July 31, 2024

The 120-year-old manufacturing and engineering company Loos Machine, will be moving some operations into the old Packaging Corporation of America building, located at 705 S. Division St. in Colby.

The closing of the building was finalized on May 4. The building had been empty since PCA had decided to move to Marshfield in 2018.

Loos has now bought two buildings in the last several years with the acquisition of the property at 101 S. First St. several years ago.

The company plans to expand its manufacturing facility into the building and has dubbed the building, “Plant 2.”

A portion of the building was damaged in last year’s severe storms that also tore through the Colby softball fields and damaged much of the city of Stanley. Loos Machine President and CEO Eric Mertens said the north end of the building would be used but the south end would be demolished.

“Some of the building was pretty damaged so we’re going to keep the northern portion of the building and the southern portion will get [destroyed],” Mertens said.

Mertens said growing in a rural area can be directly attributed to the dedication and hard work that the citizens of central Wisconsin bring to the table.

“It’s exciting to be able to utilize a small, rural town like Colby to help grow our operations,” Mertens said. “We’ve been able to incorporate the hard-working work ethic of the individuals that this area supplies and on top of that, it’s been a great destination for us to pull from other communities as Colby is a central hub.”

The rich history Loos Machine has enjoyed in the city of Colby is a main reason Mertens and the executive staff have chosen to keep their operations in the area.

“We’re excited to build our operations in a community like Colby because of those offerings as well as this has been the roots of Loos Machine for 120 years and we’d like to keep it that way.”

Mertens attributed the company’s success to the employees that have created quality products and relationships for and with customers.

“Our employees are the heartbeat of the company. They are pivotal to the success of all of our operations. Whether it be customer interactions or all the manufacturing that is required, all of those efforts complete the full gamut of our products,” Mertens said.

Mertens said there will be opportunities for prospective workers to join the company as machinists, welders, general and skilled labor, engineering opportunities and much more as the company expands.

Loos plans to be in the facility by the end of 2022.

“We’re excited to stay in the community and continue to be a part of what Colby and Abbotsford have to offer,” Mertens said.

In a separate closing, the owner of Computer Troubleshooting and Repair, Seth Pinter, has purchased the office building that resides across from the old PCA factory. He said at this point in time, he plans to rent the property to any prospective business owners that might need it and has already performed upgrades to the building.