O rlandi Laboratories chief Doug Whitaker has run his business for years out of an old U.S. Army facility at Enterprise South industrial park.
Soon, the company that develops and produces fragrance samplers such as those inserted into magazines will operate in a new state-of-the-art site that will help it double its work force, he said.
Still, Whitaker said the company will remain on the campus of Enterprise South, which for decades held an Army ammunition production plant, when Orlandi moves into its new Discovery Drive facility.
“It’s an ideal location,” he said. “It’s among other businesses with like-minded people. Hopefully there will be other technology businesses on Discovery Drive.”
Whitaker said the 17,000-square-foot location will help the business achieve efficiencies to enable it to grow. The move will drastically increase the size of its research and development facilities, he said.
“That’s where we’re adding more people to our operations,” Whitaker said. “We need additional space.”
The company employs 11 people, but plans are to double that figure in five years after moving into the new $2.5 million operation, he said.
Near vw plant
J.Ed. Marston, the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce’s vice president of marketing, said there are more than 50 acres available on the west campus of Enterprise South, which is opposite from Volkswagen’s massive 1,500-acre site.
“We feel like it’s good to have a big company like VW and space for different kinds of companies and different industrial sectors,” he said.
John Straussberger, president of builder The Strauss Co., said site work at Orlandi’s 4.4-acre parcel next to VW’s temporary office space started last fall. Building construction kicked off about two months ago, Straussberger said.
He said the facility should be ready by the end of the year.
Whitaker said Orlandi Laboratories does controlled release work related to cosmetics and fragrance ingredients. Its primary product is the pull aparts for magazine sampling, he said.
The business is a contract laboratory to New York-based Orlandi Inc., which traces its roots to 1865 and bills itself as a leading provider of fragrance and cosmetic delivery products.
When the new building is complete at Enterprise South, it will be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certified, Whitaker said.
“We decided to do a green initiative,” he said. “It’s the right thing to do.” Whitaker added the LEED design will help curb utility bills as well.
The new building sits within a mile of VW’s new $1 billion auto assembly plant that’s under construction.
Marston said there’s room for another six or seven small companies on the West campus.
“We’re actively recruiting for that area,” he said.