Empire West, Inc.

Empire West, Inc.
Formerly
 Empire West Plastics, Inc.
Private
Industry Plastic Thermoforming
Founded Petaluma, California, U.S.
(1968 (1968))
Headquarters Graton, California 95444, U.S.
Area served
 Worldwide
Products Ceilume Ceiling Tiles
Safe-Guard PET-G Optics Packaging
Custom Industrial Thermoforming Applications
Website Empire West.com

Empire West, Inc., a small, local business with a worldwide reach, has been specializing in thermoforming plastic products since 1968 and is a privately held company located in Graton, California. The organization is also known as Empire West Plastics, Inc. and owns the brand names Ceilume Ceiling Tiles and Safe-Guard PET-G Optics Packaging.

Company history

The original name, Empire West Plastics, Inc., was derived not from the Redwood Empire, but from New York state's moniker Empire State.[1] Originally founded in Petaluma, California in 1968, the company moved from to its present site in Graton, California in 1980. The name was changed to Empire West, Inc. in 1985.

The company initially offered handling trays for the photofinishing industry, custom industrial thermoformed housings and enclosures, and packaging for high value laser optics handling and storage. In 1992 the optical products were spun off under the brand name Safe-Guard PET-G Optics Packaging. Custom thermoforming is still available on a case-by-case basis.

Example of Evangeline ceiling tiles from Ceilume

Created in 2002, the product line Ceilume Ceiling Tiles offers thermoformed ceiling tiles which can be mounted directly to a ceiling surface or installed in a suspended ceiling grid system. The tiles are Class A Fire Rated, FDA compliant, and GREENGUARD Gold Certified. (Please see the Ceilume "Technical Info" web site for citations.)

Notable aspects of Empire West products

  • Past custom thermoforming projects include the sun in Star Trek IV, the pink slime that covered the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Ghostbusters II, a lava flow in Star Wars III, and the surface of the Death Star in the Star Tours ride at Disneyland.[2]
  • 'Safe-Guard PET-G Optics Packaging products are used to support some of the largest ongoing science programs in the world, such as the National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.[3]
  • Ceilume Ceiling Tiles were:
  • The first to receive GREENGUARD Gold Certification
  • The first to be approved for installation beneath fire sprinklers
  • The first to offer a fully recycled materials option

Certified training

Ceilume is one of the companies providing training through the Continuing Education Program offered by Architects Magazine in partnership with Hanley Wood University. The course “Ceil with Thermoformed Tiles and Panels: A New Vocabulary for Overhead Design” qualifies for 1 CEU (continuing education unit).

Awards and recognition

  • In November 2007, Ceilume Ceiling Tiles were included in the list of "2007's Most Requested Products" by Walls and Ceilings Magazine [4]
  • In April 2010, Ceilume Ceiling Tiles received an honorable mention in the Innovative Materials category of the Bloom Awards, presented by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID).[5]
  • In July 2013, The Vinyl Institute featured Ceilume Ceiling Tiles in an article "Versatile Vinyl Ceiling Tiles Top Off Rooms with Style"[6]
  • In July 2013, Empire West, Inc. was named one of 11 winners in the annual Top Manufacturers in the North Bay Awards presented by the North Bay Business Journal.[7]
  • In December 2013, Ceilume Ceiling Tiles were included in the list of "2013's Most Requested Products" by Walls and Ceilings Magazine [8]
  • December 2014 saw Ceilume Ceiling Tiles receive a Product Innovation Award from Architectural Products Magazine [9] (see page 60)
  • Also in 2014, Architectural Record Magazine included Ceilume Ceiling Tiles in the Finishes & Surfacing category of "2014 Record Products" [10] (scroll to sixth photo)
  • The March 2015 issue of Building Design + Construction Magazine listed Ceilume Ceiling tiles as one of “7 Sleek Selections for Ceiling and Acoustical Systems” [11] (see page 53)
  • On January 30, 2017, the sustainable living web site TrendHunter Eco mentioned Ceilume's ability to recycle plastic scraps into new tiles [12]
  • On July 20, 2017, Ceilume won a North Bay Maker Award for turning its own scrap into new products containing from 98% to 100% recycled content, as reported in the North Bay Business Journal[13]

References

  1. ↑ Oral history of Robert F. Yonash, 1996
  2. ↑ From Ceilings To ‘Star Wars’ In Graton, retrieved May 16, 2017
  3. ↑ Manufacturing Awards 2013: Empire West forms decorative ceiling tiles into profits, retrieved May 18, 2017
  4. ↑ 2007's Most Requested Products, retrieved November 26, 2016
  5. ↑ Winners Selected for the 2010 Bloom Awards, retrieved November 26, 2016
  6. ↑ Versatile Vinyl Ceiling Tiles Top Off Rooms with Style, retrieved November 26, 2016
  7. ↑ Awards 2013: Empire West forms decorative ceiling tiles into profits, retrieved November 26, 2016
  8. ↑ 2013 Most Requested Products, retrieved November 26, 2016
  9. ↑ 2014 Product Innovation Award, retrieved December 13, 2016
  10. ↑ 2014 Record Products, retrieved December 13, 2016
  11. ↑ 7 Sleek Selections for Ceiling and Acoustical Systems, retrieved December 13, 2016
  12. ↑ These Metallic Ceiling Tiles from Ceilume are Made with Plastic Scraps, retrieved February 5, 2017
  13. ↑ West Sonoma County’s Ceilume wins North Bay Maker Award, retrieved July 21, 2017
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