Brown Deer-based Rite-Hite said it plans to add a third shift and 100 employees to its factory in Dubuque, Iowa.
Rite-Hite manufactures loading dock equipment, industrial doors, safety barriers, industrial fans and other in-plant products. The company is currently building a new headquarters complex in Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point neighborhood.
The company said it plans to hire approximately 100 manufacturing employees for assembly, industrial sewing, welding, and CNC machining to cover the new 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift, as well as bolster the existing first and second shifts in Dubuque.
The workforce expansion is designed to help the division, which manufactures loading dock seals and shelters, double its current production levels by mid-2022, the company said.
“We are experiencing record customer demand for our loading dock seal and shelter products right now, which has led to a very healthy number of orders to produce as effectively as possible,” said Sara Everts, director of corporate marketing and communications at Rite–Hite. “Given our plant’s potential production capacity, state-of-the-art equipment and the excellent local workforce, it makes complete sense to keep growing our business in Dubuque.”
Rite–Hite’s Dubuque facility has 430 employees making the loading dock seal/shelter products as well as industrial doors, HVLS fans, safety barriers, fabric curtain walls, and fabric air dispersion systems. The plant was originally built in 1983 and most recently expanded in 2017. The Rite–Hite and DuctSox products manufactured in Dubuque are installed in factories, warehouses, distribution centers, and commercial facilities across the U.S. and around the world.