Cincinnati State industrial training helps a continent stay clean

February 4, 2010

Officials from Cincinnati State and its Workforce Development Center were invited to join Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland recently when he came to Cincinnati to tour the historic – and thriving – soap-making plant in Ivorydale. The tour was part of a series of stops emphasizing the state’s job development initiatives.

Pictured: Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland with the Workforce Development Center's Larry Cherveny.

The 131-year-old Ivorydale plant in St. Bernard was owned and operated by Procter & Gamble until 2002, when it was spun off as an independent, contract manufacturer of bar soaps. The plant (now known as the St. Bernard Soap Co., a subsidiary of Trillium Health Care Products Inc.) has grown steadily since then, and now accounts for about 30 percent of all bar soaps made in North America today. That’s enough to supply four bars of soap for every person in the United States and Canada, company officials say – and they have the capacity to produce even more.

The state of Ohio has helped to promote this expansion, in part by providing job retraining grants to the company.
The St. Bernard Soap Co. has contracted with Cincinnati State’s Workforce Development Center to provide a significant amount of that training.
During the tour Gov. Strickland and other state officials spoke with Larry Cherveny, Industrial Maintenance and Green Technology Business Manager at the WDC, and Douglas Heesten, Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Cincinnati State.

They and the governor also spoke during the tour with Randy Holt, a Cincinnati State graduate who now works for the St. Bernard Soap Co., helping to keep production lines running smoothly in the factory.

“This is a good example of the kind of training the Workforce Development Center can provide for clients,’’ Cherveny said. “We’ve helped small companies and large corporations in their efforts to improve the productivity of their employees. And it’s nice to see those companies get some recognition for their efforts.’’