This week is National Manufacturing Week, a time to highlight and celebrate the manufacturers in our community. There are more than 3,500 companies engaged in manufacturing in Iowa, employing over 211,000 Iowans with an average wage of more than $51,000. All told, the manufacturing sector contributes over $27.6 billion, or 18 percent, to Iowa's Gross State Product.

 

Manufacturers play an important role in the vibrancy of a community. They create job opportunities with some of the highest-paying jobs in the state, on average. $54,420 is the average amount in wages and salaries earned by Iowa's manufacturing workers, which is 28 percent more than the Iowa wage average of $42,530. If you are looking for a job, nearly all of Grinnell's manufacturers are hiring.

 

Do you know what the manufacturers here in Grinnell actually produce? Since they are typically places the general public doesn't visit or buy from directly, sometimes it's hard to know what they actually manufacture. Today, we're highlighting our chamber member manufacturers so you can learn more about what they make:

 

1.ASI Signage manufactures interior signage, exterior signage, and digital signage for a variety of companies worldwide. The bulk of their signs are produced for businesses in the corporate, education, healthcare, and hospitality sectors. They work with a lot of hospitals and colleges, designing everything from welcome signs to restroom signs to directory signs to donor walls.

 

2.Engineered Plastics Components (EPC) manufactures plastic injection molded products. Many of the plastic items they make go into automobiles, appliances, medical equipment, and heavy machinery. 

 

3.H-W Brand manufactures cattle handling equipment, equine equipment, continuous fence systems, cattle feeders and arena systems. Their customers are farm and ranch supply retailers, rural farm cooperatives, retail lumberyards, implement stores and hardware dealers.

 

4.Image First manufactures fiberglass and aluminum signs for wholesale. They design, engineer and fabricate signs to meet their customers' needs.

 

6.Natural Products manufactures high quality food-grade soybeans. They process whole, non-GMO or certified organic soybeans into ingredients for the soyfoods, beverage and baking industries. They export their product to 15 countries on just about every continent.

 

7.Priority Plastics makes plastic packaging solutions for a range of companies. They manufacture plastic containers of all shapes and sizes as well as wet towel wipes in canisters for variety of brands.

 

8. Trinity Structural Towers has a location in Newton, but they are one of our newest chamber members. Trinity manufactures tubular wind towers that are used in the construction of wind turbines.