Necessity
is the mother of invention. No one understands this more than Rock Ferrone,
much-touted owner of Pittsburgh’s Rock-Built, Inc.
It
was necessity that turned this former auto mechanic and high school dropout
into SBN’s 1 of 55 Pacesetters for the New Millennium. It was necessity that turned a printer into
a manufacturing entrepreneur and guided him to buy his own airport. For Rock
Ferrone, necessity spells the key to success.
While
Rock toiled as an auto mechanic, his parents were publishing Motor Mart
Magazine, a local auto trader. When they decided to farm out the printing, Rock
volunteered with the attitude of “how hard could it be?” A trip to Connecticut bought Ferrone his
first web press. When his assistants, employees of the garage, mistakenly
identified the ink as grease, he knew he was in trouble. Nonetheless, they were
up and running in 30 days. Over the next five years, the commercial printing
operation “captured a lot of work in the local area”, including such clients as
the University of Pittsburgh.
A
detachable mailing card system, a.k.a. marriage mail, created Rock’s next
“necessity”. This system, adopted by the US Postal Service, consists of a
packet of information with a detachable mailing card. The card is detached and
once the recipient is identified, the package can be delivered. Ferrone’s
company was printing such an order when a glitch occurred. The cards were
finished, but the rest of the package was behind schedule. Since one piece
without the other is useless, something had to be done to speed up the
finishing process. According to
Ferrone, “I quickly designed a machine to go on the end of the web press – held
together with bubble gum, duct tape, and wire”. This machine, which he refers
to as “this Rube Goldberg looking thing”, soon became the Unitrim 1000,
Ferrone’s first of thirteen patents. Rock-Built was on its way.
After
the birth of the Unitrim 1000, Rock-Built began manufacturing other finishing
machines. Soon companies were taking stock in Ferrone’s inventiveness. Today,
Rock-Built manufactures an extensive array of finishing equipment including
in-line trimmers, trim removal systems, stackers, glue systems, and conveyors.
One trimmer in particular offers an astounding 300% in labor savings. This reduction in labor and production time
is what attracts clients to Rock-Built. The day we spoke, The New York Times
had made a purchase. Other clients include RRDonnelly, the Washington Post, the
Chicago Sun-Times, and “other major newspapers all over the country”.
Rock-Built also exports its equipment to Europe, Canada, Australia, and China.
Along
with manufacturing comes extensive travel. While installing a stacker at a
Philadelphia printing company, Ferrone hit a wall. He drove back to Sharpsburg
to design a solution, then returned to make the adjustments. After making five
trips to Philadelphia within four days, a 4-5 hour trip one way, Ferrone was
tired. Too much time was being spent on the road. The other option was to fly.
Yet, airlines were expensive and difficult to schedule. During his final trip
to Philadelphia, Rock noticed an airport only minutes away. That’s when he
decided to take flying lessons. He
hired a flight instructor and purchased his first plane, a Cessna Skylane 182.
Flying enabled him to arrive on site in a fraction of the time. He also logged
almost 500 hours flight time before taking his licensing test, for which the
FAA requires 40 hours. This new passion also landed him in a position as a member
of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Aviation.
Eventually,
Ferrone grew weary of the 45-minute drive from Rock-Built to the Butler County
Airport where he kept his plane. Oftentimes, the drive took longer than the
actual flight. Ferrone needed to be closer to home. During one flight, he utilized the Global Positioning System, a
safety feature that allows a pilot to locate the nearest public-use airport.
What he discovered was West Penn Airport, located 15 minutes from Rock-Built
headquarters. So Rock landed there. What he found was a pot of gold and an
owner willing to sell. The hangars, which could house 40 planes and 53
aircraft, were in rough shape. But that didn’t deter him. Along with the
airstrip came 144 acres of land and a fueling operation. (Today, the fuel
service pumps approximately 20,000 gallons a month, a dramatic increase from
its previous 15,000 gallons per year.)
The property, which Ferrone later expanded, was the perfect place to
relocate Rock-Built. In August 1998, he
bought the airport for $575,000.
With
newly titled Rock Airport in his grasp, there was no stopping Ferrone. With access to Route 28 and a nearby
railroad line, it seemed that Rock-Built was destined to thrive. Utilizing a
law passed by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge, Rock Airport was slated to
become a Keystone Opportunity Zone. The law, which allows businesses a limited
time in which to operate tax-free, passed one month after the purchase of Rock
Airport. It would prove to be the first step in building the Rockpointe Airpark,
a premium location for high-tech businesses, fostering vital economic growth
and development. Rockpointe, consisting of 207 acres would also provide
approximately 4,000 jobs. As with most great ideas, there was a catch. In order
to qualify, Ferrone had sixty days to convince the state and local authorities
to waive all taxes for the next 12 years. Rock, known for his impatience,
states, “It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.” The Rockpointe Airpark is
currently under construction, scheduled to be complete in the summer of
2000. Ferrone will eventually turn over
ownership of the airstrip to a public entity, in order to become eligible for
government funds. The finished cost is estimated at $20-30 million.
Ferrone,
the 1999 winner of Pennsylvania’s Most Improved Safety Award, sums up his
philosophy. “I like designing…..and using aviation.”
But
never fear. Even with the completion of Rock Airport, Rockpointe Airpark, and
the continued growth of Rock-Built, Rock Ferrone will continue flying high.
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