WebCore moves into wind turbine market (Dayton)

At the end of 2008, WebCore Technologies LLC was on top of the world.

The Miami Township company — which manufactures Tycor, an engineered composite material it developed — had landed a customer in the fledgling wind turbine market that planned to order as much as $8 million per year in product.

Then came some bad news. As the economy began to falter, the customer called WebCore to cut its ordering forecast by 80 percent. To survive, WebCore shed a little more than half of its 37 employees.

“Those were difficult times,” said Dan Hutcheson, WebCore chairman. “Letting people go was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.”

Despite the setback, WebCore kept its eye on wind energy, forging ahead into what it knew would be a successful industry.

Armed with four variations of product used in the making of wind turbine blades, WebCore is gearing up to launch manufacturing and distribution operations in China and distribution operations in Europe. Its prospects are bright, as the global market for core materials for wind turbine blades is expected to hit $220 million this year, and grow to $500 million in 2014, as wind farms blow into the U.S., Europe and Asia.

Read the full story in the Dayton Business Journal.