MILFORD, INDIANA, US — CTB, Inc. is planning significant improvements at its headquarters manufacturing and office campus in Milford, Indiana, US, said Victor A. Mancinelli, chairman and chief executive officer for CTB.          

The company plans to invest approximately $20 million to renovate approximately 38,000 square feet (3,500 square meters) of its existing Chore-Time facility on the east side of State Road 15, north of Milford. Demolition of a portion of the structure is slated to begin after May 1 and new construction is set to be underway by late August. The new facility is expected to be operational by the end of 2022.

 The largest part of the project involves an expansion and upgrading of the company’s existing conference and communications center. The conference center serves CTB’s Chore-Time, Brock and PigTek divisions based in Milford and will enable the company to better host large employee and corporate meetings as well as distributor network conferences and training events.

 “This renovation project will add significant improvements to the CTB Milford campus for our employees and business operations,” Mancinelli said. “This project has been three years in the planning and includes a number of facility upgrades ranging from telecommunications and computer networking infrastructure improvements to large and small group employee meeting spaces. The revitalized facility also includes an upgraded and comfortable Chore-Time employee break room and commons area with indoor and outdoor spaces designed for employees to have meals, socialize and recharge.

 “Many of these building improvements and equipment upgrades have been designed around helping CTB to attract and retain the employee talent we need to achieve our goals as a company.”

 To aid the project, the Milford Town Council is considering local incentives supporting the proposed project at the recommendation of the Milford Redevelopment Commission and the Kosciusko Economic Development Corporation (KEDCO). CTB is an active member in the KEDCO agribusiness initiative.

“This announcement shows the diversity and vitality of the agribusiness sector in the Kosciusko County community,” said Alan Tio, chief executive officer for KEDCO. “We are thrilled the leaders of CTB are moving forward with this project to revitalize the conference center and related spaces at the company’s headquarters facility.”

Beth Cripe, CTB project manager, pointed out that the updated conference and training center space will better accommodate events of up to 400 people and uses the latest in presentation technology and in-person meeting guidelines. The new space replaces a 25-year-old facility designed to hold 300. The area being revitalized also includes a part of the Chore-Time office and manufacturing facility that dates to the early years of the company. The new communications portion of the center will contain corporate information technology (IT) training areas and workplaces along with corporate advertising and communications offices.

 Cripe noted the new Chore-Time area planned in the conference center project incorporates an efficient space design aimed at enhancing the employee experience through a contemporary break room, rest rooms, first aid and physical therapy rooms. The facility will also house an up-to-date tool and die production area for Chore-Time’s manufacturing technical services team. A façade renovation around the entire Chore-Time manufacturing facility will finish the project.

CTB has engaged Viridian Architectural Design as the architect and The Hagerman Group as the construction manager for this series of projects.