“We’re in the game, folks,” said Kelly Kirsch, spokeswoman for LGT.
LGT’s principals announced the order Wednesday, Sept. 2, in a meeting with Montgomery County commissioners Judy Dodge and Deb Lieberman, Christina Howard, a vice president with the Dayton Development Coalition, and others.
The company declined to name the purchaser, saying only it is a large energy-sector concern based in Houston, or to give the terms of the agreement. But Kirsch said it is LGT’s hope that the order will lead to manufacturing work in Dayton.
Lin Tan, LGT president, said it was the company’s first order of what she considers a “large amount.” LGT produces rubber that can expand or contract through temperature changes. Possible applications include oil rigs, automotive bumpers, toys, traffic barrels, airplane wings and more.
Also working with LGT is David Liu, Tan’s husband and a researcher for the University of Dayton Research Institute. LGT has hired him to travel to the firm’s customer for off-site experiments, Kirsch said.
Although LGT has lab space at the Entrepreneurs Center on Monument Avenue, Kirsch said the company hopes to find a larger manufacturing space locally, a site with enough room for a large rubber mixer.
She also noted that before LGT representatives attended a Houston offshore technology conference in May, an attorney advised them to secure intellectual property protection, which she said they did.
The company has formed a joint venture with Qingdao TKS Sealing Industry, the largest automotive sealing company on mainland China.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2390 or tgnau@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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