Manufacturing Today - Summer 2010 - (Page 114)
Grimm Brothers Plastics
www.grimmbros.com / HQ: Wapello, Iowa / Employees: 86 Products: Plastic casings /Brent Dobbs, CEO: “Our people set us apart.”
Fairy Tale Story
grimm brothers spins plastic into gold by serving customers in the technology sector. by chris olvera
grimm brothers plastics specializes in making plastic coverings for appliances and other equipment.
The success of Iowa-based Grimm Brothers Plastics has nothing to do with glass slippers, long hair or a little man spinning straw into gold. According to CEO Brent Dobbs, the company’s success comes from its employees and its innovations. Grimm Brothers Plastics began when brothers Kent and Curt Grimm fabricated particleboard electronic cabinets, which were covered with Formica, at their parents’ farm. The demand for their cabinets grew to the point where the brothers could hardly keep up. However, in order to increase business and find the tools to make that possible, the Grimm brothers attended the 1985 National Plastic Expo in Chicago. As a result of the show, the Grimm brothers recommended their cabinet buyer replace its current cabinet with a plastic one. The client approved, and a Chicago pressure forming company was selected to mold the cabinets. Having an outside source build the cabinets allowed the Grimm brothers the opportunity to learn more about pressure forming. The first machine they purchased was a vacuum former, which the brothers retrofitted into a pressure former. Grimm Brothers Plastics has come a long way since its barnyard days. Now, the company operates out of a 100,000-square-foot building and provides pressure formed plastic products for the medical, fitness, industrial, recreation, appliance, food and beverage, RV and heavy equipment industries. Dobbs says the company ships its products to China, Brazil, Canada, Mexico and the
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Manufacturing Today - Summer 2010
Manufacturing Today - Summer 2010
Contents
Washington
Global Strategies
Continuous Improvement
Smart Pricing
Supply Chain
Business Value
Moving Forward
Westmark Products
Byrne Dairy
Ultrafryer Systems Inc.
Wil-Rich LLC & Wishek MFG LLC
American Precision Fabricators
Aqua Products Inc.
Bennington
Black Diamond Equipment
Columbian Home Products
Control Devices LLC
Endustra Filter Manufacturers Inc
Heil Trailer International
Assembled Products
Order-Matic Corp.
Professional Building Systems Inc.
Smart Start Inc
Bosal International
Ausco Products Inc.
Brodart Company
Cambrex Corp.
Chapin International Inc.
Cleveland Gear Co.
Consolidated Precision Products
Control Flow Inc.
Douglas Autotech Corp.
Fetzer Architectural Products
The FNA Group
Fourslide Spring and Stamping Inc.
G.A. West & Company
Great Lakes Power Group
Grimm Brothers Plastics
Legends Furniture Inc.
National Tube Supply Co.
Optex Systems Inc.
Sunburst Electronics
V.E. Enterprises Inc
W. Soule & Company
Manufacturing Tomorrow
Manufacturing Today - Summer 2010
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