A company that makes manufacturing equipment is moving its corporate headquarters from Ohio to Carlsbad and has doubled the space it already leases in Carlsbad with plans to expand further.
MiQ Partners is going through a growth spurt, spurred in part by the COVID pandemic and the need for medical device companies to rapidly expand production of such products as test kits.
“We’ve been a real go-to partner for manufacturing of COVID diagnostic test kits and other types of diagnostic test kits,” said Olaf Tessarzyk, who took over as CEO of MiQ in October 2020.
The company had been leasing about 20,000 square feet of space in a single one-story building and in September expanded to take an additional 17,000 square feet of space on the first floor of an adjacent two-story building at 1920 Palomar Way with plans to take over the second floor, Tessarzyk said.
He said that the company also has plans to take over a third building on the site to create its own industrial park, Tessarzyk said.
“MiQ has been a strong player in the life sciences spaces for years, and this expansion enables us to grow our ability to serve the growing number of companies in this critical market sector,” Tessarzyk said. “When COVID hit, manufacturing needed innovative automation manufacturing systems to build diagnostic test kits quickly.”
Combined with its operations in West Chester, Ohio, the company has a total of nearly 150,000 square feet of space.
Renovating
The Carlsbad location is on a hilltop next to Palomar Airport.
“We have glass windows all around the building and you can see the ocean,” Tessarzyk said. “I don’t think you can have a better facility. You can only go downhill literally.”
The space MiQ is leasing was originally offices, but Tessarzyk said the company tore out the offices to turn it into manufacturing space.
The company’s primary work is in designing, engineering and building automation systems that enable clients to produce more products with greater speed, efficiency and accuracy.
“We do a lot of machines for industrial automation, but predominantly medical,” Tessarzyk said. “The medical device industry in the U.S. is booming, not only because of COVID but there are so many other things. We also work with companies that have an idea and they want to put this into manufacturing and get FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approval.”
For example, Tessarzyk said MiQ is working with an Ohio company – Enable Injections – to develop a manufacturing system to produce devices that people could wear to automatically administer medicine.
The devices could be used to administer medicine used in chemotherapy for cancer patients to use so they wouldn’t have to go to a hospital for infusions, Tessarzyk said.
MiQ developed more than 50 machines to make up production lines for the company.
“We help the customer develop the final design for the devices and test the devices to make sure they’re 100% all the time,” Tessarzyk said.
The company also produces manufacturing equipment for companies that produce consumer goods.
Ingenuity
MiQ Partners traces its history back to 1948 when its predecessor, Tools Sales and Services opened in Ohio.
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The company changed its name to TSS Technologies in 2000 and in 2018, TSS merged with R&3D in Carlsbad. In April 2019, the two companies were redefined as MiQ Partners
Tessarzyk said that Carlsbad and Southern California in general is an ideal location for his company to expand because it is home to so many companies that make medical devices.
“The general rule of thumb is if you’re more than 80 miles from your automation company, then you’re too far away,” Tessarzyk said. “They want you to be close in case something happens to the machinery.”
He said the region also has a talent pool of engineers and other professionals who are known for their efficiency and the quality of their work.
“There’s something to be said about the ingenuity of the people here in California,” Tessarzyk said. “Our engineering here is very efficient and high on ingenuity.”
MiQ Partners
Founded: 2018
CEO: Olaf Tessarzyk
Headquarters: Carlsbad
Business: Provides automation solutions for manufacturing processes
Annual Revenue: $40 million +
Number of Employees: 100
Notable: Leading provider of automation for diagnostic kits and other medical devices during recent pandemic
Website:Â www.miqpartners.com
Contact: info@miqpartners.comÂ
