Soucy U.S.A. Making it Through Tough Times

There is a huge, almost 300,000 square-foot multi-tenant industrial and warehouse complex stretching some distance along Elm Street in Champlain. Its official leasing office address is 100 Walnut Street, but the sheer size belies that designation. It’s presently called Soucy U.S.A.; however, if you question locals about what is located there, they will often answer, “Oh, you mean the Kimpex building?”

Old timers might say, “You mean Sheridan Iron Works or the Foundry?” And still others might refer to it as the former Harris Graphics or Harris Bindery.

All of them are at least partially correct. Throughout its colorful history, a large number of area residents have been employed in the various enterprises that have occupied that space.

We were able to trace it back to 1845 when a man named David Finley came east from Wisconsin to establish a foundry and machine shop called Champlain Iron Works. It was purchased in 1883 and incorporated into Sheridan Iron Works in 1887. The original foundry was in the oldest building that is still extant on the premises and was expanded at least ten times while under the name Sheridan. It became world-famous for making book-binding machinery. When the Harris Corporation assumed ownership, its Harris bindery continued business there until eventually closing up shop in 1987.

A few years later, a man named Gilles Soucy from Drummondville, Quebec, purchased the entire building under the Name Kimpex U.S.A. LTD. Kimpex is a large dealer in all-terrain vehicle and snowmobile parts and accessories. The Kimpex owner’s plan initially was to build a large factory to manufacture ATV and snowmobile parts. However, those plans changed and Kimpex decided instead to use the facility for warehousing and distribution.

Soucy is described as a self-made man and has worked long and hard to become successful. Long ago, he opted to get into the snowmobile business. He had a hard time finding the parts he wanted, so he started his own company some 40 years ago. At first, Soucy drove around selling parts out of an old school bus. Later, he says he found it difficult to buy snowmobile tracks, so he opened his own rubber factory and now makes tracks and bogie wheels. He has acquired interests in many countries.

Several years ago, the Kimpex warehousing facility moved south to Saratoga, leaving the Kimpex U.S.A LTD sales department in Champlain, with Allan Keswick as the international sales director. Kimpex now occupies a small fraction of their former presence at that location.

The present formula involves one man and two entities in Champlain. Soucy owns Kimpex, but also owns the entire building. Soucy U.S. A. Inc. was set up as a local part of a larger organization called the Soucy Group.

Soucy U.S. A. explains its presence in the Northern Tier of Clinton County this way: “As a testimony to our confidence in the future and our international vision, our group acquired a multifunctional industrial complex located in Champlain, New York. Constructed on a 22-acre site, the building has 286,000 square feet of usable space including 69,725 square feet for production and associated activities. The complex also offers numerous docking bays and contains warehouses equipped with a variety of machinery for materials handling. Located in the heart of one of the world’s markets, these facilities will help serve the growing needs of our group and its customers.”

A Soucy news release further explains, “The Soucy Group is active in six main sectors of activity: ATV, Snowmobile, Marine, Industrial, Agricultural and Defense. Our customers are some of the largest original equipment manufacturers in each of these segments. We pride ourselves on the strong relationship we have with each of them and we continually strive to meet and surpass their expectations.”

A local man named Robert “Bob” Morgan was hired as the Soucy leasing manager and business thrived under his leadership, with more than 60 clients utilizing the facility.

Enter Mooers Forks native Howard Lamberton. He was familiar with the complex along Elm Street in Champlain from the time he was a small child. He even owned a store directly across the street that catered to Harris employees. It was so busy he had to remain open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Unfortunately, when Harris closed up its operations in Champlain, Lamberton’s store did the same.

But Howard Lamberton had piled up years of experience in the area as a customs broker starting in 1967. He also had operated restaurants in several communities and he was up for new challenges.

One day, his friend Bob Morgan told Lamberton that he (Morgan) would soon be retiring from Soucy U.S.A. and that he’d like to see Lamberton replace him move into the position of leasing manager. With the prospect of a substantial increase in pay, Lamberton accepted the offer and began work at 100 Walnut Street in December of 2003. The rest, as they say, is history.

When Lamberton assumed his duties at Soucy, there were still 60 businesses in the complex with a total workforce of nearly 180 people. Over the past couple of years, the recession has taken a toll. Lamberton explained, “A lot of the problem right now involves inventory. If you order something from a company these days, they say, ‘Okay, we’ll make it for you.’ But they can’t afford to keep lots of inventory on hand like they used to, so they don’t need as much warehouse space right now.”

Lamberton admits that some tenants have moved out and he called that Lamberton “an unfotunate sign of the times,” but he remains optimistic about the future. About 30 companies still lease space at Soucy, U.S.A. and he said, “I think our business will come back strong, as the world economy recovers. We could be at the lowest point right now. I don’t foresee anyone leaving that is here right now.”

One major presence at Soucy is UPS. These days, they do all of their accounting, credit and collections in the Champlain office. Ron Bordeau, who runs the local credit and collections office, said, “This is just one division of UPS. We handle freight traffic—ground traffic coming through the border from many Canadian companies and headed for numerous American destinations. We have a group of collectors here that make contact with the clients to ensure that the billings are accurate, customer service is adequate and that payments come in according to terms.”

Bordeau pointed us to another suite where other UPS accounting functions are handled by Joe Martineau and his staff. Bordeau added, “We all act in concert to handle what is called the Northern Border District that covers all ports of entry from Maine to the State of Washington. Martineau’s family history goes back many years when his father worked for Sheridan Iron Works at the same location.

Modern Mechanical, managed by John Trombley, is one of the Soucy tenants doing actual manufacturing in the complex. They are primarily involved in steel fabrication. Another is Calmo, which makes lifts for handicap ramps.

Normont Industrial Systems is another major lessee at Soucy. According to Manager Alan Lapiere, the company formerly had a presence in Plattsburgh, but moved to Champlain in November of 2009, as they needed much more warehouse space. Normont is involved in numerous kinds of industrial hardware and miscellaneous other products, including those for painting and welding.

The general maintenance for Soucy in Champlain is centered in a shop at the old Sheridan portion of the building complex, under the direction of Neil Lushia. The original Sheridan foundry building is there along with boilers, pumps and generators that supply the complex with its day-to-day heat and air conditioning.

Outside (in late January) is a tall ice cone that to the casual visitor might look like a manmade winter sculpture. Lamberton explained that it is actually based in a pond and comes from a perpetual water sprinkler designed to provide an emergency water supply to the complex when needed for fire-fighting or other needs. The sprinkler runs constantly all winter to reduce formation of algae in the pond.

Lamberton is a man who understands working through difficult times and coming out the other side successfully. How does he see the future? “Good question,” he answered. “Right now, we’re working to promote our leasing business and we’re trying various kinds of marketing. Business is slower than we’d like it right now, but I think the answer is word of mouth and an improving economy. When companies need this kind of space, they’ll find us. We’re the largest facility in the entire region and we’re ready and willing to go to work for them.”

Lamberton had high praise for both the Plattsburgh and North Country chamber of Commerce and Mark Barie of CDC Real Estate, who, he said, have greatly helped to spread the good word about Soucy U.S.A.

He concluded by saying, “A year and a half ago, this place was hopping. We didn’t have one square inch left to lease. I firmly believe we can get back there—the sooner, the better.”