The Kelvion manufacturing site at The Port of Catoosa, which is an industry leader in the production of heat exchangers for the oil & gas industry, is expanding to meet the growing demand in the North American market. The company will invest $ 6 million to expand the facility leading to creation of jobs.

Kelvion, formerly known as GEA Rainey, has been in continual operation since 1964 and has a long history and extensive expertise in the heat transfer industry. In the upcoming months, Kelvion’s Catoosa facility, which has four locations at The Port, will be refurbished and equipped with robotic welding equipment. This new investment will also require hiring people for new jobs in welding, quality, and assembly. Kelvion has placed an order for the robotic welding equipment and is scheduled to begin manufacturing on a new product outside of its traditional base at the beginning of 2022. 

Although Kelvion’s Catoosa facility’s bread and butter business remains in the oil & gas industry, “new product and market developments with customers outside of oil & gas have been very exciting, and we are growing at an exponential rate at this point,” said Christine O’Connor, Vice President Operations & Managing Director of Kelvion Catoosa.

Kelvion’s new manufacturing will require an additional 60 jobs within the next 14 months and another 60 by 2024.  “It’s fantastic to see one of our industries grow, especially when it’s an industry that’s had a tougher time in the last year,” Port Director David Yarbrough said. “We are delighted and excited for Kelvion. They have been here a long time. We want them to continue to be here.  Like so many companies that are trying to grow, it’s about finding people that want to go to work,” Yarbrough said. “That’s their biggest challenge and we’re going to do everything we can to help them and our other companies find those people, get them trained, and get them to work.”