Flexicon Corporation has doubled the size of its Engineering Department and increased engineering personnel by 50 percent at its 90,000 sq ft (8361 sq m) manufacturing facility and world headquarters, it was announced by John Simonof, vice president.

"Engineering is the heart of Flexicon," says Simonof, "and the US engineering staff outgrew its available space, limiting the hiring of additional personnel."

The company converted inventory space to a purpose-built Engineering Department which became operational in October 2007, providing space for additional staff while improving workflow efficiency, explains Simonof.

In addition to engineering customers' equipment and systems, the engineering staff is responsible for new equipment designs, for which it has been awarded numerous patents in 32 countries, and for designs that comply

with evolving certifications required by governmental and industry associations for chemical, food, dairy, and pharmaceutical applications worldwide.

The space previously occupied by the Engineering Department also allowed a corresponding expansion of the Technical Service and Applications Engineering Departments.

The Engineering Department has compiled performance data on over 25,000 installations that engineers at its manufacturing facilities in the US, UK, Australia and South Africa can reference when designing equipment and systems for specialized applications.

New in 2002, the US headquarters doubled the combined area of separate manufacturing facilities it previously operated in Phillipsburg, NJ and Easton, PA.