National company expands to western Pennsylvania

BEAVER FALLS -- The remnants of an old tile warehouse have been reinvigorated.

Chalmers & Kubeck Inc., aPhiladelphia-area-based business, is re-equipping the Beaver Falls warehouse to capitalize on the safety-release valve market as well as industrial repairs for anything from machines in steel mills to boilers at community colleges, plant manager John Davis said.

Safety-release valves automatically reduce pressure buildup. When those valves dont work, explosions can result.

If that goes, the whole plant shuts down or it goes kaboom, said Travis Thompson, the valve shop leader.

Two of Gov. Tom Corbetts Cabinet secretaries are scheduled to visit the property, at 1018 11th St. in Beaver Falls, on Wednesday as part of a tour. State money is helping Chalmers & Kubeck Inc., of Aston, launch the local shop, with up to $600,000 in tax credits and $122,500 in grants.

The secretaries include C. Alan Walker of the Department of Community and Economic Development and Julia Hearthway of the Department of Labor & Industry.

A DCED spokeswoman said Tuesday, though, that the department has currently scheduled its deputy secretary for community affairs, Michael Cortez, to visit the site.

The move comes as the business last year became the sole authorized assembler for General Electric consolidated safety valves, Davis said. The territory spans from western New York to northern West Virginia, he said.

The company is also eyeing Shell Chemicals proposed petrochemical plant in Potter Township, but even without it, the company sees a robust economy, Davis said. The business has shops from Maine to Florida, he said.

The state awarded the company a $500,000 enterprise zone tax credit, given to encourage business in certain areas, and its also eligible for up to $100,000 in job-creation tax credits, Beaver County Corporation for Economic Development Vice President Robert Rice said.

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National company expands to western Pennsylvania