Alex Budd has always been interested in manufacturing industries that no one seems to pay much attention to.

Alex BuddSo when the North Carolina native was offered a job in metal finishing while completing his MBA six years ago, he realized it might be his calling.

“ I had always been interested in industries that are under the radar that you just don't think about,” says Budd, now the owner of the shop he went to work for, Greensboro Industrial Platers, having bought it six years ago from the woman who hired him.

“This was perfect,” he says. “You don't realize how every metal you see is coated in or treated. And it just fascinated me.”

Expanding Through Acquisition

Alex Budd was just 24 when he purchased Greensboro Industrial Platers.But if you think owning a plating shop at 24 is daunting, realize that Budd took another monumental leap when he recently acquired crosstown rival United Metal Finishing and merged the two companies.

Expanding his company's services and capacity was at the deal's heart.

“I was either going to hire a lot more people or make an acquisition,” says Budd, now 29. “Hiring people is tough right now.”

The plan is to merge the operations into United Metal Finishing’s 35,000-square-foot space. Greensboro Industrial Platers has two locations close to each other: a 15,000-square-foot nickel plating shop and a zinc-nickel operation just under 25,000 square feet.

The United Metal Finishing plant is larger and has a lot of unused space that will be converted to finishing lines.

Budd's path to the finishing industry started in high school and on a mission trip with his church. He met Allison Davis, president and owner of Greensboro Industrial Platers, and they stayed in touch. Fast forward to Budd graduating with his MBA from High Point University six years ago, and Davis offered him a job to come work at the plating company.

“ I came to work here knowing nothing about metal finishing or the industry,” Budd says. “She had worked here her entire life and never had another job anywhere else. The previous owner offered to sell it to her, and she bought it.”

An Offer to Buy the Finishing Operation

Greensboro Industrial Platers is over 90 years old and offers zinc, electroless nickel, zinc-nickel, nickel, zinc phosphate plating, and passivation.After working as vice president at Greensboro Industrial Platers for a few years, Budd says Davis offered to sell him the business as she approached retirement. With the backing of family members, he made a big decision in his young life.

“I took her up on it,” Budd says. “I was 24 and had some doubts,  but I come from a family of entrepreneurs and have a good support team. I've got a lot of people to lean on, such as my dad, my grandfather, and many friends. My sister Sarah is a CFO, so I have much help. I  couldn't have done it without them.”

Greensboro Industrial Platers is over 90 years old and offers zinc, electroless nickel, zinc-nickel, nickel, zinc phosphate plating, and passivation. The Kenilworth Street location offers EN, electrolytic nickel plating, and the passivation of stainless steel. The Edwardia Drive facility has barrel and rack lines, and can handle large volumes and one-time orders in zinc, zinc-nickel, and zinc phosphate coatings.

The former United Metal Finishing facility offers anodizing, electroplating, chemical conversion, and passivation, complementing many of Greensboro Industrial Platers’ services. The company began in 1985 offering only barrel zinc plating but has since implemented aluminum anodizing and chemical conversion, passivation, rack and barrel zinc (in clear, yellow, or black), electroless nickel, hard chrome, bright nickel, phosphating, surface blasting, sanding, and polishing.

“Our equipment is a little newer and a little better, and so we'll be replacing some of their lines and bringing our lines over. Everybody will be under one roof, which is a big advantage.”

In early 2024, the former United Metal Finishing was sold to Freedom Metal Finishing in Clearwater, Florida. Freedom owner Keith Eidschun said at the time that he purchased the company because it provided some redundancy to their Florida operations and allowed them to expand further in the southeast part of the U.S.

“United is a well-run operation that offers a lot of finishing processes that manufacturers are seeking,” Eidschun said when he acquired the shop. “This additional location will help us broaden our reach across much of the South and provide additional capacity.”

Hiring Managers to Help Run Operations

Budd seeks to get AS 9100 certified and then pursuing Nadcap accreditation for the facility. Budd says the agreement to purchase the former United Metal Finishing allows Freedom Metal Finishing to retain ownership of the company and operate under an umbrella company called Freedom Holdings.

 ”Freedom reached out to me because they lacked plating knowledge, and they were spending a lot of time going back and forth,” Budd says. “We started talking, which led to us buying a chunk of United Metal Finishing. Freedom still owns some of it, and our operations and plant manager and I are taking over running the shop.”

As part of the agreement, Budd will consolidate his two existing Greensboro Industrial Platers locations into the former United Metal Finishing facility.

“ They have a lot of extra room and a big warehouse,” Budd says. “Our equipment is a little newer and a little better, and so we'll be replacing some of their lines and bringing our lines over. Everybody will be under one roof, which is a big advantage.”

Budd expects to settle everything in about a year, which will give him and his management time to plan to expand their services and pursue additional customers.

A. J. CalderoneThe former United Metal Finishing had about 250 customers, so determining a business plan for growth will require some planning. Budd says the acquisition was the only practical plan to expand Greensboro Industrial Platers’ operations. 

 ”It happened quicker than if I would have done it on my own and looked to hire more people,” says Budd, who, in 2023, hired A. J. Calderone to serve as operations manager and promoted him to General Manager by purchasing the new facility.

Calderone had been with Electroless Nickel Plating of Louisiana for almost 17 years before moving to North Carolina to work with Budd. Budd hired Michael Davidson as Plant Manager in 2022 and promoted him to Operations Manager in January.

“I've hired two good people,” Budd says. “ A.J. has been a huge help, and I will train him to take over the business. And Mike Davidson came from T.E. Connectivity, where he was running their plating operation over there.”

Focusing on Big Picture Items to Grow Company

The goal to make Calderone the lead manager of the company is a path that Budd wants in place as he expands into the role of president of the operation.

 ”As a small business owner, you wear more hats in accounting, HR, and just a lot of stuff,” he says. “And those things are not my strong suit, which are operations, sales, and the big picture. It will be nice to have some corporate help from Freedom with some of those things, as we will use some of their systems. It will take much of the tedious stuff off my plate, which takes time.”

The big picture is getting AS 9100 certified and then pursuing Nadcap accreditation for the facility. The North Carolina region has many aerospace companies nearby, including a Honda facility that makes jets and  Boom Supersonic, which designs the Overture, a supersonic airliner.

As much as Budd hopes to eliminate minute day-to-day operational details, the acquisition and impending move have not cleared his desk of much; he is busier now than ever before.

“My to-do list is about three pages long right now,” he says.  ”Our goal for the first year is just to stay the same. We want to do better, but we aim not to lose customers. We need to focus on maintaining quality while making all these changes, and then next year will be when the numbers start going up.”

Visit https://gboroplaters.com.