Iraq war impacts EC manufacturer's efforts to expand
By BRENDA SOMMER bsommer@leader-news.com

Wartime Shortage In this file photo taken in April, New ICM's R.C. Whitson, center, shows off the clothier's new product line of fire-resistant coveralls to Chandra Spenrath, right and Jessica Thane, both of the El Campo City Development Corp. Middle East war needs have caused a shortage of the special cloth used to make the coveralls, which has impacted the company's ability to produce the product. L-N File Photo

The only thing holding back a locally-owned clothing maker's new product line is the U.S. war effort in the Middle East.

In April, New ICM began making fire-resistant coveralls, a drab-but-welcome contrast to the frills, lace and colorful prints used for the company's normal production of children's clothing.

The new product line of extremely lightweight safety coveralls are made of DuPont Nomex fire-resistant cloth and are machine washable.

"The problem is, the current demand for Nomex fabric by contractors sewing for the U.S. military has received preferential consideration in the market - for obvious reasons - and limited the supply of fabric available for commercial or private sector contractors," said R.C. Whitson, vice president of marketing and sourcing at New ICM.

L-N Photo by Brenda Sommer Promises Kept The City Development Corp. of El Campo recently presented a check for the first six months of jobcreation incentives to New ICM for 17 positions created with a new line of fire-resistant coveralls. In February when the new product line idea was presented to them, the CDC agreed to give the company $500 a year per job created. Present for the check presentation were (l-r) J.J. Croix, CDC vice president; CDC President Gwen Willis; R.C. Whitson, vice president of marketing and sourcing at New ICM; and Heath Radley, CDC secretary-treasurer.

"This has led to production inefficiencies and delays resulting in net operating losses, year-to-date, though we still are able to maintain the increased workforce thus far, in hopes of a more steady supply of fabric by year-end," he added.

On Feb. 19, the City Development Corp. of El Campo granted the locally-owned company a $25,000, two-year forgivable loan to buy equipment needed to create the flame-resistant coveralls used by refinery, utility and other industrial workers.

The CDC alsp agreed to grant job-creation incentives of $500 per job, to a maximum of $10,000, based on the company retaining at least 110 jobs.

New ICM at that time employed about 100 workers.

Coverall production allows the company to keep its current workforce during what is normally a slow period in its production cycle that often results in periodic temporary lay-offs, leaving the company vulnerable to losing core personnel, Whitson said at that time.

"It still appears we have the potential to one day achieve the sales and earnings originally forecasted for the Nomex coverall, and our employees have done a good job learning to sew something that was completely new to our company," Whitson said.

The company has managed to create and maintain 17 new jobs due to the coverall production, and received its first job creation incentive check - payment at the six month mark totaling $4,250 - from the CDC last week.

While it waits for the fabric shortage to abate, the company is looking at other options, Whitson said.

"The Nomex fabric supply problem has also required us to diversify into other commercial workwear such as insulated jackets and coveralls made of a different woven cotton fabric," he said.

"We do currently believe that diversifying the product line should help us over the longterm to one day operate profitably, though some uncertainty with this approach remains," he added. "The reason for this is, we are not able to specialize in a particular garment day-in and day-out, which is typically the best way to operate profitably sooner in our industry."

Whitson said the assistance of the CDC has been invaluable.

"Unfortunately, the learning and training process required to become efficient with these additional products has also resulted in operating losses," he said. "We simply could not have accepted our current losses from this program if the CDC had not helped."

New ICM's partner in the coverall business, Saf-Tech, is a Texas-based company begun in 1970 that provides industrial workwear and related products primarily to utility companies, petrochemical plants and similar industries located in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

New ICM and Saf-Tech are both survivors in an industry that has been gutted in the United States by competition from foreign apparel manufacturers using cheap labor in developing or Third World countries.

But for quality reasons, the safety-wear business still prefers American-made garments.

"We're hopeful and optimistic that U.S. companies purchasing these type of garments continue to insist they are manufactured in the U.S. and not overseas," Whitson said. "We could only wish the U.S. consumer was as demanding for our other products."

New ICM first formed as Isaacson-Carrico Manufacturing in 1947, but was bought out by a consortium of local owners in 1999. Its wholesale line of clothing and other apparel may be seen at www.newicm.com.