Gage to Expand Testing Labs

Gage Products Company,a Michigan-based supplier of custom-blended fuels, plans a multi-million-dollar expansion of its test-fuel division.
Scheduled for completion during the first half of next year, the $5-million program calls for construction of a laboratory, test-fuel blending facility and distribution center, according to Gage President Robert Jamrog.
The expansion will enable Gage to meet new-customer contracts, as well as increased demand from existing customers for hybrid fuels.
The project will add 10 or more new jobs at Gage, which currently employs more than 75 people at its Ferndale-based headquarters.
The company also has facilities in Brazil, Germany, Mexico and the Netherlands.
A site for the new facilities has not been selected, although the company prefers to remain in Ferndale close to its customer base.
Sites in Alabama, Georgia, Texas and Mexico also will be considered.
Gage has invested more than $1-million in laboratory and custom-fuel blending facilities during the past five years.
Custom-blended fuels and calibration fluids are used by automakers and their suppliers for emission- control testing, as well as in a variety of research and product-development programs.
“We expect to see a significant growth in sales as auto manufacturers and their suppliers work to improve fuel economy and expand the use of environmentally-friendly fuel,” Jamrog said.
“University engineering departments and test laboratories also are joining our growing list of customers.”
During the past 25 years, Gage has provided its customers with more than 700 different test and calibration fuel blends for use in automotive test programs.