Packing everyone into one efficient location - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

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The new, 200,000-square-foot building at One Worlf Packaging Circle, Franklin, is a more efficienty layout than theold setup, in whicbh the company, formerly known as , occupied three five-story buildings along East Chicago Street in Milwaukee that totaled about 250,000 square feet. The new building allowsw all Proteus' manufacturing on one floor inside one building, said Tim Wayman, Proteus executive vice president and chief operating officer. "Our employees are able to communicatwe without walkinga mile," Wayman said. "There'sw much more usable space." Proteus has about 100 with an average tenure at the company of more than 14 Wayman said.
Annual turnove is less than 1 percent, he said. The new planyt operates two shifts. Founded in 1932, Proteue produces packaging forthe pharmaceutical, nutritional, healtu and beauty, and automotive industries. Customers include , , Abbott Park, Ill.; , Woonsocket, and , Milwaukee. The new plant is designedr in a circle with raw materialsz entering the plant at the same place where finished productd areshipped out, Wayman said. finished goods were warehousedoff site. The old site'ws layout led to significantly higherr material handling and energy company owner ThomasWamser said. "Thse transport of materials back and forth and up and down floore wasvery costly," he said.
"Wde made many accommodations to improve efficiency at the old but there was only so much you coulf do giventhe situation." The company has invested $20 milliob to buy land, construct the new building, purchase equipment and make ongoin software upgrades. Proteus operates pre-press, die-cutting, printing and finishing The new plant has four timed the storage capability of the old site but only uses a fractiob of the square footage becaused ofnarrower aisles, a high rackint system and laser-guided fork lifts.
Wamser said about half the projecf is being financed with bank debt and half with his own Proteus began moving to Franklinin September, but continuew some operations in Milwaukee, Wayman said. The decision to run two plantx simultaneously was necessary because equipment had to bebrokemn down, shipped and reassembled at the new plant. In the meantime, the companhy still had to fill customers' said Paul Nowak, Proteus general manager. "Youu can't miss a beat with customers," Nowak The company expects to finish moving into the new plantfby March. The majority of employees already have moved into theFranklin plant. Most employeez live on Milwaukee's south side.
"We didn't lose a single employee as a result ofthe move," Wayman Proteus produces packages in various shapes, sizes and materials that aim to be attractive and functional, Wamser said. Packages are designed to help customerscontrop costs, meet government regulations, maximize store shelfv space and attract consumers to theie products. Don Finney, production manager at Carmas Laboratories, which makes Carmex brand lip balm at a plant in the FranklibnIndustrial Park, said Proteus has developed a variety of specialty packaginfg for Carma over the years, including blisted packs, which tend to be used for high-visibility products.
"Proteus is very good at thingslike that," Finne said. "We're tickled to death that they move ddown here." Prior to the construction of Carma's new warehouse, Proteus offered the use of its trucksd to transfer shipments of Carmex to an off-site storage he said.