A wet wipes and disinfectant manufacturer has purchased an adjacent building on Milwaukee’s north side with the intent to expand.
Athea Laboratories Inc., 1900 W. Cornell St., has purchased a 77,940-square-foot industrial building at 1700 W. Cornell St. for $1.74 million from Richards Street Industrial, LLC, according to state records.
Athea is planning to eventually use the space to expand and move its operations from its other plant at 7855 N. Faulkner Road, said Steve Hipp, president of Athea Laboratories.
“We acquired the building with a tenant who has one year left on the lease,” Hipp said. “This will give us some extra square footage and tons of acreage so we can build a nice campus here.”
Athea makes cleaners, disinfectants, wet wipes, herbicides and insecticides packaged under major brand names for the retail/consumer and institutional markets.
The company moved to its current 250,000-square-foot  from 6161 N. 64th St. in 2012. Athea has been consistently adding five to 10 employees every year and currently has 150 people on staff.
Athea acquired Milwaukee chemical manufacturer Matarah Industries Inc. in 2001 and the wet wipes division of Milwaukee specialty chemical firm Converted Products in 2005.
