BERLIN CENTER, Ohio – Concept-4, a local family-owned precision machining and tool-and-die company, is entering a new chapter under new ownership after being purchased by Zachary Woods and Chris Thomas, co-founders of Ashore Manufacturing.
Woods and Thomas celebrated the start of their venture at 13940 W. Akron-Canfield Road with a ribbon cutting Wednesday afternoon.
Ashore Manufacturing recently acquired the former Concept-4 facility, which has been in the Mahoning Valley for more than 20 years.
Mike Pence Sr. ran the company after buying out the other three partners. However, when he decided it was time for him to step away, he found Thomas and Woods willing to take over.
Thomas said that when they considered purchasing the business, they were drawn to its relatively new equipment, well-maintained facility and opportunities for growth.
“It has a very, very impressive customer list, really high level deliverables on the quality side,” Thomas said, adding that they are already engaging with customers and turning up the volume on production.
Thomas met Woods through a mutual friend at Youngstown State University. Woods had been working in financial management at three investment firms, large companies in New York City, but had ties to the area.
Woods said he was impressed with the craftsmanship of the products built at Concept-4 before they decided to purchase the company.
“They do a tremendous job,” he said. “And one of the things I say is I work for these people in terms of getting them the machines they need, the tooling they need, the apprentices they need and putting in new systems. It’s not how do we make their job harder – it’s how do we help them do their job better.”
Woods said they added new tech systems, are working toward getting certified for defense contracts and added a smoothie bar in the corner for employees.
“We did an SBA loan, which allowed us to term it out,” Thomas said. “Those are very friendly. We teamed up with WesBanco here locally, incredible partners for us.”
Josh Toot, market president and senior commercial banker for WesBanco, said Thomas and Woods are great individuals with experience who wanted to team up to continue a manufacturing business, and it was an easy decision for WesBanco to support them.
“I love manufacturing. It’s the heart and soul of the Valley,” Toot said. “We were thrilled to help.”
Ashore has announced plans to modernize the facility with even more new equipment and automation as part of its plans, as well as preserve the craftsmanship and trade knowledge that have defined Concept-4.
Ashore maintained Concept-4’s three-person workforce, including Pence’s son, Mike Pence Jr., and has already added a fourth person in the first week.
According to a news release announcing the acquisition, Ashore is executing a near-term roadmap focused on quality management certifications and defense contracting readiness, including ISO 9001, ITAR registration and CMMC Level 2 compliance. The company is working with the Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network on its AS9100 certification path. These credentials will allow Ashore to layer defense production subcontracting on top of its established tool-and-die and precision machining foundation.
Pictured at top: Ashore Manufacturing co-founder Chris Thomas cuts the ribbon at the company’s new facility in Berlin Center. Joining him were employees Kevin McElfresh, Isabella Canzonetta and Mike Pence Jr., along with co-founder Zachary Woods and Jeff Haefke.