ROME — Bartell Machinery Systems, L.L.C. is planning to open an office in Qingdao China to complement its sales and service offices in Rome, N.Y. and Telford, UK.

Bartell also has sales offices in Houston and Toronto. The latest move supports Bartell’s export focus, which represents 90 percent of the company’s revenue. The headquarters and manufacturing plant are located in Rome.

Bartell was founded in 1940 to service local New York wire and cable customers. National Standard bought the company in 1969, and 30 years later sold it to Pettibone, which is owned by Heico, a conglomerate headquartered in Chicago.

“We manufacture machines mainly for the tire and rubber (60 percent of revenue), oil and gas (25 percent of revenue), and wire and cable (15 percent of revenue) industries,” says Patrick John Morocco, Bartell’s president. “The company has more than 8,500 machines in operation worldwide, which are used by hundreds of companies. Our staff includes 160 dedicated employees, of whom 148 work here in Central New York. The manufacturing plant and office [comprise] … 145,000 square feet located on 17 acres, so we have plenty of room for further expansion.” The Business Journalestimates Bartell’s annual revenue at more than $50 million. The company owns all of its real estate.

“We supply a number of companies in the tire industry with beading machinery for the manufacture of tires. Our customers include Yokohama, Goodyear, Pirelli, and Michelin,” notes Morocco. “Our oil and gas companies are probably not household names — Technip in France, NKT in Denmark, and GE Wellstream in the UK — to whom we provide machines to produce deep-sea flexible risers and umbilicals for the off-shore industry. Our wire and cable customers primarily service the telecommunications, electrical utility, medical device, and advanced fiber-optic industries.”

All of Bartell’s machines are highly engineered. “Research and development is a key component of our success,” the president adds. “Our technical staff includes 40 engineers with nine or 10 members focused solely on R&D … All have engineering degrees. The company has a 5,500-square-foot R&D facility, and we use the most advanced technology to design and develop innovative solutions for our customers. All of our products are fully manufactured and rigorously tested to operate safely, efficiently, and reliably prior to delivery.”

Bartell’s 2013 revenue jumped 42 percent over the previous year. “It’s a good sign that our strategy is working,” posits Morocco. “We are focused on growing both revenue and profit … We need to expand the sandbox by leveraging our core competencies … and [by] looking for synergies in different markets. [For example,] … while we manufacture machines to produce flexible pipe for the oil and gas industry, we need to look for opportunities to expand into offshore pipe-handling and rigging systems. We plan to grow organically, but we also look for opportunities to acquire new business. …  I spend considerable time searching for acquisition targets … We also plan to add a marketing coordinator marketer to focus on product and brand awareness within the markets we serve.”

Morocco attributes the company’s success in large measure to its employees. “We have a great team throughout the organization,” adds the president. “They are dedicated, skilled, and up to the challenge of becoming a world-class manufacturer. With the resources of Pettibone and Heico, we have tremendous growth opportunities. The plan calls for hiring another eight to 10 people this year.”

Morocco also notes the contribution of the leadership team which includes Bill Rostiser as vice president of operations, Paul Gatley as vice president of engineering, Jeff DiOrio as controller, Brian Turvey as senior vice president of sales and marketing, Jason Whyte as vice president of sales and marketing, Pam Hollenbeck as human-resources manager, and Andy Longway as director of continuous process improvement.

Critical to Bartell’s ongoing success is the implementation of strategic quality initiatives. “Our quality focus applies to products, processes, and services,” states Morocco. “Our quality-policy statement says that ‘customer satisfaction is our business, continuous improvement is our commitment.’ [To this end,] … we received ISO–9001 certification and are in the process of implementing Lean Enterprise. We expect to begin Six-Sigma certification in about two years. Bartell is also pursuing ISO–14001 this year, a voluntary program from the Environmental Protection Agency that provides the framework to evaluate and manage an organization’s environmental impact. Next, we plan to meet ISO–18001 certification standards for OHSMS (Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems).”

Bartell’s success is also attributable to its focus on safety. “We offer continuing training in environmental health and safety,” Morocco emphasizes. “Bartell is committed to creating and sustaining an incident-free environment throughout the organization, which starts with a cultural climate that is intolerant of unsafe behaviors and working conditions.”

Morocco was born in New Jersey and graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in engineering. He spent seven years in the U.S. Navy as an engineering officer, including a stint on an Aegis-class cruiser (USS Antietam CG-54).

Morocco joined the private sector in 1993 and held executive positions with Stewart & Stevenson Operations, Inc. In 1998, he joined Wartsila, a Finnish company, as the vice president of worldwide operations. Morocco moved to the Carrier Corp. in Syracuse in 2001 and ECR International in Utica in 2004, before joining Bartell in April 2013. He resides in Marcellus with his wife Peggy, also an Annapolis graduate from the class of 1986, and four children.

Heico Companies, L.L.C. is a holding company which owns 35 manufacturing, construction, and industrial-services companies in 12 countries on four continents. The holding company is organized into four groups: Ancra, Heico Metal Processing, Heico Construction, and Pettibone. Heico, which is privately held, generates annual consolidated sales of more than $2 billion. The concept of the holding company is to offer its properties financial, environmental, health and safety, legal, and risk-management resources. Heico also offers a worldwide supply chain to its constituent companies for sourcing product and services.

Bartell reports to Pettibone, which contains 13 companies.

Contact Poltenson at npoltenson@cnybj.com