Hany Tadrous, business development director and Ehab Tadrous, owner at their new TexWeb facility in Eden, NYWhen Buffalo Niagara Enterprise declares a project a regional “win,” our relationship with the company does not end there. The BNE team continues to be a partner and resource to that new operation as it grows from the “big idea” phase to reality. A good example is the Egyptian-based company, Petrolift, which came to BNE in 2013 with an interest in establishing a location that would enable them to produce “Made in USA” products. Petrolift is a successful manufacturer of web slings and lifts for industrial applications in the oil & gas industry. They are ISO 9001 certified and are a member of the Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA), the Webbing Sling & Tie Down Association (WSTDA); among other accreditations. In considering potential U.S. locations, the company began exploring Buffalo Niagara due to our geographic proximity to Canada.
In 2014, after a successfully identifying the ideal WNY real estate and an incentive offer from Empire State Development, Petrolift began working on its U.S. operation, which they named TexWeb. Work soon began on renovating an old furniture factory in Eden, NY and specialized weaving equipment from Germany was ordered. To date, TexWeb has invested well over one million dollars to set up the facility and start production.
BNE was pleased to have the opportunity to tour the entirely renovated facility and watch the new weaving and finishing machines in action. Each machine can continuously weave many strands of nylon and polyester to produce various widths of narrow fabric. These tightly woven fabric straps are then heat-treated to add additional strength, and dyed in order to color-code and identify the maximum tonnage it can lift. By completing this process, the narrow fabric is converted into lifting material (webbing) used in the production of various products. TexWeb produces a web sling that can carry up to six tons, with higher strengths to be accommodated within 3 months’ time. All of their products are tested and certified using their in-house testing machine in accordance with the WSTDA accreditation.
And they are growing jobs. TexWeb has hired six employees in the short time they have been in operation, and will be adding another six people to their workforce before the end of the year.
