Mainebiz

V O L . X X I I I N O. I JA N UA R Y 9 , 2 0 1 7 8 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E Casino advocates push for 2017 referendum Advocates for a third Maine casino, to be in York County, submitted petitions to the Maine Secretary of State's Offi ce seeking a statewide referendum vote in November 2017. e Press Herald reported that the group calling itself Horseracing Jobs Fairness had delivered 19,000 petitions containing more than 65,000 signatures to the Secretary of State on Dec. 22. It's the group's second attempt to get on the ballot. In March, Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap announced that only 36,000 of the more than 91,000 signatures submitted by petitioners in its fi rst try could be vali- dated — far short of the 61,123 needed. N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N Manomet, an environmental nonprofi t, was awarded $91,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to expand its U360 college internship program. The program, which is run out of the organization's Brunswick offi ce, provides students with an understand- ing of sustainability and small business management. Pine Tree Food Equipment Inc. in Gray announced opened a third location at 54 Ocean Park Road #5 in Saco. The company has existing locations in Gray and Brewer. Patriot Subaru in Saco donated $45,000 to Habitat For Humanity/Greater Portland to assist the new 13-home build in Scarborough, named Carpenters Court. Montalvo, international specialists in web tension control in Gorham, was awarded a National Science Foundation Small Business Innovation Research grant for $225,000 to con- duct research and development work Business that measures down to the microgram plans major expansion SACO — Louis Waterhouse gets so much business that he's pretty much been in expansion mode ever since he started his company, LAW Calibration LLC, in 2010. Now Waterhouse is planning the next phase of expansion. LAW Calibration will move from its current 2,400-square- foot laboratory, at 2 Main St. in Biddeford, on the Pepperell Mill campus. It plans to move into a new 25,000-square-foot build- ing, plus an additional 10,000-square-foot building behind it, on a 6.4-acre industrial lot at 71 Industrial Park Drive in Saco. In a deal that closed Oct. 18, LAW Calibration paid $60,000 for the land. Kirk Butterfi eld of Investcomm Commercial Group represented Waterhouse and Greg Hastings of NAI The Dunham Group represented sellers Dan and Kathleen Hutchens. He plans to invest another $1.4 million on the new construction. 'When close isn't good enough' Waterhouse calls himself a "metrologist." And that does indeed read metrologist, not meteorologist. This is an unusual fi eld that involves tool and instrument calibration. Waterhouse's extensive services include things like meters, testers, gauges and scopes; power supplies; electrical and electronic components; instruments that measure space, time, force, pH and more. On his website, his motto is "When close isn't good enough." "We do everything from fi nite electronic work all the way to large construction equipment," said Waterhouse. "Like the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge being constructed in Portsmouth: Cianbro and Casco Bay Steel both have contracts on that, and they're both customers of ours. So every quantitative measurement used to construct that bridge has been done by equipment that came through this lab." Waterhouse came to the fi eld by happenstance. He grew up in Saco and graduated from Thornton Academy. He wasn't interested in college and instead joined the U.S. Air Force, where he worked in a precision measurement equipment laboratory. "I said, 'That's the job for me.' I love tearing things apart, learning how they work and putting them back together again," he said. After the Air Force, he set up shop in a small basement room. His fi rst job involved calibrating automotive tools. "I remember the fi rst 600-foot pound torque wrench," he said. "I had to open the door because the wrench was too long to fi t in the room." Then the Manufacturers Association of Maine connected him with other customers and he moved into 600 square feet at Pepperell Mill. Two years later, he moved to his cur- rent location. He's still growing. Butterfi eld of Investcomm showed Waterhouse buildings for lease and purchase. None was suitable. So he decided to build his own and get what he wanted. His search for land led him to Industrial Park Drive in Saco. With 35,000 square feet of space under construction, there will be room for a 6,000-square-foot lab and a techni- cal training center. Waterhouse hopes to build on an existing apprenticeship program with Thornton Academy. He'll also offer technician training for adults. "Larger companies have their own calibration labs, but nowhere to train people," he said. "We see a pretty big market for that." For now, he'll lease remaining space to other local small businesses. "It will be terrifi c to have additional, high-quality inventory in this tight industrial market, particularly in the hard-to-fi nd, 2,500 to 5,000-square-foot confi gurations," Butterfi eld noted. Waterhouse expects to invest $1.4 million in construction. Some parts of the plan are still in review by the city of Saco, but city representatives "have been extremely positive," said Butterfi eld. "The city appears to be in strong support of this project as it fi lls a much needed hole in the 'smaller industrial spaces' market." Waterhouse expects to be in the space by June 1, 2017. "It will be a heck of a project when it's finished," Waterhouse said. B R I E F Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own Larger companies have their own calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to calibration labs, but nowhere to train people. We see a pretty big market for that. — Louis Waterhouse, LAW Calibration LLC 14_261_3131. oo George Casey Discover what thousands of CEOs already know. Vistage works. Get answers. Take action. Like you, the members of a Vistage Advisory Board are proven business leaders and critical thinkers. They have smart ideas and insightful opinions and this is the forum to express them. At our monthly meetings, you'll encounter lively discussions where business leaders tell it like it is. If you are a CEO, key executive or business owner who is interested in finding out more about our Vistage group in Southern Maine, call 207.869.5491 or visit vistage.com/portlandme.

• Cover