Mercury Marine adding 45K-square-foot expansion

Mercury Marine is adding a 45,000-square-foot expansion to its global headquarters in Fond du Lac.

The added room will house "state-of-the-art" electro-deposition paint (EDP) coding systems, which add anti-corrosive chemicals to marine engines and drive systems to operate effectively. The 18-month project will double Mercury Marine's EDP capacity, said President John Pfeifer.

"It will improve overall flexibility and it will improve the work environment dramatically for our employees," Pfeifer said. "It's going to be a win-win for everybody involved, including the community we work with to make these projects happen."

The project is expected to be finished by January 2016 and the new system fully operational by the end of that year.

About 90 percent of the construction work is contracted through Wisconsin-based businesses, according to Mercury Marine officials.

State Sen. Rick Gudex (R-Fond du Lac) said the expansion is evidence of Mercury Marine's commitment to the Fond du Lac area.

Following the 2008 recession, Mercury Marine announced in 2009 its decision to consolidate its operations in Fond du Lac or Stillwater, Oklahoma. The company had said the demand for boats had declined during economic tough times and that its manufacturing plants were running under capacity.

Local and state legislators met with company officials and created incentive packages to stay. Union representatives voted for concessions. The workers accepted a plan, and the company agreed to stay.

"We're certainly glad we have partnered back in that time frame with Mercury Marine, and we're certainly glad that decisions were made back then that brought us to where we are here today," Gudex said. "So exciting to see the continued expansion. The continued investment in our Fond du Lac economy and our regional economy."

Since that time, Pfeifer said the company has invested more than $580 million in its local campus.

"We put investment where we think we're going to get the best capability to serve our customers. We've always been able to do that well here in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin," Pfeifer said. "The marine industry can be very cyclical with economic cycles, but over time, we've been very successful here because we've got a great partnership with the community and great employees."

Pfeifer said the current EDP system still works but is about 32 years old and that the company will get more capacity and more flexibility from the new system. The expansion will create more jobs in the long run, Pfeifer said.

"Over time, it will certainly create new jobs as we continue to grow the company and we're putting in new capacity, so we'll need more people to produce more products," Pfeifer said.

A national leader in the boat engine industry, the company is Fond du Lac's largest manufacturer, employing 2,800 workers in Fond du Lac and 5,000 worldwide. It is a $2 billion division of Brunswick Corporation.

Reach Justin Kabbes at jkabbes@gannett.com or at (920) 907-7925.