In the world of international specialty chemical procurement and distribution, Netchem Inc. serves hundreds of manufacturing customers, from independently-owned businesses to Fortune 100 companies. Netchem enables its customers to build and expand solid supply chains, striving to act as an extension of their procurement and distribution departments. And while bigger competitors had difficulties during the supply chain nightmare of recent years, Netchem fulfilled many urgent requests for material while increasing its standard three-month inventory holding period to support customers’ production schedules.
Pauline Müller
CREMER ERZKONTOR North America
The Global Source for Trusted Bulk Mineral Supplies
If ever there was a boutique broker of bulk material supplies, CREMER ERZKONTOR (formerly Possehl Erzkontor), the parent company of CREMER ERZKONTOR North America (CENA), is it. That is why increasing numbers of big manufacturers—especially in steel—look to this company to mitigate the risks in procuring raw materials and minerals from abroad. Founded in the early 1900s by the international materials trader Emil Possehl in Lübeck, Germany, it has earned itself a reputation for international raw materials trading excellence in the industry.
Dynamix Inc.
Coatings With High-Performance Protection
Since opening its doors in 2006, Dynamix Inc. of Markham, Ontario, has supplied custom surface-finish coating chemicals mainly used by Canadian and other North American fabricators who supply diverse industries ranging from oil and gas to aerospace. The company also has distributors as far afield as Europe, Mexico, and China.
RAMP, Inc.
Taking Automation Integration to New Levels
Specializing in custom automation design-build and equipment fabrication, RAMP, Inc. has turned itself into a veritable powerhouse of innovation, harnessing technology to fabricate next-generation manufacturing equipment and inspection and material handling systems for customers in industries like consumer goods, medical devices, transportation, and others around the globe. Recession-proof and self-sufficient to its core, this company is set to be around for many decades to come.
Developing Sand Alternatives
The World in a Grain of Sand
When William Blake wrote the phrase “to see the world in a grain of sand” in 1803, one wonders whether he could have fathomed that, deep into the future, the world as an economic entity would one day quite literally pivot on the availability of that grain of sand—the availability of which is currently in the balance.
Trenton Forging Company
Consistent, Competitive, Fast
As a premium contract manufacturer with nearly six decades under its belt, Trenton Forging Company is as authentic and dynamic a partner as any customer could wish for, providing its client partners—in every market from automotive to automation—with a wide range of forged components.
Ausco Products, Inc.
If You Have Braking Needs, Ausco Has the Answer
As an off-highway brake assembly boutique for some of the world’s biggest names in original equipment manufacturing, Ausco Products, Inc.’s scope of design, fabrication capabilities, and level of design innovation remains unmatched.
Eddyfi Technologies
Elegance Through Synergy
Being the best in one of the most competitive industries in the world means being technologically more advanced and faster than competitors. Famous for introducing myriad industry firsts, Eddyfi Technologies leverages leading technology, some of the industry’s brightest minds, and strategic acquisitions.
Caron Engineering
A Next-generation Application Builder
Christmas may well and truly be behind us now, but for fabrication leaders in the know, there is a new Nutcracker Prince on the block. MiConnect, next-generation application-building technology, is the hot new toy—Caron Engineering’s sophisticated technology toolbox that answers an urgent industry call.
Wisconsin Plastic Products
Precision Profile Extrusion
While the economic and supply chain mayhem of recent years meant nothing but struggle for some businesses, others soared. One such superstar is Wisconsin Plastic Products, Inc., a profile extrusion leader that expanded its sales by around 60 percent from 2020 to 2021—a phenomenal growth trajectory followed by a 34 percent rate in 2021/2022. Naturally, this has made tremendous company history and brought continued success, contrasting a healthy traditional annual growth of 10 to 15 percent.
Storing and Preserving Solar Energy
Harvesting the Sun
Learning to make apricot jam from my grandfather one blazing African summer, I recall being surprised by what appeared to be asbestos hands. While carefully filling each jar with molten delight, he held the boiling jars of jam bare-handed, like popsicles. Once every jar was full and covered, washed and lined up, shining like precious amber gems, it occurred to me that he had, ultimately, just taught me to preserve sunshine to light up the gloom of winter months.
A Budding New Manufacturing Reality: Embracing E-Waste
Now and Again
Upgrading electronic devices has become second nature for most, while correctly disposing of related materials for recycling has, in many places, become “the right thing to do.” But what do statistics tell us about the realities of electronics disposal? Is recycling all that it is made out to be and are materials reaching manufacturers? How could the electronics waste (e-waste) repurposing loop be improved?
Leonhardt Manufacturing
A Team You Can Count On
In the ever-evolving world of manufacturing, not all metal tubing parts are created equal. Leonhardt Manufacturing, a prominent player in the industry, stands out as a testament to the power of innovation and the importance of workforce development. Leonhardt Manufacturing has consistently demonstrated its mastery of metal tube bending and manufacturing, earning a reputation for excellence.
Atlas Technologies
Making Manufacturing Cool
If one could highlight a single manufacturer in Michigan for being innovative and fresh in the way it approaches the field, it would be Atlas Technologies. As a division of Stonebridge Technical Enterprises, Atlas Technologies goes above and beyond to make careers in manufacturing the envy of many in the trades and in other fields. Moreover, the Michigan-based company has achieved double-digit annual growth in the wake of tremendous transformation over the past three years.
The Electronic Components Industry Association (ECIA)
Protecting North American Electronics
The Electronic Components Industry Association (ECIA) is a source of guidance and best practices for companies seeking optimum performance within this highly competitive industry. It is also an advocate for helping North American electronic components manufacturers understand and manage through the regulations and standards needed to serve the wave of companies looking to establish or re-establish facilities in the U.S.
Masline Electronics
The Midas Touch of Stocking Distribution Flexibility
As a leader in distributing passive and electromechanical components, Masline Electronics is on a growth trajectory following the COVID-19 pandemic. Helping to drive customers’ bottom lines through effective product distribution, logistics, and custom, value-added services, Masline’s team delivers personalized service on a level uncommon in this industry. That is why loyal customers keep coming back for more.
Ascension Automation Solutions
Maximum Results. Minimalist Automation.
Simplicity can be elusive, and achieving it can, at the worst of times, lead developers down endless warrens of complexity—especially on large, high-stakes projects. At Ascension Automation Solutions, achieving optimum results through minimal complexity has become a sophisticated art form worth perfecting.
Hirsh Precision
Achieving Gold Standards Through People and Culture
A well-known presence in the complete fabrication space, Hirsh Precision is home to a welcoming, detail-driven team. As Hirsh is popular amongst some of the country’s best-known brands in medical and aerospace fabrication, clients insist on partnering with its people to take their projects from start to completion seamlessly. From complex medical devices to rocket engines, scientists and developers from North America and beyond turn to the company with their designs for efficient service and intelligent manufacturing that deliver time savings, value, and impressive returns on investment.
JV Manufacturing
Where Excellence and Precision Meet
After nearly half a century specializing in carbide stamping die fabrication, JV Manufacturing knows that providing competitive precision engineering and solid value earns customers more revenue while saving costs on replacement. It is no surprise then that this team of 125 industry experts is well known internationally in its field for cutting-edge quality and innovation. The demand for the company’s products is so high that around half of its annual product is shipped abroad, chiefly to Europe, making its easy airport access a necessity when hosting overseas customers and their representatives.
Boulevard Machine
Machining the Future
When one of the world’s leading aviation giants remarks that your new facility is so modern it’s reminiscent of Star Trek’s USS Enterprise, you know you’re doing something right.
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The World in a Grain of Sand
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Harvesting the Sun
February 2024
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December 2024
Grand Innovation on the Infinitesimal Scale
November 2023