SPRINGVILLE — As Hal Wing announced the grand opening of the new corporate headquarters of Wing Enterprise Inc. on Thursday, he credited the company's employees for making the event possible.

"Hal Wing didn't make this happen," he said. "You're only as good as your employees. And I have the best."

More than 300 people — both Wing Enterprise employees and community members — attended the official unveiling of the new, state-of-the-art ladder manufacturing and operations facility at 1198 N. Spring Creek Place.

The new, 250,000-square-foot corporate headquarters and manufacturing headquarters features an advanced innovations lab and manufacturing facility. The production line is equipped with robotic welders, and the manufacturing team can produce as many as 7,000 ladders per day, said Dave Francis, national sales manager for Wing Enterprise.

About 20 years ago, the assembly line could build a ladder in 4 1/2 hours, Francis said. Now a ladder gets finished in 33 minutes.

Wing said he started the company in his garage nearly 34 years ago because he wanted to work with his family. Instead, he spent 360 days a year on the road for five years. During that time, people began to refer to his wife as "Widow Wing," he joked. Eventually the company started to take off. In 2006, MountainWest Capital Network rated Wing Enterprise 15th among Utah's top revenue growth companies.

Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert, who attended the grand opening, applauded Wing's entrepreneurial spirit.

"Hal personifies what's best about America," he said. "The company has come a long way from its humble beginnings in a garage.

"This is just another step on the ladder — no pun intended — of what you can do in America," he said.

Springville Mayor Gene Mangum said he's glad Wing Enterprise decided to build their new headquarters in his town.

"It was a great day when Hal decided to build his headquarters in this little town," he said. "We look forward to having you here for a long time."

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