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Some changes are under way at the plant that has been a Tiffin University neighbor and Tiffin institution since 1914.

Tiffin Parts, founded as the Hanson Clutch and Machine Co., is now one of the more than 50 businesses owned as part of the Heico Cos. Six months ago, Mark Knight arrived as the company's new president, and he has been instituting a number of changes to position the company for significant growth.

"We've transformed from a manufacturer of cranes and other types of to a distribution business," Knight said. "When I joined the company six months ago, my objective was to enhance the growth of the business significantly over the next few years, and doing other things to position the business for growth."

Before coming to Tiffin, he spent time with the former president, Clarence Pliskey, to learn more about the company and the community. One of the first things Knight started was to launch a Web site in June.

"It's been a tremendous success," Knight said. "In July, our first full month, we had 1,800 hits, with 1,100 of them unique users from 62 countries. It surprised me, to have so many visitors from other countries. It shows that we supply parts worldwide, and we had not had a good way of reaching out to those, so know they will have an easier time finding us."

The month of July saw new customers, he said, with a set-up rate of 50 percent ahead of the company's previous month.

Knight said he was not sure whether it was directly attributable to the Web site. The site gave potential customers a better venue for understanding what Tiffin Parts does, and what they can do for them.

To add to that awareness, the business is working to establish a sales representative network.

"We have a great inside sales team that has tremendous technical knowledge, but we don't have feet on the street, to introduce the business to prospective customers," Knight said. "We are in the midst of doing that today, of hiring independent sales representatives throughout the country."

To go along with that, the company is developing new sales support materials, to aid in marketing.

Another initiative Tiffin Parts is undergoing is forming strategic relationships with key suppliers, Knight said.

"In order to broaden the market we can serve, we need to expand our product line," he said. "To have the ability to supply parts, today we are a fully focused business on specific types of equipment, and we have the opportunity to greatly expand the market we are serving."

Once a manufacturer of heavy equipment, Tiffin Parts still maintains the ability to supply the parts, or make them by relying on more than 300,000 blueprints the company has on file.

"Anyone can call us with the specific number of the part, and they can tell them what is specific on that equipment, when it was originally built, and have the ability to fabricate the part," Knight said. "That is a unique niche we have."

Through the Web site, the company has been surveying their customers, to find out what is important to them.

"The most important factor is having the available parts when they have needed them, and the quality of the parts we supply," he said.

The fourth area Knight said Tiffin Parts was focusing on evaluating the company's policies and procedures, especially those that relate to customer satisfaction.

"We want to be more efficient, customer centered or market focused in everything we do," he said. The warehouse stocks more than 7,000 items, from a few hundred suppliers, which range in price from a few dollars to a few thousand dollars a piece.

"With 300,000 blueprints on file, we could source a million different items depending on what people are looking for, and asking for," Knight said. "Our forte is what we call wear parts, parts that need to be replaced due to wear and tear, the normal maintenance of equipment has been our focus. To be able to supply parts, when the customer needs them, offering a high quality at a fair price."