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PROGRESS 2011

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2 � PROGRESS 2011 THE DAILY GLOBE

620 EASY STREET, IRONWOOD, MI

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THE DAILY GLOBE PROGRESS 2011 � 3

Industrial park looks to growBy JON [email protected]

IRONWOOD — With plentyof room for growth, the Iron-wood Industrial DevelopmentCorporation continues work torecruit companies and improvebusiness in the IronwoodIndustrial Park.

According to the board’s sec-retary, and former IronwoodCity Manager Keith Johnson,the IIDC is separate from thecity of Ironwood’s governmentbut works closely with it tooversee and improve the park,which is home to 15 businesses.

The IIDC’s big push in thecoming months will be to fillthe industrial park’s specula-tion building with a new busi-ness, Johnson said.

According to a city of Iron-wood pamphlet on the building,it is a 12,800-square-foot facili-ty with an elevated loadingdock in the eastern section ofthe park. Johnson said thebuilding is mostly complete,and if a business decides to buyor lease it, the IIDC would helpfinish the building to suit thebusiness’ needs.

Aside from attracting newbusiness, the IIDC is also work-ing with the city to explore cre-ation of a wood biomass energyfacility. Its intent is that thefacility could use the GogebicRange’s abundance of timberfor cheap, energy-efficient heat-ing for not only the park, butthe surrounding region.

Their pursuit of the facility,still in very early stages, fol-lows a presentation from Michi-gan State University foresterBill Cook last month at GogebicCommunity College, in whichhe offered examples of biomassinitiatives undertaken by com-munities similar to Ironwood.

According to Ironwood CityManager Scott Erickson, theIIDC and the city’s next step isto hire a firm for a prefeasibili-ty study to assess the facility’spotential costs and savings.During his presentation lastmonth, Cook said the city couldapply for state grant money forthe study. He also said that thestart-up costs of a biomassfacility are paid back overmany years through energysavings.

Another goal the IIDC maypursue is filling vacancies;Johnson said the board has 13members currently, with a max-imum of 17.

The IIDC’s members includeErickson and Ironwood Com-munity Development DirectorMerritt Bussiere; their posi-tions have long represented the

city on theboard. Otherm e m b e r sinclude MikeBeBeau, NeilB e c k m a n ,C h a r m a n eC h i a n t e l l o ,IIDC presi-dent JohnGarske, SueMurphy, JoeKarius, ScottS t e p h e n s ,

Joyce Nelmark, Jerry Pisaniand Tony Pollack.

Johnson said the boardwould consider anyone with astrong business background,including owners of currentindustrial park businesses.

SELLING POINTSIn drawing businesses to the

park, the IIDC and the cityhave at least two basic sellingpoints: lots of space, and a heftytax exemption.

According to Ironwood CityAssessor Dennis Hewitt, thepark, established in the 1970s,added acreage about a decadeago, roughly doubling in size.More than a dozen of the newlots are empty.

With space not an issue,Hewitt said the main draw ofthe park is that beginningindustries can apply throughthe city of Ironwood for anindustrial facility tax exemp-

tion, which allows the businessto pay about half its actualmillage for the first 12 years ofits operation. Hewitt said thiscan save a business severalthousand dollars a year.

Once a business formally

applies to the city for theexemption, the city commissionmust pass a resolution of sup-port, which must follow a publichearing. If the resolution pass-es, the exemption request goesto the Michigan Department of

Treasury’s State Tax Commis-sion for review. Hewitt said thereview takes a few months.

With these advantages intow, the IIDC and the city hopeto turn economic developmentinto a walk in the park.

Jon Hawley/Daily Globe

The Ironwood Industrial Park is home to many businesses.

IRONWOOD

ATLANTIC MINE

We believein the

IronwoodCommunity

Pisani Company, Inc.Enters 3rd Generation Ownership

Pisani Company was founded by Mary and Marino Pisani in1942 as a wholesale distributor of beer, wine and soft drinks.Currently the company services a five county area of theWestern Upper Peninsula.In 1993, Bob, Jerry and Greg became the sole owners of thecompany their parents had founded, making way for the secondgeneration of the Pisani family to carry on the company name.The year 2006 was a milestone for the company when Bob andhis son Dale purchased the company from Bob’s brothers,Jerry and Greg. Becoming the sole owners of the company, thismade way for Dale, the third generation, to proudly carry on thefamily business.Originally located in downtown Ironwood, in 1984 Pisani Company relocated to their present location in the IronwoodIndustrial Park. In 1988, a satellite warehouse was opened inthe industrial park in Atlantic Mine, MI. In 2008, renovationbegan at the existing facility in Atlantic Mine which doubled thecapacity of the building.In 2009 the office expansion was completed. We are entering2010 with a positive attitude.Pisani Company is proud to be a part of the Ironwood IndustrialPark. It will continue to be active in the community, with supportfor local youth and adult sports and area recreational events.

Keith Johnson


Stairway tothe future

By JON [email protected]

IRONWOOD — According toJulann Cramblit, Cramblit’sWelding tackles “everythingmetal” and does projects bigand small.

The projects these days,though, are mostly big.

Cramblit said the family-owned business in Ironwood’sindustrial park has been tack-ling large projects throughoutthe Midwest for several yearsand the business continues togrow across the U.S. One of thelatest examples, she said,includes a three-story spiralstaircase being installed in amulti-million-dollar residencein Illinois.

Cramblit said her husband,Kieth, her son, Ron Tankka,and employee Don Aspinwallhave faced constant overtimeand frequent travel duringthese projects, which can takeweeks to complete. Cramblitsaid the staircase took about amonth for them to assemble.

“Everyone’s working longhours and carrying huge workloads,” Cramblit said.

Cramblit also described thewinter months as a normallyslow time of year for the busi-ness.

Coming up, Cramblit saidthe company will likely geteven busier as the constructionseason begins, adding the com-pany has several project bidsunder consideration, and sheexpects to get at least some ofthem.

To lighten the load, she saidthe company often hires sea-sonal employees, but may lookat more permanent hirings andeven expanding the shop in thefuture.

Cramblit credits hard work,reading the market, and cus-tomer satisfaction as responsi-ble for the company’s continu-ing growth.

“We get a lot of word-of-mouth from contractors,”Cramblit said, adding that overthe years, the company’s workhas gone across the nation,from New York to California.

In business for about 25years, Cramblit said her com-

pany first started out of Kieth’sgarage, before moving to theIronwood Industrial Parkabout 14 years ago, and that“he’s always been a welder.”

Over the years, the weldingcompany has gradually fusedon more and more products andservices, moving up from smallrepairs and fabrications tostructural work. The businessalso sells metal and weldingequipment and provides moreartistic work, often designed byCramblit herself.

“Everyone gets a one-of-a-kind piece,” she said, addingshe focuses on Northwoods-style art, but works with thecustomer to fit their needs.

Turning a paper sketch intoa metal masterpiece requiresthe assistance of her son, whotakes computer scans of thedrawing before using a comput-er-assisted plasma cutter,which can do precise cuts ofvarying texture.

Like her husband, she saidher son was a self-taught man,adding Tankka learned com-puter-aided-design on his own.

As big work rolls in, Cram-blit said the company continuesto offer metal fabrication andrepair. Locally, the companycommonly repairs frames andaxles on all-terrain vehiclesand snowmobiles, along withwork on metal boats, semisand trailers.

Looking back on the compa-ny’s evolution, Cramblit said,“at the beginning, if I had seenwhat we’re going to do, I’d havebeen surprised at first ... butit’s a little by little process.”

Submitted photo

One of the latest examples of Cramblit Welding’s engineering and innovative use of design on a largescale includes a three-story spiral staircase being installed in a multi-million-dollar residence in Illinois.

Cramblit’s Welding servescustomers’ projects large, small

“At the beginning, ifI had seen what we’regoing to do, I’d havebeen surprised at first... but it’s a little by lit-tle process.”

—Kieth Crambliton the evolution of

Cramblit’s Welding


By RALPH [email protected]

IRONWOOD — At a timewhen many businesses aredownsizing or closing theirdoors, Burton Industries in theIronwood Industrial Park islooking to expand.

Christine Brees, humanresources manager, said thecompany looks to expand itsworkforce by 25 percent, if itreceives more work orders inthe electronics assembly field.

She said the company is alsoconsidering adding a designteam.

Burton employs 42 people.The number of workers hasheld relatively steady in thepast several years.

“We have good people here.They have a positive attitudeand that will help our companygrow,” said Brees, who lives inOntonagon and has worked atBurton for about a year.

Gary Burnett, general man-ager, said the employees areactive in the community. Henoted they contributed $2,800to three area food pantries dur-ing the holiday season, with thecompany matching $2,000.

“We’d like to challenge othercompanies in the industrialpark to do the same in a sort offriendly competition. We’reproud that our employees haveexceeded their contributiongoals,” Burnett said.

Burton employees MaryKorpela and Ramona Thelendid the legwork for the fooddrive, collecting monetarydonations, and counting andsorting food donations.

“These individuals becomean asset to our community astheir children enter the schoolsystems and they become activemembers in area organiza-tions,” Burnett said.

Brees said Burton employeesrealize there has been a hugeneed in the past few years forthe goods and food the pantriesprovide.

The company recognizes con-tributions from its employeesand employment serviceanniversaries in a newsletterthat is published every othermonth. Burton’s customers alsoreceive the newsletter.

Ongoing training is a bigpart of Burton’s effort to stay

ahead of the game. Brees saidmany employees enjoy theopportunity to challenge them-selves with added talents. “We’dlike to position ourselves to getmore business,” she said.

While most of the employeesare from the Ironwood area,some are from other Midwest-ern states. “Many people enjoythe kind of peaceful lifestyle wehave here,” Brees said, includ-ing herself.

Employee Will Hatcher is

originally from Ohio. He previ-ously worked in Clam Lake,Wis., before taking a job at Bur-ton Industries. “I love the area,”he said.

The well-lighted plant dou-bled in size when Burton con-structed a 10,000-square-footaddition to the facility at 1260Wall St. a few years ago.There’s plenty of office spaceand the working area is expan-sive.

Burton Industries also

employs five people at a facilityin Hazelhurst, Wis., in a small-er building.

Burton has been buildingelectronic assemblies since1978.

The electronic assembliesproduced by the company go toprivate firms, the military andthe medical products field.

Brees pointed to a wallwhere a trail camera is in a dis-play case. The parts are orderedfor the cameras by Burton andthey are assembled at Ironwoodfor the reputable trail cameracompany.

Another example of compo-nents assembled at Burton isthe electronics for hospitalbeds. “If the company thatmakes the beds finds a way tomake them more efficient, theyshare that with us,” Brees said.

The quality control team atBurton makes sure the manu-factured goods pass tests beforeleaving the building and thecompany is proud of its highperformance rate.

Brees said if the companyreceives a huge order, it hirestemporary employees on ashort-term basis.

She said it’s necessary toproduce a good, efficient prod-uct because there is intensecompetition from overseascountries.

The company also stresses asafe working environment anda schedule of meetings on plantsafety is followed.

“We have a good safetyrecord and want to keep it thatway,” Brees said.

In the past, the companyreceived an “EnvironmentalInnovation” award for being a“Business Friend of the Envi-ronment” for its commitment toimplementing lead-free solder-ing.


Burton Industries looks to expand

Ralph Ansami/Daily Globe

Mary Bast works on an electronics component at Burton Industries in the Ironwood Industrial Park.The yellow line at the left restricts visitors from getting too close to the sensitive machines.

By GARY BURNETTBurton Industries general manager

IRONWOOD — Burton Industries,Inc., expanded to the Ironwood Indus-trial Park in 1997. Since that time, thecompany has seen many changes andgrowth in services offered to ourincreased customer base.

We are currently very excited aboutthe addition of new services which mayresult in additional job opportunitiesin the community, as well as expansionof our facilities.

Growth in the industrial sector inour community promotes the addition

of valuable jobs at all skill levels. Webelieve that a satisfying career willkeep great individuals in our commu-nity and give our young people theopportunity to build the peaceful, suc-cessful lifestyle they desire.

In addition to providing valuablejobs to those originating in our com-munity, the company also attracts indi-viduals into the area who share ourvalues and enjoyment of a smaller pop-ulation. These individuals become anasset to our community as their chil-dren enter the school systems and theybecome active members in area organ-

izations.Burton continually strives to be an

integral partner within communityorganizations, businesses and, mostimportantly, its people.

Our team is comprised of quality-minded, flexible and focused individu-als who take pride in their work. Spe-cialized training is provided and helpsto promote their success and provideopportunities for career advancement.We continually look within our ownskilled, professional workforce whenfilling new positions and developingnew services to meet the growing

needs of our customers. It is our ambi-tion to develop positive career pathsfor those in the community who chooseto join Burton.

We are a family-oriented company.We focus on providing benefits for ouremployees that not only improve theirwell-being, but that of their familymembers as well.

Burton has implemented new pro-grams geared toward employee well-ness, safety, recognition and profes-sional growth.

(See BURTON — Page 10)

Company focused on quality, service, community


Clear sailing for Stormy KromerBy DIANE [email protected]

IRONWOOD — The Stormy Kromerweathers the changing seasons thisyear, with the debut of the SunnyKromer.

Jacquart Fabric Products Inc. willunveil a summer version of its iconic capwith the drop-down earband.

Gina Jacquart Thorsen, part of thecompany’s next generation manage-ment, modeled the summer Kromer atcompany headquarters last week duringthe brief February thaw.

The cap’s extended brim covers theneck of kayaker, fisherman or beach-comber. The breathable nylon fabric hasUPF 50 sun protection built in.

Thorsen runs the Stormy Kromerdivision of Jacquart. Her sister, KariJacquart, is in charge of the pet prod-ucts division, the biggest part of thecompany. Their father, Bob Jacquart,focuses on finding new contract sewingwork.

The sisters are the third generationof Jacquarts involved in the family busi-ness, which actually goes back one gen-eration earlier to a neighborhood gro-cery store run by their great-grandfa-ther.

Thorsen joined the company twoyears ago, returning to the area after 11years in Dallas. She worked for a non-profit arts education group in Texas.

Thorsen said her father had askedher six or seven years ago if she’d evercome back and work for Jacquart. Shesaid no.

Priorities and situations change, andThorsen and her husband, who’s fromthe Milwaukee area, now live on Mercer(Wis.) Lake. She said they wanted to becloser to family.

“It was more of a culture shock mov-ing to Dallas than coming back,” shesaid.

APPAREL, OTHER SEWINGThorsen recently returned from trade

shows in Salt Lake City and Chicagowhere she was marketing new apparelin the Stormy Kromer line.

The goal is to “make Stormy Kromermore than just a hat company,” she said.

Among the new garments is awoman’s coat in a plaid wool commis-sioned by the company. All of the StormyKromer products are sewed at the Iron-wood site, and the plaid coats are a trib-ute to the skills of the sewers.

The plaid matches at every seam —long vertical seams, collars, pockets andflaps and unusual shoulder treatments.The plaid itself is an eye-catchingbronze on rosy beige, with lesser lines ofpink and red woven in.

Unusual buttons and attention todetail are another hallmark of the

Kromer garments, which include blackwool bomber style jackets for men.These coats are as well-suited to a the-ater outing in Chicago as a fish fry inIronwood.

Thorsen described the Kromer cus-tomer as someone who works in Chicagoor Minneapolis, waiting all weekend tocome Up North to the cabin.

“Wearing Stormy Kromer stuff in thecity gets them a little closer,” she said.

The more modern additions to theStormy Kromer line are the designs of aBoulder Junction, Wis., resident whopreviously worked as an in-housedesigner for Harley-Davidson.

Thorsen said the company hadplanned a national search for a design-er. After working with someone nearby,she said she couldn’t imagine “how to

work with someone who wasn’t physi-cally here.”

Jacquart made 75,000 StormyKromer caps in 2010.

They are sold by 500 dealers acrossthe country. Cabela’s is the biggest. Out-door icons L.L. Bean, whose flagshipshop is in Maine, and Orvis, based inVermont, also sell the hats.

So do smaller retailers like Abel-man’s in Bessemer.

The high end men’s shoe store, AllenEdmonds, based in Port Washington,Wis., put Stormy Kromers in 20 stores.

“Our hats sold great in their stores,”Thorsen said.

CONTRACT SEWINGSewing contracts remain the founda-

tion of the company.

Among the products Jacquart sewsare mesh bag for IV products. Orderscome for 50,000 to 100,000 at a time,Thorsen said.

One new product is a case for a mili-tary antenna.

“They found us,” Thorsen said.The person ordering the antenna

cases had purchased a fishing rod fromSt. Croix in Park Falls, Wis. He noticedthat the case for the rod fit the antennaand asked St. Croix about it.

Jacquart makes the fishing rod casefor St. Croix,and now sewsthe antennacase.

A n o t h e rpotential prod-uct is a “dockblanket,” a bigcurtain to helpprevent heatloss on receivingdocks.

“My Dad’s gota bunch of ironsin the fire,”Thorsen said.

On a smaller,local scale, thecompany ismaking newseat cushions and backs for 75 chairs atAspirus Grand View Hospital.

Thorsen said High Line Corp.employees in Hurley refinished thewood on the chairs.

She said she expects Jacquart willhire more sewers in the year ahead,training people who don’t know how tosew on some of the simpler dog beds.

Jacquart has 160 full-time employ-ees.

Thorsen said the business is some-what seasonal, with Stormy Kromercaps selling big in December, along withpet products.

“It’s not like dogs know it’s Christ-mas,” Thorsen said, but the dog ownerswant presents for their pets.

Some Jacquart products net priderather than cash.

An enlarged photo on a hallway wallat the plant shows 2009 speed-skatingtrials for the most recent winterOlympics.

The ice rink at Northern MichiganUniversity in Marquette did not haveregulation pads around the inner walls,Thorsen said.

Jacquart made the pads that line therink and donated them to the university.Thorsen said the pads passed rigorousstress testing in the university lab tomeasure their quality.

A photo of a smiling Bob Jacquartwith champion skater Apolo AntonOhno hangs on the same wall.

Jacquart FabricProducts Inc.,1238 Wall St.,

Ironwood, sells itsStormy Kromerapparel, including theiconic cap, in theretail shop at its plantin the IronwoodIndustrial Park. Dogbeds, cat scratchingposts, athletic bagsand other items areavailable, and theshop has books offabric samples forcustom upholsteryand sewing jobs.

Diane Montz/Daily Globe

Gina Jacquart Thorsen holds the new Sunny Kromer, a summer adaptation of theclassic Stormy Kromer cap made by Jacquart Fabric Products Inc. of Ironwood. Thesummer Kromer debuts this year; it is made of a breathable nylon fabric that has UPR50 sun protection built in. It comes in this color and a darker khaki.

Jacquart Fabric Products continues to grow

By MARGARET [email protected]

IRONWOOD — Ownershipof Ironwood Plastics changedon Dec. 22, 2010, marking aturning point in the history ofthe company.

Started by the Stephensfamily in Ironwood’s industrialpark in 1979 on a handshakewith city fathers, IronwoodPlastics has grown to employ150 people, with more than 100at the Ironwood location, saidco-president Scott Stephens.

The company specializes inclose-tolerance plastic moldingand reel-to-reel molding of pre-cision parts for the automotive,electronic and medical mar-kets.

WHY SELL? The Stephens brothers said

they knew they needed to startmaking long-term plans fortheir family-owned injectionmolding business and duringthe summer of 2010, anotherentrepreneur was approachedfor advice.

The idea, Stephens said, wasto set up Ironwood for potentialacquisition in about threeyears.

But the more that Stephensand Victor Mancinelli, Presi-dent and CEO of agricultureindustry supplier CTB Inc. ofMilford, Ind., talked, the morea new plan began to takeshape, leading to Ironwood’sacquisition in December byCTB, a wholly owned sub-sidiary of Warren Buffett’sBerkshire Hathaway Inc.,Stephens said.

The deal, for an undisclosedprice, sets up Ironwood forlong-term stability for bothemployees and customers, pro-vides an avenue for interna-tional growth for Ironwood’sexisting customer base and alsoopens a new line of businesspossibilities within Ironwoodand CTB, Stephens said.

“At first glance, you wouldn’tthink there is much commonground with Ironwood andCTB,” Stephens said. “But theywere looking for somethingthat could help them in theplastics arena, but what theyreally wanted was someonethat could bring expertise innew product development andinjection molding.”

CTB, as Stephens noted,would seem to operate in acompletely different business

climate. The company openedin 1952 and makes farm auxil-iary parts, including grain ele-vators, feeding systems, live-stock barn exhaust fans and avariety of other equipment. Italso does more than 90 percentof its business in global mar-kets, with production in NorthAmerica and Europe and arecent expansion intoMalaysia.

CTB also has 15 injectionmolding presses within itspoultry feeding and egg pack-aging division, as well as usingplastics in various electronicparts, Stephens said.

Mark Stephens will nowoversee the new EngineeredComponents Group withinCTB, which will involve bothIronwood and CTB’s existingValue-Added Processing unit.

Scott Stephens will departthe firm to focus on his Ger-man-touring business, Bayern-Trips, LLC.

Robert Stephens hadalready stepped down from thebusiness in 2010 to run analpaca farm in Manitowoc, Wis.

THE FUTURE: GROWTHThe Stephens believe CTB,

Inc. is an ideal owner — onethat invests for the long termand keeps management inplace to run the business, ScottStephens said.

“In this case, we have a par-ent that was happy with us,” hesaid. “They bought all of ourbuildings, as well as the assets.The fact that Berkshire Hath-away is all about buying andholding, and letting you runyour company was ideal.”

“First and foremost,” saidMark Stephens, “our mission isto continue serving and grow-ing with our existing customerbase. We will, however, inte-grate into the CTB family ofcompanies and expect manynew agricultural products.

“Finding technical talent tosupport our expected growthwill be the biggest challenge,”he said. To feed its growth,Ironwood Plastics needsmachinists, mold makers andall varieties of engineers.

Change creates uncertaintyand anxiety, but the Stephensbrothers firmly believe that thenew future of Ironwood bene-fits all: CTB, the employees andthe communities of Ironwoodand Two Rivers.


New owners, same mission of service, growth

Submitted photo

Dave Rundell, EDM operator at Ironwood Plastics, runs an EDM Electro Discharge machine used forbuilding injection molds.

Submitted photo

Mike Johnson, material handler at Ironwood Plastics, operates an automated material handling sys-tem. As operator, Johnson controls all plastic resin being used on the injection molding machines.

Ironwood Plastics, started in1979, begins new chapter

By DAVID [email protected]

IRONWOOD — The next time you purchase make-up or pay a hospital bill, you might be helping out thelocal economy through products made by PrecisionTool and Mold in Ironwood.

The company, in the industrial park, manufacturesand produces 100 percent plastic injection molds forjust about anything, such as automotive parts, medicalparts and consumer products.

The molds are shipped to the buyer to be injectedwith plastic for items like the top of a Lysol spray canor the plastic molding around a handgun.

The company was established in 2005 after acquir-ing Everson Tool and many of the 13 employees haveworked for the company for many years.

According to Jack Lillar, engineering manager, mostof the employees are products of local schools and tendto stay with the company long-term.

Over the last year, production has been up anddown, in the same pattern as the economy.

Mark Maccani, production manager, said that thelast six months have shown an increase in orders andcould be a sign in an upturn of the economy.

“We were careful on expansion plans and thatallowed us to weather some downturns, where some ofthe other larger companies that really expanded beforethen felt it a lot harder than we did,” Maccani said.

“Our order book now is extremely strong,” he said.“We had a good end of last year and coming into thisyear is looking real good.”

The two biggest sectors of growth have been in theconsumer and medical markets. While the automotivemarket was hit the hardest, even it has begun to pickup steam.

The outlook is good enough that the company willbe hiring a variety of staffing positions over the nextfew weeks.

The personnel at Precision Tool and Molding are

impressive.When an order is received, an engineer will design

the mold needed to create the plastic part.Operators at each tooling machine are instructed to

program each machine in order to reduce potentialmiscommunication.

The machines and operators are precise to the thou-sandth of an inch, enough to split a hair eight times.


CRAMBLIT’S WELDING, LLC

SERVING THE AREA FOR 25 YEARS

Metal Fabrication & RepairStructural Fabrication

New SteelWelding Supplies

Trailer Hitches & PartsMetal Art

In the Industrial Park • Ironwood, Michigan

906-932-3773www.fineartmetalwork.com

Precision Tool products widespread

PrecisionTool andMold Pro-ductionManagerMark Mac-cani holdsup a moldthat saysChevy onThursdayafternoon inthe compa-ny’s factoryin the Iron-wood indus-trial park.The moldwas cut by asuperstrongwire andwas sent tobe plasticinjected.

David Sim/Daily Globe

www.aspirusgrandview.org

■ Manufacturing orders have

increased over past six months

By DAVID [email protected]

Pisani Distributing has builton years of family ownershipand quality service to grow intothe biggest distributor in theWestern Upper Peninsula.

Founded in 1942 by Marinoand Mary Pisani, it is nowowned by their three sons, Bob,Jerry and Greg.

The wholesale company hasgrown by leaps and boundssince then, being flexible to theneeds and demands of con-sumers.

The Ironwood warehousecurrently stands at 20,000square feet and the companyhas 18 full-time employees.

Pisani Distributing servicesall of the restaurant, bars andgrocery stores in the WesternU.P.

They carry beers from brew-eries such as Anheiser Busch,Coors, Keewenaw BrewingCompany, Samuel Adams andSierra Nevada.

They carry Faygo pop and aselection of wines such as

Robert Mondavi.“We have semis coming in

and out of here every day,” saidGreg Pisani.

Pisani said that the palatesof many consumers are chang-ing, especially with microbrewbeers.

“There are a lot of new devel-opment in the mircos,” Pisanisaid. “Even the big breweriesare brewing specialty beers.”

He said a fad in the drinkmarket used to last for years,but things change so fast rightnow, a new taste might only begood for one.

“There’s always somethingnew coming,” he said.

Pisani Distributing contin-ues to be a major asset to thecommunity and not justbecause of beverages.

The company is a member ofevery area Chamber of Com-merce and donates to countlessarea causes.

The back of the offices andwalls are lined with trophiesand plaques of teams and serv-ices the company was worked

with.“We try to get involved with

whatever we can,” said Pisani.The business continues to

branch out and remain familyowned.

Greg operates Range Bever-age in Hurley and Bob runsIronwood. Jerry, technicallyretired, still works part timehours when needed.

In 1988, a warehouse wasconstructed in Atlantic Mine.That is managed by Dale, Bob’sson.

Starting out at just as just

1,900 square feet, the AtlanticMine warehouse has expandedto 13,000 square feet.

“The Houghton warehouse isreally increasing,” Pisani said.

He said the Ironwood ware-house might see an increase ofits own, especially if the minesin the area come through.

Until then, they’ll continueto stay on top of the trends andprovide a quality, personalexperience.

“We’re always looking fornew products and the latesttrends,” he said.


DEAN & POPE, P.C.Attorneys at Law

Woodlands Professional Building204 North Harrison Street

Ironwood, Michigan 49938-1798

Telephone (906) 932-4010Fax (906) 932-1508

[email protected]

TIMOTHY M. DEAN MICHAEL K. POPELicensed in Michigan and Wisconsin

David Sim/Daily Globe

A Budweiser truck is loaded at Pisani Distributing in the Ironwood Industrial Park on Feb. 8. The Ironwood warehouse is currently 20,000square feet.

Pisani Distributing serves Western U.P.

We support youth organiza-tions such as sports teams andsocial clubs, learning programsthrough our local schools andmany more. We also coordinatewith schools in theircareer/technical education pro-grams, job contracting andmore. As a company, we part-ner with organizations thatpromote the successes of ouryouth by giving them a founda-tion of strong values and edu-cation.

Burton’s philosophy holdsthat providing training oppor-tunities for our people helpsthem to develop additionalskills that benefit the commu-nity by making them bettervolunteers, leaders and com-municators within the organi-zations they serve.

We encourage individuals toserve their community on localboards of government andorganizations such as St. Vin-cent De Paul Society, volunteerfire departments, the Gogebic-Ontonagon IntermediateSchool District, the EDC andmore. We support this by pro-viding the flexibility to partici-pate in such activities as serv-ing as elected officials, coachesand mentors and other leader-ship roles in the community.

We strive to be a partnerwith our community and fellowcitizens and are very proud ofour employees for their serviceto the community.

The commitment of every-one here at Burton Industriesis what drives the success ofthe company. Every member ofour team is an integral part ofthe framework that allows usto provide the highest level ofquality, customer-focused serv-ice and helps us to innovate inunique ways to continuallyimprove that service. This dis-tinct environment is whatkeeps us competitive in themarket and able to not onlysuccessfully weather tougheconomic times, but alsoinspires us to explore newendeavors which create newopportunities for prosperity.

Our company growth helpsto nurture growth for others, aswell. By doing business withlocal vendors where possible,we promote an environment formutual success.

In this challenging economicenvironment, our commitmentto our neighbors and fellowbusinesses will help promoteprogress and vitality in thecommunity. This is good for thepeople in Ironwood and sur-rounding areas now and for thefuture.

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BURTON


1260 Wall Street • Ironwood, MI • www.burtonindustries.com

Proud of Our Employees:Employees of Burton Industries are compassionate andcommited to helping others in the community. Their Food Drivesover the past two years have raised and donated over $4,000 to the St. Vincent De Paul food pantry in Ironwood and the Iron County food pantry in Montreal. Way to go team!

Committed to Our Community:Burton Industries is focused on growing our services andcustomer base, meaning additional jobs in our community. We support local organizations serving those living and workingin our area. We provide our employees the flexibility to participate in activities that better our community.

A Place to Start or Expand Your Career:Burton Industries seeks individuals with a strong technicalbackground and anticipates adding positions throughout theyear. See our website for more detailed information on the services offered and current career opportunities. We strive tooffer our employees valuable benefits and promote employeewellness and a cohesive team environment.

Innovative Technology:Burton Industries provides customized manufacturing solutionsto a number of OEMs including those in the medical, industrial,and specialized consumer markets. We specialize in high mix,variable demand projects and can support the full product lifecy-cle from development through end market support services.

• ISO 9001-2000 Certified• Committed to Continuous Improvement

Years of experience, innovative training and technology and an expert workforce, keeps Burton Industries a leader in ElectronicManufacturing Services worldwide.


Our organization has established an outstanding reputation for quality, products & services.

Credit for this goes to every one of our employees.

Diversified Markets: Ironwood Plastics has secured new customers innew markets such as electrical meters, military,medical and electrically powered automobiles.

Optimized Methods: Old machines were sold, new machines purchased,and some refurbished. Improvements to our new project launch process.

Improved Work Environment: Better organization, cleaner work spaces, andimproved new project launches.

Ironwood Plastics enters the new decade fiscally sound.As our business grows, hiring in a variety of technical jobs will continue.

Visit us on-line: www.ironwood.com

Well-positioned forthe New Decade

A Subsidiary of CTB, Inc. / A Berkshire Hathaway Company

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