OSRAM Sylvania celebrated the 100th year of its St. Marys, Pa., manufacturing plant in a ceremony August 13. The St. Marys facility is the country's oldest and largest functioning light bulb manufacturing plant. The plant, which opened in 1906 as the Novelty Incandescent Lamp Company, now produces an astounding two million light bulbs in up to 1,200 different packages each and every day.
"Modern machines and new processes are important, but they're not the key to St. Marys' accomplishments over the years," Sally Moran, general manager of the Incandescent Strategic Business Unit, said. "Key customers, dedicated leadership, motivated employees, committed suppliers, innovative equipment and a conducive environment have all played a role in our past success, as well as contributed greatly to our future."
Guests for the centennial celebration included
"Being around for 100 years in the same place is quite an accomplishment. It shows OSRAM Sylvania has been on the ball and, because of their ingenuity, have stayed on the forefront of innovation," Peterson said. "Congratulations OSRAM Sylvania and thank you for your commitment to staying viable, and for keeping jobs in
The company changed hands many times before becoming the presently known OSRAM Sylvania Inc., but one thing has always stayed consistent: the hard work and dedication of thousands of employees over the past century as policies and traditions have grown and developed.
As the plant was ready to expand in 1955, company officials decided to build a new 160,000 square foot facility within St. Marys because of the quality and experience of the local workforce. At the time, with 300 employees, the new plant was considered the most technically advanced of its kind, as it produced several hundred thousand incandescent lamps a day.
Since then, the facility has expanded three times its original size to the current 480,000 square feet, and has just completed a major modernization and consolidation of its equipment to maximize output. Today, half-century old and innovative machinery and even robots work side by side. Presently, 400 people work three shifts a day, seven days a week, and manufacture more than 600 million light bulbs annually.