Ames Industries, Inc. specializes in injection molding solutions, partnering with clients to provide a complete, individualized service that includes product design and development, precision mold building and fabrication, custom injection molding, and post-processing and finishing.
The company’s story began 40 years ago, when Wesley and Donette Ames took a risk and launched their own business. “They started in the basement of their house, building dies,” says his son-in-law, President Jeff Williams.
It was not always easy, but the founder and his family stuck it out. This meant making production work in a less-than-ideal location. For example, when regrinding parts, “it made such a loud noise, his wife would have to cut the grass so the neighbors wouldn’t complain,” Williams shares. “He had a lot of good help, and he has a very pure work ethic.”
After putting in the time and effort, Mr. Ames was able to move the startup to its own building in 1984. The Hershey, Pennsylvania-based business grew steadily from there, winning over customers along the way and adding its own private brand in 2017.
“The rest is history,” says Williams. “I consider it the American dream. Achieving something like this is difficult nowadays, especially without financial support. They did everything on their own. Lenders refused to give him a loan because they didn’t believe his dream was realistic. So, he had to save and buy all the equipment himself.”
Even after 40 years in business, several family members remain involved working closely together. “It’s a tight-knit family,” says Williams. Alongside their can-do attitude, he attributes the company’s success to a strong management team and a commitment to customers and employees, as well as delivering exceptional service in design, molding, and customer service.
This commitment has helped the company succeed by building a respected name in the industry. “Our reputation and ability to pivot has carried us through some hard times here and continues to help us grow,” he says.
Ames Industries’ success is driven by its ability to provide customized solutions to a diverse customer base. The company offers end-to-end design and development services for injection-molded components, turning customers’ unique visions into reality while ensuring designs are optimized for manufacturing. With expertise in building high-quality molds and tooling in-house, the team maintains greater control over production and delivers faster response times.
The company has a carefully managed, streamlined process to make it easy for customers to transfer an existing mold to Ames’ facility without any complications, and it utilizes an advanced, FDM 3D printer for rapid and low-volume prototyping. As well as custom injection molding services, the company offers a number of post-processing services, including assembly, welding, and packaging, delivering a complete, hassle-free solution.
With so much to offer, it is no surprise that Ames serves a wide range of industries. “Our core competency is close tolerance connector molds for the automotive, industrial, appliance, and medical industries but, over the past decade, [we have] gotten to the point where we will mold any thermoplastic that fits our press base,” says Vice President Nathan Waiwada. “We will do everything from cornhole levelers to dental scalers and small arms. It’s very diverse.”
Ames is adept at handling out-of-the-ordinary requests. For example, the company recently made a model of a tongue for a dentist to use for training purposes. “We’ve brought her concepts to life,” says Williams. The team also makes products for people developing their own products. “We have a few entrepreneurs here as customers,” he adds.
At Ames Industries, the customer’s needs always come first. “We’re a contract manufacturer, a custom molder,” says Williams. “Whether an individual comes to us with an idea or a larger client wants to transfer or build molds, we work with them. It’s their intellectual property—we collaborate on mold building and design, then manufacture and inspect the parts according to their specifications.”
Creating a custom product naturally involves continuous communication with the customer. “One of the biggest challenges of being a custom manufacturer is not only delivering a quality part every time but also maintaining strong relationships,” says Williams. The company has been remarkably successful in doing just that.
“Our longest-standing customer has been with us for 40 years—they were among the first molds we ever produced. We also have a few other clients approaching the 30-year mark, along with newer ones who have been with us for just a few years. It’s all about building rapport so they keep coming back and saying, ‘Hey, we have this new idea.’”
Ames is committed to maintaining high standards to retain existing customers and attract new opportunities. The company earned its ISO 9001:2015 certification in August 2008 and continues to improve on its processes. “We run a tight ship when it comes to quality. We understand the challenges that arise when quality escape occurs, and we do everything possible to address the situation when it happens and endeavor to improve on the process, but we also take responsibility and work closely with customers to keep their operations running smoothly and their clients satisfied.”
The company is now gearing up for continued growth to meet increasing customer demand. Its expansion plans, however, faced some setbacks during the pandemic. “Before COVID, we had an ambitious plan to expand across the street,” Waiwada explains. “The site includes seven acres and the potential for an additional 50,000-square-foot building. We even modified the driveway for higher occupancy in preparation for construction. But once COVID hit, everything came to a standstill.”
The team is pivoting in the face of the challenges that COVID presented to the expansion. “We have to expand,” Waiwada says, “because we’re currently limited at 40,000 square feet, which is a combination of both buildings: 30,000 in plant one, 10,000 in plant two. At this point, we can’t add additional presses, so our capacity is inherently constrained. If we really want continued growth past a certain threshold—which we established a few years ago—then we need to change our current business model as a whole or expand our capacity. So I think long-term expansion is going to be critical for continued growth.”
With four decades of success already under its belt, this family-owned business has the experience and momentum to successfully expand in order to provide the customized solutions that have earned Ames Industries its place in the market. We look forward to seeing what comes next.
