NEW SALES DIRECTOR

CENTURY RECOGNIZED

NEW HIRE & NEW BRAND

SALES DIRECTOR HIRE

NRHA SPONSOR PROFILE

SILVER AWARD WINNERS

HAND TOOL EXPANSION

NEW OWNERS

INVESTORS PURCHASE CENTURY DRILL- April 17, 2008
Ashwaubenon business sells power tool accessories
By Nathan Phelps

ASHWAUBENON – A group of area investors purchased Century Drill and Tool in Ashwaubenon Tuesday and say they hope to see the business grow in the coming years as the economy improves and it makes headway into new markets.

Darrin Purcell, the new president and chief executive officer, said the deal to purchase the company from D.J. Long Jr. was finalized Tuesday. “We want to be bigger… and we see every opportunity to grow this business,” Purcell said Wednesday morning. "New business opportunities await when the economy turns around and the housing industry picks up," he said. “The good news is we address both the do-it-yourself and the do-it-for-me markets."

Century Drill and Tool packages and distributes power tool accessories for the automotive and hardware industries and has about $15 million sales annually, according to the company. Century’s market includes the automotive aftermarket retail industry, farm supply cooperatives and independent hardware stores.

While the company has a very solid customer base, Purcell said there are opportunities for further penetration into that market. “We see huge growth opportunity both when the economy turns and in our ability to convert new customers,” he said. “With our ability to sell the service and flexibility Century has built its business on to more customers, there’s plenty of opportunity.”

Purcell said the company has about 35 employees working at its 20,000 square-foot facility at 1160 Contract Drive. It does not expect any immediate changes in employment, but would like to see that number grow in the future. “It’d be fantastic if we (grow) that work force to manage the kind of growth we expect to create,” he said.

Formed in New York in 1940, the Century Drill and Tool Co. moved to Chicago in the 1950’s. D.J. Long Jr. of De Pere purchased the company in the mid-1980’s and moved it to its location in Ashwaubenon, according to information from Century.

Buyers include Darrin Purcell, Greg Lewandowski, Jim Greisinger and Dennis Purcell. Darrin Purcell and Greg Lewandowski (chief financial officer) will oversee the daily operations, while Dennis Purcell and Jim Greisinger will serve on Century’s new board of directors. The partners come from a mix of executive background at local companies, including Schreiber Foods and Bay Valley Foods. “This business has a fantastic track records, a great customer base and great employee group,” Purcell said. “We have deep-rooted connections to this community, so to have this opportunity here in Green Bay was a big deal for us."

Phelps, Nathan. "Investors Purchase Century Drill." The Green Bay Press Gazette. 17 April 2008. Web. 10 June 2010.