Advance Catastrophe Technologies outlines plans for expansion including new national headquarters and training facility in Wichita
Wichita, Kan. – Advance Catastrophe Technologies, Inc. (ACT) unveiled plans to build a new $2.89 million - 20,000 square-foot corporate headquarters in Wichita that will include a national training facility. Plans call for the company to build at the Hoover Industrial Park at the southeast corner of Hoover Road and K-96.
Christian Wiley, ACT President and CEO, said the company started planning the expansion and new headquarters for some time before the COVID-19 pandemic began.
“For the past couple of years, ACT has been in a significant growth pattern. It became clear we needed to not only invest in top talent and equipment, but a national headquarters with state-of-the-art training facility to support our future growth.” Wiley said. “This is where it all began 19 years ago. We feel there’s something special about not only keeping and growing ACT in Wichita, but showcasing this great city to our nationwide clients.”
The company provides emergency planning, recovery and reconstruction services to more than 6,000 customers nationwide and in Canada. With a focus on clients in hospitality, senior care, student housing, healthcare and more, ACT is unable to expand at its current location in Bel Aire. As the company considered other regions and areas, its leadership expressed the desire to be near an airport as they bring in national customers and staff.
“ACT is a quintessential Wichita story of a home-grown company that now has a national presence and we commend their leadership for their forward-thinking planning and opportunity to work together,” said Jeff Fluhr, Greater Wichita Partnership President. “Their growth is exciting as is their commitment to investing in the region’s future and ideas about showcasing our community to people throughout the nation.”
The company is targeting to begin construction this summer and would add 10 full-time employees over the next five years to its existing headquarter employment of about 20. ACT employs more than 20 additional full-time employees around the country, not including its emergency response teams.
According to plans, ACT is proposing a national training facility along with the headquarters that will bring employees to Wichita to train in an onsite simulation center on disaster situations like flooding, smoke damage and mold remediation to learn the latest mitigation and response methods hands-on. The company also plans to bring national customers to Wichita to view the latest in emergency response techniques.
“We were especially pleased to find a location near the airport that could accommodate the travel of so many to our new facility,” Wiley said. “We like showing off Wichita and the vibe the city has going, to clients and employees alike. Even though many of our employees live throughout the country, Wichita is ACT’s home.”
Started in 2001, ACT has grown to become a premier nationwide company in the area of restoring properties and getting companies back in business after a disaster.
The company worked with the Greater Wichita Partnership’s economic development team along with partners at the City of Wichita, Sedgwick County and the Kansas Department of Commerce. The City Council will be reviewing a proposal for the new headquarters at its meeting on Tuesday, June 2.
