Holland medical device manufacturer expanding to new location

Holland medical device manufacturer expanding to new location

HOLLAND TWP. — A company that manufactures spine, joint, extremity, cardiology and vascular models for the medical device industry is moving to a new and larger location.

Encoris Group Corp., in tandem with economic development organization Lakeshore Advantage Corp., announced today the construction of a new 10,000-square-foot, $1 million facility located at 180 Roost Court in Holland Township.

Jim TenBrink, co-founder, vice president and client growth strategist for Encoris Group, told MiBiz that his staff of 10 employees was having a hard time fitting in its current headquarters, a 4,300-square-foot space located at 3612 128th Ave., also in Holland Township.

“We had to seek some external storage,” said TenBrink, who added that his company will immediately use every bit of the 10,000 square feet at the new facility. “The workspace is just overcrowded. People are working on top of each other, but we’re making it work.”

Encoris Group designs, manufactures and distributes the anatomical models, which are used for education, promotion, simulation and clinical skills learning for the medical device sector. The new facility, according to the company, will support additional design, development and manufacturing capacity.

Holland Charter Township approved a 12-year Industrial Facilities Tax Exemption Thursday for the project.

TenBrink said the COVID-19 pandemic helped thrust his company into the limelight when surgical training centers temporarily shut down and medical device sales reps were barred from hospitals. TenBrink said companies would buy Encoris’ surgical training kits and drop ship them to surgeons who would move through the training process over Zoom calls.

“It was amazing,” he said. “And this is where we shine as a company: The ability to look at problems and overcome them. That’s what we do.”

Encoris has leveraged local economic development tools and infrastructure to spur its growth. In 2013, the company joined Lakeshore Advantage’s SURGE program, designed to provide resources for high-potential product placement and technology startups.

“We’ve been working closely with them since 2013,” Lakeshore Advantage President Jennifer Owens said in a statement. “What started as an entrepreneurial business in a church café has grown into a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility. We love seeing companies get what they need to thrive in our region.”

TenBrink tipped his cap to the program for assisting Encoris in developing the business and securing additional funding for its needs.

“It’s always good to network with fellow entrepreneurs,” TenBrink said. “You learn so much and it’s a special breed of people that a lot of non-entrepreneurs can’t wrap their heads around. To have that type of community where you have a bunch of crazy people getting together sharing their success and failures, that’s super.”

The SURGE Program recently established a new home upon opening The SURGE Center in downtown Holland.