Dramm Corp. strives to produce attractive products to last for decades

By Charlie Mathews, Herald Times Reporter

Name of business: Dramm Corporation

Ownership: Kurt and Marlene Dramm and their children. Kurt serves as president with Marlene as vice president; Hans Dramm is treasurer and financiall officer, while Heidi Dramm Becker is corporate secretary, and her husband, Kurt Becker, runs the commercial and green house divisions.

Other company leaders: Jeff Bucher is general manager while Ron Greening is director of marketing and sales.

Origins of business: Dramm Corporation has been a leader in watering tools and accessories for more than 60 years.

Kurt's late father, John G. Dramm, owned and produced cut flowers in a florist shop in Manitowoc. In order to water greenhouse crops quickly, he developed a nozzle, the "400 Water Breaker," which applied large quantities of water but in a soft stream with no da to plants. The nozzle became the standard of commercial growers.

Kurt Dramm, 71, has been involved with the business since his father's passing when he was 12. John Dramm was survived by his wife, Perdita, as well as Kurt, and John Peter, who was 18 at the time.

John Peter Dramm worked out of his own basement before renting a small factory with the name Dramm Manufacturing Company, with the self-taught engineer designing many products.

Over the years, the company has developed from a basement operation to a 55,000-square-foot facility employing about 50 people.

Location: 2000 N. 18th St., Manitowoc

Phone number: (920) 684-0227

Web site: www.dramm .com

Services provided-products sold: Dramm provides quality, durable and professional watering tools, accessories and natural fertilizers to nurseries, greenhouses and avid gardeners nationwide.

Among its retail products are ColorStorm Premium Rubber Hose, watering cans, gardening scissors, water timers, turret and oscillating sprinklers, Touch N' Flow watering wands and Revolver spray guns with nine patterns — all of them in vibrant colors including red, orange, yellow, green, blue and berry.

They can be purchased by Lakeshore-area residents in stores such as Ace Hardware, Hartman's Towne & Country Greenhouse, Roorbach Flowers, Green Acres and Brandt's Family Tree. Shopko also carries many Dramm products.


Dramm's commercial division features a variety of irrigation systems, as well as items such as dribble tubes, rain command timers, hydraulic sprayers and chemical application equipment.

How has business changed: Bucher said Dramm has incorporated lean manufacturing principles to eliminate waste, though he said many of the production efficiency gains could fall under the general category of "common sense” changes.

"Every day, we have 40 people thinking about how to eliminate waste, including their time," Bucher said.

The paramount focus always is on quality that leads to products that will last a lifetime, Dramm officials said.

"We can say, 'We make the best rain water wands in the world,' and it goes back to our employees being so diligent," Greening said. "They won't let anything leave Dramm without it being perfect."

Many of the production processes have become semi-automated to reduce labor, in order to be as cost-effective as possible.

However, it is the hands-on expertise and experience of their veteran workers who still make the crucial difference in creating premium products, Bucher said. Cross training ensures staff flexibility on the production floor.

A major new product line developed in the past decade is development of Drammatic Fertilizers.

Dramm has a facility in Algoma that recycles fish scraps from sport and commercial fishing, converting them into an environmentally friendly fertilizer used for organic, sustainable or conventional crops.

Kurt Dramm said the fish fertilizer is sold not just in the U.S. but also overseas, including Israel. The recycled fish scraps have numerous benefits including healthier soil for plants, as well as dramatically reducing the scrap going through the Algoma Wastewater Treatment Facility.

How is marketing done: Various Dramm company officials attend more than 60 trade or distributor shows annually.

Andrew Dramm, another one of Kurt and Marlene's children, has played a key role in the development of the company's Web site from his offices in Minnesota.

Greening has developed numerous eye-catching sales displays. "Eighty percent of our customers are women and color makes it personal," he said. "We not only make the best stuff …but the best-looking stuff."

Keys to future success: "We need to keep providing our customers with something they can offer that is different from the chain stores … we need to keep coming up with products that are unique and different," Bucher said.

Dramm products, such as its rubber hoses, cost more than would be found at a discount retailer but quality and durability produce a value equation company officials said satisfies customers.

What is enjoyable? For Kurt Dramm, it is quite basic. "It is enjoyable for me to get a sale … and have the customer be satisfied and happy with our products."

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