New jobs have been created in the Seminole County community of Wewoka with the recent expansion of the overall manufacturer Round House Manufacturing, LLC.
When the Shawnee plant needed to expand its operation, the business incubator in Wewoka, the community’s adequate workforce and working partnerships were key to putting the expansion in Wewoka.
“Everyone got involved in this project,” said Jim Antosh, president of Round House Manufacturing, LLC. “It was incredible to see how people and organizations combined their resources to make this possible.”
Round House Manufacturing, LLC, produces American-made overalls for painters, carpenters, engineers and other professionals. The products are pre-cut at the Shawnee location and sewn at the Wewoka location. The Wewoka plant employs 16, with 30 projected during the first 12 months of operation and 50 by the end of the third year.
Antosh credits a list of partnerships for the expansion, including the city of Wewoka, the Wewoka Industrial Authority, Seminole State College, Gordon Cooper Technology Center, the Oklahoma Manufacturing Alliance, the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, local banks, the Wewoka Chamber of Commerce, Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma, Inc. (REI) and local citizens.
“These partnerships helped us in every aspect of facility renovation, and a local car dealer even provided a van to transport employees to our Shawnee location for training purposes,” Antosh said.
“As an economic development organization, REI recognizes the importance of partnerships and the Wewoka project is just a super example of this,” said Tom Seth Smith, REI president and CEO. “We are extremely pleased to have Round House Manufacturing as a participant in our incubator program designed to assist business expansions like this one.”
SHAWNEE, Okla. —
