Tight market for space won't daunt relocating company

Larry Tracy knew why he wanted to move the operations of Aleph International to northern Nevada business costs, a favorable tax climate, a good quality of life.

Tracy, the company's chief executive officer, just didn't know it would be so difficult finding a place to locate.

His company, which is moving from Southern California into 15,000 square feet at 4700 Air Center Drive in Reno, encountered a tight market for industrial real estate.

"We had a hard time finding anything," he said, adding that lease and purchase costs weren't substantially different from those the company was paying at its former home in San Fernando, Calif.

Aleph makes sensors for a variety of applications everything from burglar alarms to photocopiers.

Its sales run $180 million a year, Tracy said.

When Aleph gets up to steam at the Reno facility at the end of this month, it will employ about 15 people.

Nearly all of them will be hired locally.

Despite a tight labor market in northern Nevada, Tracy said the company was able to find qualified employees to fill its positions.

Aleph plans to expand its staff in coming months, he said, as it adds engineering functions to the Reno operation.

Many of the company's sensors are custom-engineered for its customers.

Its product catalog ranges from reed switches,which generate an alert when a door is opened, to proximity sensors that are used in factory automation.Aleph also develops products for the automotive industry such as sensors for anti-lock braking system and sensors that warn when fluid levels are getting low.

The company, which is about 30 years old, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nippon Aleph, a 75-year-old company based in Yokohama, Japan.