Durasol News

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April 16, 2006

By Ashley Kelly
Times Herald-Record
akelly@th-record.com

Town of Wallkill - All over the country, when folks roll out an awning to deflect the sun's rays, it may well have been made in Orange County.

They are made here daily by Durasol Systems, and the company plans to keep it that way.

Durasol, which has been in business for more than 20 years, has decided to keep local hands on their product, by moving the remainder of production to the Town of Wallkill. Before the move, 70 percent of production was in the Town of Wallkill and 30 percent was in Arizona.

The expansion will bring more than 30 new jobs to Orange County - a bit of a contrarian feat, given the current condition of the manufacturing world, where jobs have drastically declined in past years both locally and nationally.

But Rich LeMond, president of Durasol, said this will not be the case for his company.

"We'd rather have the product cost a little more to the company to keep the jobs in New York state," said LeMond. "It's important to us to give to the community."

Jobs on the production floor range from $15 to $17 an hour. Salaried positions at the company are said to be competitive with larger metropolitan areas.

With the growth of Orange County, residents should not have to travel to New York City for work, he said.

LeMond said the product will "never" be outsourced because it is custom-made and cannot be created in bulk and shipped off.

"No two awnings are the same," LeMond said.

Because the styles, sizes and colors of the awnings vary, some experts say LeMond may be safe in his anti-outsourcing proclamation.
"When you have people who are buying new homes that are custom designed, they're going to want that elaborate canopy over the deck and pool, etc.," said Darren McKinney, spokesman for the National Association of Manufacturers.

"During the '60s and '70s, in the modest middle class, there was a lot of standardization. You might find a 72-inch awning could work on a lot of back doors," McKinney said.

Although the bulk of Durasol's customers are homeowners, the company also provides awnings for major businesses and restaurants across the country, including Applebee's, Dave & Buster's and Pizzeria Uno.

"I'm 100 percent behind them keeping jobs in Wallkill and in Orange County," said Town of Wallkill Supervisor John Ward. "We're constantly looking for good businesses and good-paying jobs to bring into the town."

At Durasol, the new job areas include manufacturing, sales and marketing, and technical support.

"This county is growing," LeMond said. "You hear people saying there is no business here - yes, there is."

"In terms of economic development countywide, this is what we want to see," said Maureen Halahan, president and CEO of the Orange County Partnership. "These success stories impact all of us."