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Cadillac Fabrication employee Mike Stone peels tape away from a freshly-painted clocktower face that will be installed at the White Pine Trail Trailhead.
Cadillac Fabrication employee Dean Martinez oversees a machine modifying a piece of metal in the plate processing department.
Cadillac Fabrication employee Holden Moore uses a grinder to smooth out metal on a segment of yacht trailer.
Chris Dragun welds together some components of a project being built by Cadillac Fabrication.
Chris Dragun welds together some components of a project being built by Cadillac Fabrication.
Cadillac Fabrication employee Cody Bill installs a shock on a segment of trailer designed to haul a 60-foot yacht.
Cadillac Fabrication employee Mike Stone peels tape away from a freshly-painted clocktower face that will be installed at the White Pine Trail Trailhead.
Cadillac Fabrication employee Dean Martinez oversees a machine modifying a piece of metal in the plate processing department.
Cadillac Fabrication employee Holden Moore uses a grinder to smooth out metal on a segment of yacht trailer.
Chris Dragun welds together some components of a project being built by Cadillac Fabrication.
Chris Dragun welds together some components of a project being built by Cadillac Fabrication.
Cadillac Fabrication employee Cody Bill installs a shock on a segment of trailer designed to haul a 60-foot yacht.
CADILLAC — Unlike some factories that manufacture the same handful of products over and over and over again, each item that comes out of Cadillac Fabrication could be completely different than the last.
Director of Operations Jack McLeod said that’s one of the big appeals of working at Cadillac Fabrication, which was founded in 1983 by Tom Bosscher as a welding shop working with steel, aluminum and stainless steel.
“Every day is a little different,” said McLeod, who described the facility as a “job shop.”
“Whatever comes in the door, we see if we can do it.”
What that means is Cadillac Fabrication accepts all kinds of work offers — from small repair jobs to massive fabricated projects. Examples of some of the larger projects Cadillac Fabrication has undertaken over the years include a 110-foot pedestrian bridge to New Mexico and a custom trailer for a boat manufacturer in Grand Haven to transport a 60-foot long, 60,000-pound yacht.
Cadillac Fabrication also has produced a few local landmarks, including the fireplace inside the Cadillac Plaza and the archway leading into the Cadillac City Park. The company also is currently working on features of the newest development of the Cadillac Commons — the White Pine Trail Trailhead. Perhaps the most recognizable of these features is the clocktower that used to be located at the intersection of Mitchell and Cass streets. Cadillac Fabrication has repainted the clock faces and is in the process of building a new structure to hold them that will be placed at the entrance of the trailhead.
McLeod said for many projects, the engineering department has to develop a novel prototype. As the structure is built, they make adjustments along the way to maximize its functionality.
There are 22 employees at the plant, most of them working as welders and fabricators. There also is one employee in the plate processing department. Their job is to shape and prepare sheets and plates of metal to be used for any number of purposes. Cadillac Fabrication also has a finishing department, which includes two paint booths.
McLeod said they expect the finishing department will get busier and busier in the coming years, as buying habits change in the U.S. Right now, they’re still getting a lot of orders for brand new products but the expectation is that will change over time as the economy slows down, compelling customers to refurbish existing merchandise by maybe throwing on a fresh layer of paint and replacing the electrical wiring.
“We’re trying to look forward with what’s going to happen in the industry,” McLeod said.
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