Armor Protective Packaging grows into new headquarters

A growing Howell Township manufacturer showed off its shiny new headquarters last week.

Keeping things shiny and looking new is what Armor Protective Packaging is all about.

The company, which makes products that prevent and remove rust, moved into its new and expanded home last fall at 1551 N. Burkhart Road near Tanger Outlet Center at Kensington Valley.

Armor previously had its headquarters on Jones Street in Howell before purchasing the building that once housed the Livingston Daily Press & Argus printing plant. A 17,000-square-foot addition has nearly doubled the facility's size.

To celebrate the move and expansion, clients and partners from around the globe gathered Thursday for an open house that included a tour of the facility and a meet-and-greet with Frank Fritz, one of the stars of TV's "American Pickers."

In 2013, Fritz became the spokesman for Armor Protective Packaging's Workshop Hero products — Metal Rescue Rust Remover and Dry Coat Rust Preventative. As a "picker" of antiques and other metal relics, Fritz was an ideal choice to be the face of the company's consumer division, said Dave Yancho, vice president of Armor Protective Packaging.

"A lot of the stuff he picks is rusty, so we were like, 'Who would be a better spokesman than someone who likes to rescue things but needs to de-rust them?' " Yancho said.

Fritz is an avid biker who also uses the products on the more than 100 motorcycles he owns.

"They sent us some stuff (to try). We got together, and the rest is history," Fritz said. "I like the products, and I use a lot of it."

The Workshop Hero consumer division is only a small part of Armor Protective Packaging's operation. The bulk of its sales — which Yancho estimated at $20 million last year — comes from its industrial division.

Armor creates rust-preventing paper and packaging materials that protect automotive parts and other industrial products from corrosion for years.

"Essentially, what we do is take chemicals and impregnate them in the packaging, and then people like GM, Ford and machine shops wrap their products in our packaging instead of using grease and oil. Now you have a dry part — no oils, no grease," Yancho said.

Armor's new headquarters houses its customer service, accounting and other administrative offices as well as a research lab, manufacturing equipment and a shipping area brimming with materials.

"We keep a lot of product in stock for customers because the automotive industry is pretty demanding — they need it right now," Yancho said. "That's how we really grew. We weren't the first ones to do this stuff, but we try to be the best in terms of service."

Armor traces its roots back to 1979, when John Holden founded the company, then known as SKS Industries. The name was changed to Armor Protective Packaging in 2004. Today the company is owned by a three-man team — Holden, who serves as CEO; Robin McConnell, who is the president; and Yancho.

Yancho said about 30 people are directly employed at the Howell Township headquarters.

Armor earned a spot in Inc. Magazine's annual Inc. 5,000 rankings of America's fastest-growing private companies in 2009 and 2014. It was named one of the Michigan 50 Companies to Watch in 2015 by Michigan Celebrates Small Business.

The Workshop Hero consumer division could spur even more growth, Yancho said, as the company works to get its products into more stores.

"We just got in all the Home Depots in the country in February; you can walk into any Home Depot in the paint aisle and grab our Metal Rescue. We are trying to work our way into the automotive store chains," he said.

For more information about Armor Protective Packaging, go to http://www.armorvci.com.

Contact Livingston Daily business reporter at 517-552-2854 or at mlammi@livingstondaily.com. Follow him on Twitter @MikeLammi.