Genairex shifts manufacturing By Jan. 1, 2014, all products will be made at facilities in New Jersey, Virginia and Texas
By Liz Beaulieu, Editor
Updated Fri October 25, 2013
LARGO, Fla. - There's a long list of reasons behind Stephen Kuehn's decision to start manufacturing all of Genairex's ostomy products in the United States.
Manufacturing has made great strides here, in terms of technology and people. It reduces transportation costs, and the lag time between order and delivery. It makes it easier to change products.
But the biggest reason is sentimental.
“Over the weekend, a woman from New Jersey wrote to say how wonderful our products are, and the last thing she wrote was, 'And it's made in the USA!'” said Kuehn, president. “That was underlined. There's just a lot more pride in American products today.”
Genairex, which had been manufacturing about 90% of its products in Europe, plans to manufacture 100% of its products at facilities in New Jersey, Virginia and Texas by Jan. 1.
Making the move has required substantial time, effort and energy—not to mention millions of dollars—but it's a good return on investment, Kuehn says.
“Two out of the three brands in the market manufacture in China or the Dominican Republic,” he said. “The future is here in the U.S.”
In addition to brandishing “Made in the USA” labels and American flags, Genairex's products now have a new name: Securi-T USA.
“For me, as a veteran running this company, sometimes I get a little emotional about it,” said Keuhn. “In the Vietnam War, I was a Navy corpsman who took care of hundreds of young marines who were temporary ostimates due to shrapnel wounds. It's what got me started in this business.”
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