As autumn began to fade in the Twin Ports, a new building was being made ready for the installation of equipment that will make possible the expansion of business by longtime Port tenant Como Lube & Supplies.

Como’s 17,500-square-foot structure is part of a $5 million project that will import equipment from India for the re-refinement of used oil. Como turns used oil from Minnesota, northwest Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan into new base-lubricant stock which in turn can be further processed for use as hydraulic fluid, transmission fluid, bar-chain oil and the like.

Zane Swanson, president of family-owned Como Lube, said the expansion probably will require six to eight additional employees, and perhaps more. Mr. Swanson said Como Lube has been reprocessing used oil for at least 20 years and currently employs 37 people.

The company was founded in 1980 by the president’s father, Ron Swanson. Other Swansons in the family-owned business are Ron Jr., Chad and Kris.

Working with used oil certainly isn’t all Como Lube does. The company also supplies a wide range of new major-brand lubricants and produces special-formula lubricants.

Como also performs environmental work with its waste collection and processing services. The company also operates hazardous-waste transfer equipment and is a licensed hazardous-waste transporter.

The company also distills cleaning solvents, converting dirty solvents into two parts — oil and a clean, water-like solvent. The new solvent can be used again in parts washers, and the oil can be combined with used oil.

Como Lube & Supplies occupies five acres of increasingly busy Port land. In addition to its buildings, Como fills its space with dozens of tanks — at least 70, by Zane Swanson’s last count — all of them needed for what the company calls a “multitude of waste collection and processing services.”