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Located in Summerville, SC, Briteline Extrusions is enjoying its 57th year as a family and employee owned and operated business. Beginning with a 750 ton press purchased from a competitor,

Briteline began its aluminum extrusion business by pro-ducing carpet bar and trim strip for formica counters and tables. Over the years, the company has developed a niche in providing higher value-added products as a one-stop shop. Extrusion, finishing, aging, and various opera-tions, such as cutting, deburring, polishing, and brushing are all done under one “roof.” This approach appeals to many customers—such as Southeastern Aluminum Prod-ucts, Matki, and Spartan Showcase—who prefer the qual-ity, convenience, and reliability of a single source.

Briteline’s operations are housed in five buildings, with a total area of 105,000 sq ft. A sixth building is currently under construction that will eventually house the com-pany’s latest acquisition—an anodizing line capable of producing 20 ft extrusions with Brite Dip and acid etch. With the addition of a 1,450 ton press in 2008, Brite-line’s extrusion production is roughly 20,000 lbs per day. Though small in comparison to other extruders, it is the rest of the operation that makes Briteline different, and has been the key to its success in the challenging global extrusion market.

Three-Generation Family Business

As a college student in Youngstown, OH, Ken Kabine made ends meet driving a truck hauling coal and dirt. While hauling Trimedge Company trash to the dump, he noticed workers removing round metal shapes that were hidden within the debris piles. Recognizing an opportu-nity, on a following load Ken took some of these pieces to a scrap metal dealer who valued them at $50—quite a bit of money in the late 1940s. Upon informing Trimedge that they had valuable material going out the back door, Ken’s acumen and willingness to take the initiative were rewarded with a job offer in their facility, which he ac-cepted. In 1953, Trimedge moved south to Newnan, GA—where it was renamed the William L. Bonnell Com-pany—and Ken followed, taking on the position of super-intendent of the Trim Division. Thus began Ken’s 64-year career in the aluminum industry, which led to the found-ing of his own company where he continues to work to-day (Figure 1). His years of experience includes his time at Trimedge and Bonnell, the startup of Benada Alu-minum in Miami, FL, and taking Briteline from a small trim shop to the full service aluminum extrusion company it is today.

Following in Ken’s foot-steps, his son, Ed, joined his father early on. In fact, the establishment of Briteline’s first extrusion plant in Sum-merville, SC (circa 1960) was largely accomplished under Ed’s supervision and management. From 1965-1995, Ed served as Brite-line’s lead project manager, overseeing plant expansions

Briteline Excells in Small Shapes with Fine FinishesBy J.D. Schloz, Contributing Editor

and equipment installations, as well as improvements to the various manufacturing processes. In 1995, Ed was promoted to vice president - manufacturing, a position he currently holds (Figure 2.).

After a lengthy sales and mar-keting career in the commercial broadcasting market—including stations WCIV (Charleston, SC, 1973-76) and WIS (Columbia, SC, 1976-97)—Diane Bagwell, Ken’s daughter, joined the company as vice president - sales in 1997 (Fig-ure 3). Among her many responsi-bilities (the absence of a dedicated outside sales representative being one of the company’s many chal-lenges), the one she is most eager to discuss is her role in developing a strong online presence for Brite-line. According to Diane: “Roughly 50% of our new busi-ness comes directly from the website.” She is most excited by the upcoming launch in April 2011 of a Google-ad-ministered “Pay for Click” advertising campaign. (Read-ers are encouraged to view Diane’s efforts at Briteline’s website: www.briteline.net.)

Last to join the Briteline team in 1997 are family mem-bers Bryan “Bo” Bagwell (Diane’s son), IT mgr/sales, and Chris Kabine (Ed's son), project manager and main-tenance foreman. With these latest additions, Briteline looks forward to continuing the family tradition of excel-lence in its extruded and manufactured products.

Company History

Briteline began operations in 1953 as Briteline Mould-ings, which used purchased extrusions from Extruded Aluminum to produce carpet bar and trim for formica counters and tables. The operation consisted of drilling, punching, and buffing processes. In 1960, the plant was relocated to its current Summerville location. Briteline’s first extrusion press, a 750 ton unit, was started by Ed Kabine, and initially extruded only 250 (24”) billets per day. Ed remembers those initial times quite vividly, and

Figure 2. Ed Kabine in front of a small amount of the 5,000+ extrusion dies in Briteline’s current inventory.

Figure 1. Aluminum extrusion pioneer Ken Kabine, founder of Briteline, today at 84 years old still works at the business every day (from 5:00 a.m. to noon).

Figure 3. Diane Bagwell has been developing Briteline's website.

Reprinted with permission, ©2011 Light Metal Age

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especially a call between himself and Ken where he was informed that he needed to extrude at least 300 billets to be above board. In the words of Ed: “We had to extrude a billet every two minutes with a small press and billet oven. For 23 years that press ran.” By 1982, Briteline had expanded operations to include a new anodizing build-ing and a 15 tank anodizing line.

In 1985, a major milestone occurred with the purchase of a 940 ton autoloading press and the erection of a new building to house the increased production capacity. In 1986, the company added powder coating, a technology then only five years old. Briteline used one small spray gun and had no dedicated curing ovens, instead relying on heat treat ovens for curing the powder coated extru-sions. This seemingly inauspicious move was instrumen-tal however, in that it enabled Briteline to produce prod-ucts for its most important customer base—the shower door market. By 1992, the company continued to add to its capabilities with the addition of brite dip, a dedicated powder coating line, and a 750 ton automated press, as well as a new building to house the equipment.

In 1993, tragedy struck when a fire destroyed 75% of the main manufacturing building. Ken remembers those days well: “We were able to keep our customers by pur-chasing metal from Bonnell and Loxcreen,” with whom Briteline had good relationships. The company bounced back quickly, regaining its buffing line almost immedi-ately, and getting the first press back online within three months. Ken remarks: “We used tarps to shield the opera-tion from the weather, had a diesel generator for power. But it was the people (employees) who are the ones who brought us back.” The role of the people was indeed in-strumental, and became even more so when, in 1995, Ken used an employee stock option purchase (ESOP) to buy the company from his then partner, George Hays. This move gave Ken control of the company while yield-ing 49% of the company shares to its employees at no charge to them.

Continuing its expansion, by 1998 Briteline had added a 900 ton automated press, another building to house the press and a shipping area, and installed its first produc-tion control software system (Foy EPICs). The company, which had until this time marketed solely through word of mouth and industry relationships, launched its first website. From 2001 to 2008, Briteline added an Elumatec CNC machine center, two 1,450 ton automated presses, and two high efficiency billet ovens. During this time it also expanded its powder coating and brushing lines, and converted its 5” presses to 6” (due to the increasing premium on 5” billet). In 2010, Briteline began export-ing to Canada, introduced acid etch anodizing capabili-ties, and started construction of a 20 ft Brite Dip and an-odizing line.

Equipment and Plant Layout

In order to get a better idea of what makes Briteline unique, it was first necessary to make detailed observa-tions of the plant and its operations. While touring the plant, it was occasionally difficult to determine where one building ended and the next began. Though the build-ings are numerous, Briteline’s work flow has a very logi-cal layout, with product advancing through the buildings in staggered fashion. As far as the extrusion process itself one of the most impressive areas is the die storage area. Briteline maintains in excess of 5,000 extrusion dies, a large number for a company its size (as shown in Figure 2). With many die changes, and order minimums of as little as 300 pounds, productivity can be a challenge.

The primary extrusion workload is carried out on the company’s two 1,450 ton presses, one Youngstown, one Watson Stillman, (Figure 4), with a 750 ton press for han-

dling smaller jobs. Billet preheating is accomplished with high efficiency gas ovens from Granco Clark and Belco (Figure 5).

Once the extrusions leave the runout table, they are treated with the utmost care as they make their way through the remaining workstations. One example is the way the profiles are stacked, using Kevlar pads to prevent metal from contacting metal (Figure 6). Nowhere in the Briteline operation does metal touch metal, essential for retaining the excel-lent finish the com-pany is known for.

Process scrap is well controlled and is stored outdoors in two separate trail-ers (one for extru-sion scrap, one for saw chips) until the trailers are full, at which point they are traded for prime bil-let through Metal Exchange. In or-der to meet its goal of minimizing the plant’s environmen-tal impact, Briteline employs an exten-sive water treatment system. This system is comprised of a 13,800 gallon equal-izing tank, two pH correction tanks, a polymer floccu-

Figure 4. Dunaway runout table for the 1,450 ton press #5.

Figure 5. High efficiency Belco billet oven, purchased after a similar Granco Clark unit proved to substantially increase productivity.

Figure 6. Kevlar pads offer excellent pro-tection for profiles.

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lation tank, and three settling tanks. Clear water is re-moved from the top of the settling tanks and sent to the city sewerage, while the bottom is sent to a filter press to remove solids.

Located at the heart of the Briteline facility are the anodizing and finishing operations, which are instru-mental in producing the finishes needed to attract and retain Briteline’s core customer base. Though fairly routine from an equipment standpoint, Brite-line hand-selects from a number of chemical suppliers for its anodizing and Bright Dip processes. Mechanical finishing is accomplished with Hammond sanding ma-chines, as well as one home-built prototype sander for finishing tubing (Figure 7). Two examples of Briteline’s fine finishes, brushed nickel and clear anodized pipe, are shown in Figures 8 and 9. Equally impressive is the com-pany’s powder coating line, employing a Nordson pow-der system and a Pneu-mech Systems powder coat oven.

Maintaining high quality in manufacturing does not always mean purchasing new or updated equipment, but can also result when a simpler approach is used. Two examples of this are in Briteline’s punching and quality control areas. For manufacturing door bars, it is impera-tive that holes are punched or drilled very precisely, with little tolerance for errors in location. Instead of using an-other punch press (the company has Federal, V&O, and Minster presses in use) Briteline chose to build specialty jigs for punching on large brake presses. This does the job quickly, at low cost, and with few opportunities for er-ror and by staging representative parts and their dimen-sions at the press, the process can also be checked at the

press. In quality control, the “simpler is better” approach is personified in the retention of extrusion samples (as well as their measured dimensions) in a rack of PVC pipe sections (Figure 10). Having the actual samples available for inspection means rapid and effective spot checks. This simple, yet elegant approach is duplicated in many aspects of the operation.

The attention to detail placed on maintaining the qual-ity of finished parts does not stop in the manufacturing operation. In order to ensure that the as-received condi-tion of the parts is as good as when they left the factory, Briteline places a major emphasis on proper packaging. With a TexWrap Side Sealer (Figure 11), a RoboPac Spi-ral Bundler, and a DoBoy Top Sealer, parts are cocooned in a robust fashion, one that shields them from the typical handling abuse of a commercial shipper. After cardboard packing and crating, it is difficult to imagine the parts reaching their destination in anything less than pristine condition (Figure 12). The level of detail and workman-ship of the packing is remarkable in its efficiency and thoroughness.

Also visible during the plant tour was the new build-ing, currently under construction, and the recently pur-chased 20 ft tank Brite Dip and acid etch line that will be housed there upon building completion in Fall 2011.

Surviving Tough Times - Sticking with the Fundamentals

The obvious question that comes to mind with a small extrusion operation is how did they survive into the 21st century as an independent? Considering the pace at which large aluminum companies are swallowing the smaller ones, it is a wonder that there remain a few who can resist this trend. Briteline’s case is interesting not so much in the novel approaches that tempt with question-able claims of improvements, but rather in a classic and fundamental approach to doing business.

Figure 7. Custom built pipe polishing machine, with 50 and 150 grit sanding belts. This “prototype” has been in operation for over 15 years.

Figure 8. An example of the brushed nickel finish. Along with the rubbed bronze finish, these are Briteline’s flagship finishes.

Figure 9. Example of the fine finish of Briteline’s polished and clear-anodized pipe.

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Develop a Niche: First and foremost, it can be said that Briteline is not interested in competing across the spec-trum with other extrusion suppliers. Rather, they have successfully attracted and retained a very specific mar-ket segment. Their strength is not in heavy output (over 5,000 current dies and many die changes per day make this unlikely), but in doing (in the words of Ken) “what no one else wants to do.” Namely, to make the profiles and finished parts with the highest standards of finish, all in-house.

A potential Briteline customer may be attracted by fin-ish quality (which is extremely well-regarded in the in-dustry) or the notion that a single source manufacturer is preferable to shipping pieces back and forth to different manufacturing operations. In this regard, there are very few left in North America that are as well positioned to take advantage of such customers. This focus on a spe-cific segment of the market has been by and large the rea-son that Briteline has succeeded in remaining profitable. According to Diane Bagwell: “Customers come to us for high end quality products. All produced in-house. We do what we say we are going to do. We keep our promises and deliver excellent service. In the aluminum industry, we are known for small presses and fine finishes. Em-ployees are taught how to handle the extrusions from the press throughout the plant, and into shipping. No two pieces of metal touch on carts. Our plant is not about pounds per hour, it is all about quality. We have less than 1% reject rate year after year.”

Watch the Balance Sheet - Fiscal Discipline: Briteline’s op-erational philosophy focuses on remaining lean and flex-ible. Cost controls can best be described as “austere”. Ac-cording to Ed Kabine: “If we need two bolts, we buy two bolts. We build a lot of our own equipment here. We strive to minimize scrap to control costs. Our motto is ‘Make it right the first time!’” Another unique facet of the management philosophy involves how to grow at a “correct” pace. For Briteline, investments in new equip-ment or materials have historically been driven by specif-ic customer orders rather than on projection or specula-tion, which has the combined result of matching growth precisely to market need and accelerating capital recov-ery (project payoff). The new Brite Dip/acid etch anodiz-ing line is their most speculative venture to date. Though the company has had bank loans in the past, it has made a concerted effort not to borrow, and has not pursued outside financing since 2001 (when a loan was used to purchase the CNC machining center). Obviously, these goals and strategies have been instrumental in keeping the operation lean enough to handle the tough times of-ten encountered in the cyclical aluminum industry.

Honor the Employees - Involve, Rely, and Reward: One of the many challenges that small extruders face is how to staff all functions that are required while maintaining low labor costs. In order to accomplish this, Briteline strives to attract and retain skilled workers who are capable of fulfilling multiple roles. According to Briteline’s manage-ment, this is accomplished in multiple ways. The most sig-

Figure 10. Thirty days of profile samples for quality assurance monitoring.

Figure 11. Ed showing off the Tex-Wrap side-sealing machine, which is instrumental in reducing cardboard packing.

Figure 12. An example of the thorough packing job typical of Briteline.

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nificant contribution to employee involvement occurred in 1995, when the ESOP purchase transferred minority ownership to the workers. It may be difficult to gage the overall effect of this move, but logic dictates that those who are invested in a company tend to contribute more toward keeping the company profitable. Indeed, during the plant tour everyone appeared to be working very dili-gently. But the ESOP program is not the only contribut-ing factor. Briteline also encourages involvement of its workers in the planning and execution of projects and cross trains its employees. A generous health insurance package, and monthly attendance and biannual perfor-mance bonuses are other ways that the company honors its workers. The sense that the workers are highly valued pervades the atmosphere at Briteline, and it is clear that the company has an excellent program for maximizing employee productivity and retention.

Good Housekeeping: During the tour it was impossible not to notice how clean the facility was, and how each step in the operation was efficiently staged and manned. This is no accident, as Ed remarks: “We are constantly evolving as our business changes and technology changes. We went from interleave and box packing tables to sleeving machines and spiral bundler to expedite packing. More efficient, and we use less cardboard, which is environmen-tally positive.” Besides the green aspect of the packaging, it was clear that there is minimal chance of damage from shipping, which translates into higher as-received quality.

A Solid Recipe for Continued Success

There are many facets of the Briteline organization that have helped shape the company into the effective and long-lived extruder that it is. Clearly, the presence of active and experienced management, with an in-depth knowledge of the process and its difficulties—and in-

vested in the long-term success of the operation—is in-strumental in making the right decisions with regard to operational effectiveness over the long term. This type of leadership has produced a very lean operation, made evident in the strategy of investment in tools or materials only when called for “by order.”

In addition to the active management, Briteline has chosen to maximize its operational flexibility by main-taining a large die set, and by accepting what could be among the smallest order sizes in the industry. Recogniz-ing the importance of worker investment on long term productivity, Briteline chooses to honor and reward em-ployees in a number of ways, most notably a generous health care package and substantial ownership stake in the company. Finally, perhaps the very one thing that can be singled out as the reason for the company’s success, is the almost fanatical devotion to a specific goal—produc-ing the finest finish possible.

The model and approach that Briteline has taken is clearly effective in keeping the company healthy despite the cyclical nature and current downturn in the alumi-num market. Displaying little interest in competing with the big guns, or in trying to be everything to everyone, Briteline has wisely chosen a niche market that fits its ex-pertise in producing “small shapes, fine finishes”. Rather than relying on the latest management fad to take their place, Briteline’s managers and supervisors believe in ac-tive management and true employee investment in the operation. Instead of solving problems by purchasing new equipment, they approach them with the simplest, most effective solutions possible using the knowledge and skill of the workers and supervisors. Taken together, Briteline’s goals and strategies yield great promise to con-tinued success of the company; and with more genera-tions imbued with the company’s philosophy, this success is not likely to change in the near future.

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