STE. GENEVIEVE, MO -- Since Lucent Window and Door, LLC opened its new factory near St. Louis last December, the company has been turning out more than 400 complete window and door sets daily. Within a month the company was looking to expand operations by securing a Small Business Administration Loan to expand inventory.

In August 2013 Lucent, which manufactures high-end wood and wood-aluminum-clad windows and patio doors, acquired the former 200,000 square foot plant BiltBest Windows plant near St. Louis to for produce all-wood and metal-clad wood windows aimed at the high end residential remodeling market. The facility includes 14.6 acres of property and buildings totaling 221,000 square feet. The plant had been idle since April 2011, when BiltBest Windows’ last production line ceased operation.

During the grand opening ceremony in December company officials showed off different manufacturing capabilities, including lines for double-mount windows and casements, which can produce between 200 and 250 units per day.

CEO Tom Bruggeman pleaded with state lawmakers to assist in securing the SBA loan

In January state legislators, including House Speaker Timothy Jones toured the plant. Jones told company officials he would do what he could to “remove any barriers [to the company] generating new jobs,” according to the St. Genevieve Herald.

In a video of a facilities tour, company officials said Lucent wants to provide the highest quality of windows and doors to customers.

“We’ve been pleased how the site has developed,” a company official said during the video.

But the company has grand plans for the site. The Herald reported Lucent will look to add 60,000 square feet by 2020. Company research shows the existing building only has the capacity to produce enough product to meet $95 million in sales, the paper reported.

Lucent leaders are projecting first-year sales of $16 million, the St. Genevieve Daily Journal reported. The company employs 26 full-time workers and has expectations to employ more than 100 by the end of 2014. If plans for expansion go as company officials hope, annual sales are expected to be in excess of $50 million by 2018 with 240 expected employees, the St. Genevieve Herald reported.