HUTCHINSON, Kan. — A sudden and sad turn of events has created some doubt about the future of a Nevada company’s expansion to Hutchinson. Public Restroom Company announced in April of 2018 that it would move a new manufacturing facility to Hutchinson. Plans were to have the company in place by the end of this year. However, the president and founder of the 45-year-old company, Chuck Kaufman, died on March 25 after battling a long illness.

According to Chamber President Debra Teufel, the company has been taken over by Kaufman’s son, Chad, and other family members. As of right now, any decision about expanding the company has been put on hold.

Teufel says steps have also been taken to extend the lease of the old Mega Manufacturing building to Siemens. The building has been used as a storage depot. That lease was set to expire this year and allow the Public Restroom Company to start the process of moving to Hutchinson. The lease has been extended to Siemens for another 18 months.

“Our thoughts are with the Public Restroom Company family and employees at this time.  It is not unusual for a company’s timeline to change, particularly after a significant loss of their founder and leader,” Teufel said. “This additional lease extension will provide Siemens Gamesa with ample space as they prepare to ramp up with a full pipeline of work in the next year.  Our office is actively working with company leadership – Chad Kaufman, Vice President and Katie Sherin, Executive Vice President, as they continue to assess Public Restroom Company’s future growth strategy.  Hutchinson stands ready to assist when the time is right for their expansion.”

Public Restroom Company assembles whole restrooms and then ships them to customers. Some of its products are at the bottom of the Grand Canyon and in other major parks. The modular restrooms weigh between 30 tons and 40 tons when finished.

At the time of its announcement, the company projected to have between $50 million and $75 million in annual sales in the next few years. Teufel says the company planned to take on the added costs of shipping products from Nevada rather than consider start-up costs for the Hutchinson facility until it got things in order. The Chamber was able to get a comment from Chad Kaufman.  “We still feel that Hutchinson is an ideal location for manufacturing growth and we appreciate the support from the community at this difficult time as we assess our plans moving forward,” Kaufman said.