New HQ, COVID-19 Keeps CPC Focused on Future

Businesses across the world have sought various means to optimize operations in 2020 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. CPC (Colder Products Company) of Roseville, Mn, has been responding to pandemic-related product needs while finishing and moving into a new headquarters building. 

The new site on Cleveland Avenue in Roseville became CPC’s official address of record in July, with all production and shipping staff now onsite at the new headquarters as most other office employees continue working from home. The company chose to locate in Roseville to take advantage of the existing workforce, accessible location and the area's amenities.

“It’s been an extremely busy and successful year despite all the factors we and others have been navigating,” said Janel Wittmayer, CPC president. “Our new facility and the world-class capabilities it enables are serving our growing customer base very well.” 

CPC is the leading provider of quick disconnect couplings, fittings and connectors for the life sciences, biopharma, industrial and chemical handling markets. St. Paul has been home to CPC for 40 years, during which time it has built a portfolio of 10,000-plus connector products used primarily in fluid management. CPC is an operating company within Dover Corporation. 

New HQ

CPC began a search for new headquarters in earnest in 2017. The company was operating out of multiple buildings and quickly outgrowing the available space. Demand for CPC’s products has grown significantly and steadily, particularly in rapidly expanding categories like biopharmaceutical processing and thermal management applications, such as liquid cooling of electronics. The company’s local employee base has increased 50% in the last two years and that growth is expected to continue. The new facility was designed to foster collaboration, accommodate future growth and maximize efficiency. 

The 132,000-square-foot headquarters includes manufacturing and innovation space and a larger Class 7 cleanroom. The cleanroom is critical for making parts used in applications like sterile manufacturing in biopharmaceutical processing.

Roseville Partner

Relocating to Roseville made sense to CPC for a number of reasons. An east side metro location would ease the transition for the existing workforce. The chosen location near 35W and County Road C offers excellent accessibility for employees and for shipping products into and out of the facility. The site also offers ample parking and room to further expand. Finally,  the area’s amenities including hotels, restaurants and retail outlets, will serve as an excellent complement for employees and visitors.

The City of Roseville has been a valued partner in advancing the development of a new global HQ, said Wittmayer. 

“With the help of the city and state, we were able to redevelop a former brownfield into a modern, vibrant home base for more than 600 employees,” she said. “As an innovation hub, we’re also excited to welcome visitors from all over the world. We partner with 200 distributors and engineering resources across the globe. We have customer service operations in the U.S., Germany and China, where we also manufacture products. CPC has sales offices in 13 countries, too, so our Roseville location will draw employees, customers and partners from across the world, which will undoubtedly contribute to the vitality and economic activity of the area.”

COVID-19 Impact

While establishing the new facility, the company also has been navigating the COVID-19 pandemic. Many CPC products are used in applications related to COVID-19 care such as ventilators, vaccine production, lab testing equipment and ambulance disinfection systems. CPC’s production teams are operating at the new site with COVID-related safety precautions in place, while most office-based employees continue to work from home. A benefit of the new facility is that it improves employee collaboration and day-to-day interaction while allowing for recommended physical distancing.

“Of course, a worldwide pandemic wasn’t part of our planning process for a new headquarters,” said Wittmayer. “While we were building inventory to accommodate the move and validating equipment in our new facility, we found ourselves increasing production significantly to respond to global demand for products used in the diagnosis or treatment of COVID-19.” 

Despite the flurry of activity, Wittmayer sees the definite upside in how the timing has played out. 

“CPC now has a brand new facility purpose-built to optimize production,” she said. “We can be even more flexible and responsive designing, manufacturing and delivering the critical connectors that customers need.” 

Excitement for the Future

CPC is eager to fully implement operations in their new space, and in the meantime, accommodate the safety of production employees onsite and the productivity of employees working remotely from their homes. The company expects to continue to grow both the employee base and their operations.

“We facilitate secure fluid delivery, which is very important to many products and systems across a wide range of industries,” said Wittmayer. “We’ve been very successful by focusing on advanced connectors for fluid management and we look forward to continued growth as customer needs expand here and across the globe.”

The Roseville Economic Development Authority (REDA) coordinates and administers economic development and redevelopment initiatives for the City of Roseville, MN. It serves as a comprehensive resource for businesses seeking to startup and grow in the area. In addition to prioritizing business retention and expansion, the REDA connects area employers with the dedicated and talented workforce they need to succeed and thrive.