Life Sciences Initiative
View a slide show from our Open House and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Stone Belt is pleased to announce the opening of our expanded Life Sciences Manufacturing Area. For over 25 years Stone Belt clients have been involved in the production of biomedical devices utilized around the globe. We are pleased to launch the next phase of our manufacturing program, featuring the installation of 4,000 square feet of environmentally controlled space, more than tripling the capacity Stone Belt has available for life sciences manufacturing.
THE FACTS ABOUT STONE BELT'S MANUFACTURING FACILITY:
• 15,000+ square feet of manufacturing space
• 4,000+ square feet of new environmentally controlled space
• $150,000 capital investment in facility improvements
• 100+ individuals with disabilities employed
• 25+ years in Life Sciences industry
• Certified "Dock to Stock" vendor for local life sciences businesses
• 60,000+ hours worked on medical products in 2008
• $200,000 in total payroll to for medical manufacturing completed in 2008
The following article appeared in the Bloomington Herald-Times newspaper:
Stone Belt's Life Sciences Facility Expands
By J.J. Alcantara, Herald-Times Reporter
Misty Lawyer said she loves her job, and without Stone Belt, it may have never been possible.
Lawyer, 24, has worked for Stone Belt for more than a year now, and after the recent expansion of the life sciences manufacturing area, Lawyer has more opportunities to work.
Stone Belt celebrated the expansion Thursday at its Bloomington headquarters on 10th Street, welcoming employees, their families, the community and local officials for a chance to see the new facility and what these individuals do.
Stone Belt’s manufacturing services help people with developmental disabilities have an opportunity to work and acquire skills while providing subcontract manufacturing to businesses.
Stone Belt CEO Leslie Green said the expansion allowed the company to create an environmentally controlled clean space with the added potential for increased services. Employees who work at the facility assemble and build medical equipment used in various procedures.
“So much of the manufacturing base is moving toward the life sciences, and with companies that are here in town and the things Indiana University is doing in technological development, we wanted to be a part of that,” Green said. “We’re concentrating our energy and attention to that sector of manufacturing.”
Bloomington Mayor Mark Kruzan, who was at the ceremony, said Stone Belt has become an important part of the Bloomington community.
“Stone Belt is often an underestimated economic factor in Bloomington,” he said. “Don’t underestimate your role in this.”
Jason Carnes, field representative for U.S. Rep. Baron Hill, said that with the losses in the manufacturing industry, it’s vital to find new, innovative ways to help the economy. “And Stone Belt is a prime example of that,” he said.
Barry Lessow, executive director of United Way of Monroe County, said the expansion celebration marks a tremendous day for Bloomington and Monroe County.
“(Stone Belt) shows us how to live united,” Lessow said.
Stone Belt employs more than 70 individuals with developmental disabilities in their manufacturing services and more than 200 in businesses all over the community, Green said.
The expansion allowed Stone Belt to move facilities in Bedford and Spencer to Bloomington.
“We found out we’re not going to have the use of the facility in Owen County,” Green said. “We looked at what our resources were, and the best move was to move it to Bloomington.”
The facility took about four months to complete at a cost of about $140,000.
“We ran into a situtation where we needed a quick turnaround, and we needed to make that happen,” Green said.
Stone Belt was founded in 1958 by nine families who wanted to provide educational opportunities for their children with disabilities.
Stacey Ryner, Stone Belt communications manager, said that around the late 1970s, when more children with disabilities were undergoing transition into public schools, the company made a move to help adults become a part of the community.