A rising tide is lifting boats in the marine sector. And the aerospace and automotive sectors, too.

Being lifted along with them is Brush Research Manufacturing Co., an East L.A. maker of abrasive brushes used by manufacturing companies for deburring, edge blending and surface finishing for industrial machinery and parts.

“Its niche clearly suggests that its products are in demand,” said Ryan Bernath, managing director and head of investment banking of B. Riley & Co., a West L.A. investment bank. “As you think about aerospace and defense, automotive, motorsports and marine, all those end markets are starting to see a bit of a rebound in terms of overall growth along with the economy.”

Having invested $400,000 in new equipment this year, the company is preparing to double its manufacturing capacity as it tries to keep up with increasing demand at home and abroad.

“We have to invest in new equipment, new technology to keep current,” said Don Didier, the company’s vice president of operations. “There are a lot of brush companies around that have over the years invested in a lot more automation than we may have. It’s time for us to do the same.”

The new aggressive approach by the 90-person, family-run business comes as the economy has picked up, raising demand for manufacturing equipment.

In addition to upgrading the equipment, the company is looking to add 25,000 square feet of manufacturing and warehousing to its current 75,000 square feet.

The market for industrial brushes, used in a wide array of industries for surface finishing, heavy-duty cleaning, surface preparation, and rust and corrosion removal – even honing gun barrel bores – is a highly fragmented one, with no real dominant player. Comprising largely small private companies, it’s hard to be tracked.

Each one vies for a slice of this subset of the $5.3 billion U.S. market for cutting-tool and machine-tool accessories, according to market research firm IBISWorld Inc. A recent IBISWorld report projected annual growth in the industry to be 3.6 percent in the next five years, due to steady export demand and improving production techniques.

Patent progress

Brush Research had just two employees when Steve Rands, bought the company for $19,000 in 1958. The company is now owned by Rands’ daughter, Tara, and Robert Fowlie, a son of his from a previous marriage.

At the time, the company made miniature brushes for the aerospace industry, which was booming in the region in 1960s. Steve Rands kept experimenting, aiming for bigger and better brushes, and in 1969, the company came out with the proprietary Flex-Hone Tool.

As its name suggests, Flex-Hone is a flexible honing device used to deglaze cylinder walls in automotive manufacturing. The tool removes any loose, torn and folded metal created in the manufacturing process, creating a flat surface.

“Flex-Hone Tool has given them a niche in this market.” said David Parr, executive director of American Brush Manufacturers Association in Durango, Colo. “Brush Research is highly respected and innovative in the industry, but it’s remembered for Flex-Hone Tool.”

The company patented Flex-Hone and other brush innovations, giving it a competitive advantage for a number of years.

But the patents lasted no more than 20 years, and while they can be extended, the patent holder must prove it has made considerable improvements to the original technologies, which is rather hard in this niche market. As the protection of many of the early patents ran out, Brush Research began to feel more pressure from its competition.

Company officials declined to talk about their research and development work or about how many patents the company holds.

Upgrades

The planned additions to its manufacturing equipment, Didier said, will help boost production. An average worker can make about 500 simple brushes a day, and by automating some processes, that number has increased to as many as 1,000 or even 2,000 a day.

He described the company as a little conservative, saying it will increase production gradually and not committing to a timetable for doubling its manufacturing output.

In addition, he said Brush Research was thinking about responding faster to customers.

“Probably one of the biggest pushes we have from across our customer base is quicker delivery,” Didier said. “Everybody nowadays wants everything instantly.”

Instead of making one big shipment a time, Brush Research managed to increase shipments and ship more often, keeping turnaround time within a week, less than half of the time it used to take.

This also helps the company reduce inventory, which has been cut in half in the last three years.

This could be vital to Brush Research as many of its clients are overseas. It sells to customers in 28 countries including Argentina, Belgium, Russia, China and Japan. The company didn’t say the percentage of its international sales, but Didier said though less than domestic sales, it’s “key to business.”