Tower Tech plans to hire 60 workers

Manitowoc County manufacturer lands 2 major contracts

By: Charlie Mathews, Herald Times Reporter

MANITOWOC — Paul Smith is excited to hang a "Jobs Open" sign at Tower Tech's manufacturing plant on the Manitowoc River peninsula.

With two major new contracts, the wind tower company's chief operating officer said about 60 people will be hired in the next month, increasing the work force to more than 200.

"It feels pretty good to bring some individuals back from layoff, as well as hire new to do welding, painting, blasting and assembling," said Smith.

The recession hit the wind industry hard, but contracts awarded in late June and this week to supply 265-foot, 200-ton towers for Danish-based Vestas and Spanish firm Gamesa Technology Corp. will keep the Manitowoc plant operating at full capacity for the next year.

"Our people have a work ethic combined with basic fabrication and welding knowledge that enable us to build some of the heaviest towers in the industry better than anybody," Smith said.

It also helps that Milwaukee-based We Energies was looking for Wisconsin suppliers for its $367 million Glacier Hills Wind Park to be erected in 2011 in Columbia County. Tower Tech will build 90 towers for the project.

Smith said transportation costs are a major piece of any bid Tower Tech makes as a "Tier 1" supplier to a wind turbine company.

Wind energy industry hit hard

The wind energy industry was hit hard by the recession, with some projects delayed or not funded.

"It has been a tough market," said Smith, a Canadian who joined Tower Tech and its parent company, Broadwind Energy, a couple of years ago.

"We did a lot of traveling to Europe and North America, visiting with our customers, helping them secure orders," Smith said.

"It is important for us to work with our customers to make sure their needs are met, so, in turn, we get work," Smith said.

"Tower Tech specializes in the production of heavier and more complex wind towers, with which turbine manufacturers like Gamesa seek to expand the geographic footprint of wind power," said Jess Collins, Broadwind group president.

Celebrate safety, quality

Smith said Tower Tech has a profit-sharing plan with its employees based on safety, quality, productivity and profitability factors.

He said it takes "an entire team" to achieve and be able to celebrate a safety rating based on one "recordable incident" in 2010 and the plant going more than two years without a lost-time incident.

Smith said Tower Tech has been conducting job fairs and is able to attract skilled, experienced workers.

"These are real manufacturing jobs … in a young, viable industry," Smith said. "Welding is our bread and butter, so we look for the best."

Welding has been the key skill in the 190,000-square-foot plant for more than a century.

Manitowoc Shipbuilding, which eventually became today's The Manitowoc Company, built its first steel-hulled vessel in 1905.

During World War II, the company manufactured 28 submarines for the U.S. Navy in the same location Tower Tech occupies.

A photograph of the 1943 side launch into the Manitowoc River of the USS Peto is part of Smith's PowerPoint presentation he does for prospective customers showing the history and tradition of Lakeshore-area metalworkers.

Steel plate, ranging in thickness from about 1¼ to 3 inches, is trucked to Manitowoc for bending and welding.

The first tower built by Tower Tech was erected in March 2005 in Wyoming.

Each complete tower consists of 25 to 30 "cans" welded together for its four or five sections, depending on configuration.

Smith said management strives to create a first person plural "we" atmosphere at Tower Tech.

"We do a pretty good job at communicating, (try) to make them feel they are part of the business decisions.

"We end our employee meetings saying, 'You on the shop floor will affect our business, so thanks for making the right decisions,'" Smith said. "We know the people in Manitowoc take a lot of pride in what they do."

Online: www.broadwindenergy.com

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