plant.

With the Century NX system, any plant can now run more efficiently and more profitably with a relatively low investment.

Please contact JP Gianotti at Columbia Machine, Inc. if you would like additional information.

(Phone: 1-360-694-1501 or email: jpgian@colmac.com)

June 30, 2011

Columbia Machine, Inc. announced that it filed a lawsuit on Friday, September 17, 2010, against Besser Company alleging infringement of three of Columbia's patents, which cover, among other features, mold alignment/mounting and height adjustment of the feed drawer.  It is Columbia’s belief that Besser’s new Servopac® machine infringes our patented technology.  The suit is intended solely to protect our intellectual property and we will pursue the matter at the direction of our legal counsel.

Columbia invests heavily in product development and in some cases we choose to patent developments that we think are unique to our designs.  This lawsuit resulted from our monitoring of competitor activities through relevant trade channels and marketing events.

Please contact Dave Sharp at Columbia Machine, Inc. if you would like additional information.

(Phone: 1-360-694-1501 or email: davsha@colmac.com)

September 28, 2010