Surgical Appliance Industries to expand and create new jobs at Oakley facility
Cincinnati City Council approved a Job Creation Tax Credit for Surgical Appliance Industries. The incentive will be offered for 5 years at 55%. As a requirement of the tax credit, the company committed to retaining 121 employees and creating 25 new jobs over three years. The company will maintain these job numbers for at least 10 years.
Surgical Appliance Industries, presently located on Rosslyn Drive in Oakley, was considering this expansion at either its Cincinnati or Ottawa, Canada facilities. The company’s facility in Ottawa, Canada, had the capacity for the expansion but, due to efforts by the State of Ohio and the City of Cincinnati, the company chose its Cincinnati facility and will invest $1.2 million in new machinery and equipment. The additional machinery and equipment will enable the company to expand its Truform Hosiery business.
Company History
Surgical Appliance Industries started in 1893 and was founded as the Ohio Truss Company, by Joel Adams and his son-in-law Isaac Pease. The two had become partners in manufacturing livery items like leather saddles and bridles, but the advent of the automobile ended much of the market for products relating to horse and carriage maintenance.
Shifting the business to the medical needs of individuals, the company began manufacturing hernia trusses and abdominal supports. The company experienced tremendous growth by engaging the services of a sales group from a defunct candy company who had excellent contacts among pharmacists. Over the years the company’s product line has evolved with the times, with emphasis shifting from trusses to orthopedic garments since the 1940s, along with mobility and convalescent aids since the ‘50s, mastectomy products since the ‘60s, and compression therapy products since the mid-‘90s. Today Surgical Appliance Industries’ products are divided into four major brand categories that include Truform Therapeutic Compression Hosiery, Truform OTC Orthotics and Prosthetics, Airway and PCP-Champion. The company currently employs 276 worldwide.
