Firm shows its mettle in finishing

STRONG FINISH: Incorporated in 1991 in Providence, DiFruscia Industries was initially a part-time venture before growing into its current state. Above, company president President Frank A. DeFruscio, left, works with Line Supervisor Milton Paz. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO
STRONG FINISH: Incorporated in 1991 in Providence, DiFruscia Industries was initially a part-time venture before growing into its current state. Above, company president President Frank A. DeFruscio, left, works with Line Supervisor Milton Paz. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

The Great Recession cut business in half at DiFruscia Industries Inc. – a blow from which it was difficult – but not impossible – to recover.
President Frank A. DeFruscio used three strategies to counteract that economic impact – strategies used to this day at the industrial plant in Johnston where powder-coated and anodized metal finishes and electro-plating are applied to everything from medical tools to lighting fixtures.
Two of those strategies are diversification and acquisition of the assets of competitors when they fold – common enough approaches in today’s competitive business climate. The third, however, helped DeFruscio hire two key managers and keep them, while building his market across New England.
The president features an employment application on the company website “so people in this industry have an opportunity to reach out to me,” he said. “I might reach out to them, even, without a position available, [because] it’s very difficult to find experienced people in this business.”
Finding experienced employees via the website, particularly when DeFruscio was not actually looking, has helped the company stabilize and grow, said DeFruscio. In addition, it has purchased equipment and assets at auction from as many as 20 different companies over the years, “and that’s how we’ve built the company,” he said.
Incorporated in 1991 in Providence, DiFruscia Industries was initially a part-time venture DeFruscio started while managing Quaker Precision Coatings Inc. in Johnston. Quaker Precision Coatings went out of business in 2003, but by 2001, DeFruscio had added powder coating to the metal finishing he was doing on various products at DiFruscia Industries, he said.
The firm became a full-fledged company operating in Johnston by 2001.
Metal or powder finishing are undertaken to prevent corrosion of metallic products, while electroplating promotes connections while preventing corrosion for electronics, he said.
Powder coating is a dry, organic form of coating that is environmentally friendly, and is used on such products as surface buoys and underwater supporting hardware.
Anodized coatings are used to treat aluminum and can be built to certain thicknesses to produce nonconductive insulation properties. After-market auto parts are an example of the type of product that could be made using anodized coatings to withstand abrasions. The company’s finishes or electro-plating can be found on medical tools; electronics interconnections; radial heat sinks; lighting housing for LED light bulbs; point-of-purchase displays, like display racks that go into stores; and automotive suspension components, DeFruscio said.
He declined to name customers, saying the company is chiefly a business-to-business operation that serves medical, retail and electronics industries, and is working toward aerospace certification.
A second plant is located at 50 Waterman Ave. in North Providence.
Diversifying kept the company from folding after the recession, when DeFruscio cut back to nine employees. Today there are 45 employees total – 35 in production, plus a handful in human resources and three key managers in each division: powder-coating, electro-plating and anodizing, he said.
Another factor has kept the company going is DeFruscio’s hand’s-on approach.
“As an owner-operator, I’ve actually done every job in my business,” he said. “If I was someone who was just calling the shots and couldn’t jump in and fix problems, I don’t think I’d be in business today.”
DiFruscia Industries has relied on the lean-manufacturing program to operate efficiently and produce more with less, the company president said. The lean process avoids waste and reduces work while preserving production value, he said.
“We embraced a lean perspective, and I sent people for training,” DeFruscio said. “It [requires] continual training and cross-training. Lean was definitely one of the contributing factors to help keep the ship afloat. It forced more efficiency out of the plant.”
While he would not share annual sales figures, DeFruscio said the company grew 40 percent in 2013.
“We’re continually growing and taking advantage of every opportunity that comes up – growth by acquisition, or simply doing the right thing for the customer,” he said. •

COMPANY PROFILE
DiFruscia Industries
OWNERS: President Frank A. DeFruscio
TYPE OF BUSINESS: Industrial metal finishing
LOCATION: 20 Starr St., Johnston
EMPLOYEES: 45
YEAR ESTABLISHED: 1991
ANNUAL SALES: WND

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