Manufacturing
2018 Washington Manufacturing Awards, Emerging Manufacturer (Small Firms)
Gold: Nortis Inc., Woodinville; Silver: Diversified Manufacturing Technologies, Mount Vernon
TESTING: Thomas Neumann is president and CEO of Nortis Inc. This article appears in the May 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. GOLD AWARDNortis Inc., Woodinville Biotech isnt simply about discovering new treatments and medicines. Its also about producing the tools that enable those discoveries. Nortis makes what it calls a microfluidic organ…
2018 Washington Manufacturing Awards, Innovation (Large Firms): MSR | Mountain Safety Research
Mountain Safety Research wins gold in Innovation for large firms.
EXPLORING: Doug Sanders is VP of Mountain Safety Research | MSR. This article appears in the May 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. GOLD AWARDMSR | Mountain Safety Research, Seattle Being a leader in the crowded and competitive outdoor-recreation space would seem accomplishment enough. Founded in 1969 as Mountain Safety Research by Larry…
During World War II, Washingtons Hanford Engineer Works Produced Plutonium for the Manhattan Project
Hanford plutonium was in the nuclear bomb detonated over Nagasaki, Japan.
This article appears in print in the April 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. During World War II, the Hanford Engineer Works along the Columbia River near Richland, Washington, produced plutonium for the Manhattan Project. In August 1945, Hanford plutonium was in the nuclear bomb detonated over Nagasaki, Japan. Two years earlier, the…
Made in Washington: Sage Manufacturing
The Bainbridge Island-based company was founded in 1980 and is the largest producer of premium fly rods in the United States.
This article appears in print in the April 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. Since 1980, Sage Manufacturing has been making top-notch fly-fishing equipment on Bainbridge Island. Founded by Don Green (who was quickly joined by Bruce Kirschner of the K2 Corporation skis family), Sage today employs 140 people and is the largest…
The Finalists: 2018 Seattle Business Magazine Washington Manufacturing Awards
The award ceremony is on May 3 at the Hyatt Regency Lake Washington in Renton. Winners will be announced in the May issue.
Fourteen companies from across the state have been selected for recognition in the 2018 Washington Manufacturing Awards program presented by Seattle Business magazine. Here are the 2018 finalists: Bodypoint Inc., SeattleBriedgeways, Everett Crunch Pak, Cashmere Diversified Manufacturing Technologies, Mount Vernon Global Fiberglass Solutions, Bothell Itek Energy, Bellingham Johnson Foods, Sunnyside Mid-Mountain Materials, Mercer Island/Arlington MSR…
Made in Washington: Essential Baking Company
The Seattle-based bakery was founded in 1994 and now employs 350 people and packs and ships roughly 16 million loaves of bread a year.
This article appears in print in the March 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. Founded in Seattle in 1994 by George DePasquale and the late Jeff Fairhall, Essential Baking Company today employs 350 people who produce, package and ship about 45,000 loaves of certified organic bread each day roughly 16 million loaves a…
Made in Washington: Liberty Bottleworks
Our photographer visits the Yakima-based environmentally sustainable bottle manufacturer.
This article appears in print in the February 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. In Union Gap, just outside Yakima, Liberty Bottleworks manufactures the only completely customizable recycled-aluminum water bottles made in America. Founded in 2010, Liberty believes that environmentally sustainable manufacturing can take place in the United States. To date, it has…
The Mystery of the Proposed $325 Million Silicon Smelter
What is happening with HiTest Sand's "project of statewide significance" in northeast Washington?
ARRAY OF SUNSHINE: Silicon metal can be refined into the raw materials used in photovoltaic cells. This article appears in print in the January 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. Ever since word of the project was floated publicly in August 2016, people in the northeast corner of Washington have been asking questions…
Made in Washington: Triple Shot
A photo gallery by Navid Baraty at Seattle Espresso Machine Corporation.
Seattle revolutionized the coffee business, so it makes sense that some of the sleekest espresso machines on the planet are hand built by the Seattle Espresso Machine Corporation. Its Slayer machines claim only about 1 percent of the commercial market, but any coffee aficionado with a taste for artful design knows the graceful arc of…
The Spin Zone: Bertha Maker Hitachi Zosen Bites Back
The embattled maker of Seattle's much-maligned tunnel machine opens up as litigators prepare for battle.
Last April, as Seattles tunnel-boring machine, Bertha, closed in on completing its long-delayed task, Hitachi Zosen, the Japanese maker of the machine, was surprised to learn its executives werent invited to the ceremony celebrating the moment when Bertha would break through the wall at the end of its arduous 2-mile journey. When the Washington State…
Made in Washington #8: Cascade Designs
Campy Art: A photo gallery by Navid Baraty.
A tour through the assembly areas at Therm-a-Rest and MSR (Mountain Safety Research) in Seattles SoDo neighborhood produces a pleasing array of colors, shapes and textures. In the first photograph, rolled-up Therm-a-Rest NeoAir Camper SV mattresses await their final perimeter bonds. In the second photo, mattress fabric is cut to order and stacked before being…
Industry Space Seattle Gives Small Manufacturers Room to Grow
Incubator space offers economies of scale in South Park.
One of the greatest barriers to growth for a manufacturing startup is finding affordable room to expand. In Seattle especially, where rent for industrial space is skyrocketing, companies are being pushed to Kent and Renton, and the city risks losing the blue-collar jobs so crucial to shoring up its shrinking middle class. Johnny Bianchi, a…
Made in Washington #5: Pocock Racing Shells
Shell Company: A photo gallery by Hayley Young.
Eric Carpenter of Pocock Racing Shells in Everett does a post-finishing tour around a four-person, coxless shell destined for the women’s crew at Duke University. Described as one of Pocock’s “less flashy” boats, this model is made of carbon fiber, fiberglass and syntactic resin and will likely be used for training. It sells for $21,000….