Briggs & Stratton Corp. employees and leaders alike gathered together to celebrate the grand opening of Briggs’ new manufacturing facility in Sherrill, N.Y., on Sept. 18.
“We’ve seen tremendous double-digit growth, especially with our Snapper, Vanguard and Billy Goat brands,” said Todd Teske, chairman, president and CEO of Briggs. “We needed a facility like this.”
The new facility in Sherrill first opened its doors in early February 2019. It features 552,000 square feet of manufacturing space, which is a 130 percent increase over the previous location in Munnsville, N.Y. It will be responsible for producing products for the Ferris, Simplicity, Snapper, Snapper Pro and Billy Goat lines.
“It’s a proud day for the community and the workers in the upstate New York area,” said Michael Reese, regional director of Empire State Development Mohawk Valley Regional Office.
The new manufacturing facility also boasts seven press brakes, two turret punches, 10 welding robots, two cutter deck lines, three 171-foot conveyer assembly lines (which are expandable up to 200 feet) and the capacity to store up to 7,000 units, according to the company.
Originally a schoolhouse, the old plant in Munnsville employed about 500-550 people, while the new facility currently employs about 600 people, with 60-100 positions that have yet to be filled.
The process for opening a new facility began about two to three years ago. The space had previously housed an Oneida manufacturing plant that has since shut down and moved overseas.
“There’s been a tremendous amount of pride, and it shows in the quality of the equipment,” Teske said. “I look forward to seeing employees on the line making equipment.”
In concert with the ribbon-cutting ceremony on the Sherrill facility, Briggs hosted nearly 450 dealers at its National Dealer Event at Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, N.Y.
“The dealers are an important part of our value proposition,” Teske said. “We provide dealers the power, and together, we make peoples’ lives better.”
Dealers had the chance to test out various pieces of equipment within Briggs’ portfolio, learn about new equipment, visit an indoor trade show floor and tour the Sherrill plant. To help educated dealers on equipment, the Sherrill facility also comes equipped with a training station, complete with a high-definition TV for remote trainings.
“Dealers can come here, and it creates excitement around the equipment,” Teske said. “(The training area) gives dealers the tools to deal with more sophisticated equipment.”
