Those of us unaffected by a handicap rarely notice the little amenities that make things easier and safer for the disabled. This is especially true in public restrooms.
Next time you’re in one, take a gander beneath the sink, where you’ll likely find a plastic covering over the pipes. It’s designed to protect handicapped folks from unintentionally scratching or otherwise injuring themselves when they wash up.
Most likely, that covering was made in Ellington by Dymotek.
The injection molding company started in 1992 as Truebro Inc., which made and sold the coverings under its own name. About three years ago, Truebro sold its catalog to Tennessee-based IPS. Dymotek was created to serve as the contracted manufacturer for the coverings.
But it’s branched out since then, said Victor Morando, vice president of engineering services. Dymotek is now doing contract manufacturing work for medical and automotive component companies, Morando said. It’s also interested in pursuing work in the defense market, although Dymotek is “not doing much in the way of it yet,” Morando said.
The company’s also grown quite a bit, as owners Steve and Tom Trueb have made significant investments in the manufacturer. Those investments include a recent 20,000-square-foot addition and advanced, robotic manufacturing equipment. Dymotek now has 70 employees, and a factory that runs 24 hours a day.
Indeed, factories can be very busy places. And another Ellington company makes a product to ensure that those busy places are also as productive as possible.
Accu-Time Systems Inc. on Somers Road designs and manufactures advanced fingerprint-scanning and other electronic timecard systems that are used in over 200,000 locations worldwide. These devices, known as “workforce management hardware,” are sold to different human resources software companies which install the devices in the factories and offices of their clients.
The devices have become something of a hot commodity among employers because they reduce “buddy punching”—where a worker punches a card for a friend—and can help ensure higher productivity, said Michael Glynn, corporate marketing manager for Accu-Time.
The company has about 50 employees in its Ellington headquarters, which serves as the main manufacturing and assembly point for the timecard systems the company makes and sells.
Of course, Ellington is also home to manufacturers of arguably the lowest technology product around: boxes.
The town’s largest manufacturer is Rice Packaging Inc., a 100-person manufacturer of custom-made paperboard boxes used to display toys and other retail items. Although the products it makes may be low tech, Rice makes them in a very high tech way, using advanced computer printing and computer quality management systems.
Rice also has a sister company next door in Ellington — Action Packaging Systems Inc., a 30-person enterprise that makes and sells labels and label printing systems used by boxmakers and shippers.
Another boxmaker in town? Merrill Industries Inc. is on Village Street, which makes the common corrugated boxes, wooden crates, and foam containers typically used in shipping. It employs about 40 people.
