Nine years after Wendell August started his business making hand-forged metalware in 1923 in Brockway, Pa., his good friend E.J. Fithian, founder of Bessemer Engine Co., encouraged him to move his business to Grove City.

August followed his friend's advice and relocated Wendell August Forge to a building at the end of Madison Avenue. The company has expanded steadily since that time, growing from a business that produced ornate architectural pieces to a manufacturer of unique, hand-made giftware.

The Forge's latest expansion reconnects it with its beginnings in Grove City. By mid to late April, production and distribution will be housed in a portion of Cooper Industrial Commons, the former Cooper-Bessemer plant on Lincoln Avenue.

As the Forge has grown in business volume, the building that houses the business on Madison Avenue has expanded too -- right out of its original walls. That has meant purchasing houses near its current facility, as well as leasing a building in Barkeyville to accommodate distribution needs.

F.W. Knecht III bought the business in 1978, and he and his son, Will, now run it.

Will Knecht said the Forge's continuing growth makes it necessary to move into larger quarters. Its new 31,000-square-foot bay nearly doubles the space available at the Madison Avenue building. The entire facility there is 17,000 square feet, and that includes the store, offices and workshops, Knecht said.

"We'll be using a small part of the (Cooper) facility, but it's huge for us," Knecht said.

"Ideally we wanted to build onto the Madison Avenue facility, but after presenting plans to the (Grove City) zoning board, we didn't see much hope. When the facility up the street on Lincoln came open, it gave us the opportunity to stay close to our roots, but get the size building we needed."

Knecht said they'd been looking for a place to expand for a while.

"Really, when we went out to Barkeyville it was with the idea that it would be for one or two years," Knecht said. "It was a curve ball not to be able to expand on our current property. We wanted to stay in Grove City, but we were having a difficult time finding property or a building to lease."

Having production and distribution in the same building makes sense, Knecht said. He feels it should enable Wendell August to serve customers more smoothly by making movement of the product easier.

The bay the Forge is leasing is at the end of the plant closest to Madison Avenue, at Gate 15. It was formerly used as Cooper's shipping and receiving area. Thomas Construction has been working for about six weeks building walls to divide the areas, as well as individual rooms.

Safety is one of the big bonuses of the new plant.

"We've made major safety improvements," Knecht said. More elbow room itself is one of the biggest improvements, so the craftsmen won't be falling on each other.

Dave Schultz is a craftsman who leads one of the six cells of workers in production. He's looking forward to having more room to work, and "being able to do what you need to do without worrying about bumping into each other."

Knecht added that better equipment for collecting particles of metal when polishing was purchased.

"Right now we have wires and hoods overhead," he said. The new filters will draw the particles down.

"There's more space, better lighting. It's a winner all around," Knecht said.

Noise has been a big concern for the Forge craftsmen, who spend their days hammering metal, as well as the workers around them. The new facility features soundproof rooms where all of the hammering will be done.

"It makes a world of difference. The ambient noise will be reduced dramatically," Knecht said.

Bill Minner, distribution manager, has been putting in 14-hour days to ready the bay, but he thinks it will be worth it. With the distribution center in Barkeyville, Minner and his team often have delays while they're awaiting the arrival of a van from production on Madison Avenue. The two departments will be side by side in the Cooper building.

" 'Wendell in the woods' is nice, but not having to wait on the van will be great," Minner said.

In addition, the space limitations meant the distribution people had to wait until one order was shipped to pack the next. That won't be an issue in the new location.

The showroom will stay where it is, Knecht said. He's not sure exactly what they will do with the production area once that department moves to Cooper, but tours will remain at Madison Avenue.

"The challenge is to improve the experience of our guests, and we have 10,000 square feet to do that in," Knecht said. Some plans are to have a mini-workshop, a history of the Forge, and a place for hands-on experience for the visitors.

The die engravers, Len Youngo and Dave Bruck, will keep their workshops on Madison Avenue, although Youngo may move to the Cooper building for a while. Ben DePrano, who has served the Forge in several capacities over the past seven years, will become an apprentice die engraver. Eventually Knecht said all three will work at Madison Avenue.

Knecht's ultimate goal is to serve customers better. He's proud of the reputation the Forge and its products have, as well as how much of the world sees the fruit of their labor. In 2001, there were only four or five countries which the Forge did not ship to, Knecht said.

"We're trying to preserve American craftsmanship and offer the Wendell August experience to a lot of folks," he said.

He's also happy that the Forge could remain in Grove City. When word got out that he was looking for a place to expand, "other communities were courting us, wanting to give us tax breaks and tax incentives. We wanted to stay right here in Grove City," Knecht said. "We are a part of Grove City, and Grove City is a part of us."

Wendell August employs 100 people in Grove City throughout the year, adding 30 or 40 more during the holiday season. In addition to the Madison Avenue shop, Wendell August Forge has retail stores at Prime Outlets at Grove City in Springfield Township and in Berlin, Ohio.