Beloit’s biggest bet: STE celebrates new manufacturing facility

BELOIT, Wisconsin—The power of American ingenuity was on full display Sept. 23 at STE’s new tank trailer manufacturing facility in Southern Wisconsin—and some of the country’s most powerful people were paying attention.

STE’s official grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony featured prolific businesswoman Diane Hendricks, chairman of Hendricks Holding—STE’s parent company—her son, Brent Fox, Hendricks president and CEO; her daughter, Konya Hendricks Schuh, Diane’s co-star in new A&E show “Betting on Beloit;” U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, along with other national, state, and local dignitaries—and even President Trump.

“A very special congratulations to Diane Hendricks and the entire Hendricks Holding team on the grand opening of your new Stainless Tank and Equipment [STE] facility, which will employ 200 American workers in the great state of Wisconsin,” Trump said in a pre-recorded video message shown during a tour-concluding luncheon. “We won Wisconsin and Diane helped me a lot. She’s been my friend for a long time, from my first days in politics, actually. For over 50 years, your company has manufactured high-quality, stainless-steel tank trailers stamped with those beautiful words ‘Made in America.’ More people should do that and say that. Companies like theirs not only create American jobs, but restore American communities, build up our industrial base, and make our entire nation very proud.

“Congratulations on your grand opening, and to Diane, my special friend, God bless you, and God Bless America.”

The occasion drew more than 200 people, including suppliers, dealers, and fleet customers, to Beloit to celebrate the opening of STE’s highly automated 400,000-sq.-ft. plant purpose-built for tanker production. And with forecasted storms staying away, they gathered expectantly outside the modern building—with its sleek lines and pristine façade—to witness Diane, Fox, and Johnson snip the ceremonial red ribbon while flanked by a trio of tank trucks. Then they filed inside for an eight-stop tour of the greenfield factory, which was temporarily idled to safely showcase its technologically advanced systems and flag-filled national pride.

STE President Chris Sipe deemed the event one of the most important in STE’s 59-year history, second only to the Hendricks family’s 2006 purchase of the company to save 60 local jobs. “This facility offers several major benefits, the first being jobs. Over the next five years, we’ll add over 250 top wage-earning jobs,” Sipe predicted in his opening remarks. “The second is the advancement in the safety and quality of our products. We say internally we have an unmistakable commitment to precision. The state-of-the-art technology being deployed in this facility gives us the ability to build the safest, strongest, and highest-quality tank trailers available anywhere.

“This facility also represents the largest investment in the tank trailer manufacturing industry in history. I personally want to thank the Hendricks family for their investment and unwavering dedication to the tank trailer industry.”

See also: Made in America: STE evolves tanker manufacturing

The opening ceremony also included comments from Kari Swirth, Greater Beloit Chamber of Commerce executive director; Derek Nilsen, STE director of sales and marketing, who coordinated the massive event; and Ryan Streblow, president and CEO of National Tank Truck Carriers, who thanked STE and Hendricks Holding for its visible and valued commitment to a vital industry. “For the tank truck industry, this facility means progress,” Streblow declared. “Tank trailers are the backbone of how essential goods, chemicals, food products, and fuel are safely and reliably moved across our nation every day. With this advanced facility, STE is taking design, safety, and efficiency to a whole new level. The technologies integrated here are set to deliver higher-quality trailers with greater durability, improved safety features, and sustainable production methods that reduce waste and emissions.

“Simply put, this new facility sets a new benchmark for the industry, reaffirming STE’s position in building the future of bulk transportation.”

Officially ‘amazing’

Trump wasn’t the only government official to express his excitement on this historic occasion. U.S. Reps. Derrick Van Orden and Tony Wied, both Republican members of the House Committee on Agriculture, and Devin LeMahieu, the majority leader of the Wisconsin Senate, also spoke during the post-tour luncheon; and joined Diane, Fox, Streblow, and Samuel Popa, American Aluminum Extrusion owner and president, for a visit guided by Sipe.

Johnson, who spent 30 years in manufacturing before entering politics, expressed his appreciation for the Hendricks family’s steadfast devotion to boosting the local and state economies. “This is a first-class manufacturing facility,” Johnson told Bulk Transporter. “Because of that, the specifications on these tanks are tighter than any competitor can maintain, which means safer products on the road. That’s a great thing right there. But also, because of what they’ve done with the technology, they can compete with Mexican labor. And my guess is, with the combination of being able to compete on the labor, and the quality of its products—with those tighter specifications—this business is probably going to take off.”

Van Orden, also a military veteran and actor, thanked Hendricks Holding and STE for celebrating “people who work with their hands” and keeping America’s food supply moving. “Without your work … agriculture would stop, because it doesn’t matter how much milk you produce in a barn, if you can’t get it in a trailer, you’re not going to have cheese, and I truly love cheese,” he quipped. “So, without our transportation industry, and our ag industry, America would stop. And any country that is dependent on another nation for its food is in an inherently bad place.”

Wied, who previously owned a chain of convenience stores, marveled at the facility’s engineering and manufacturing excellence, and Hendricks Holding’s passion for advancing American interests. “It’s so important that we have family businesses here in our country,” he said. “It’s important for our economy, and for our national security, and this is an incredible example of a family business that continues to prosper. And then you look at proudly ‘Made in America’ displayed everywhere within this factory. That is so amazing and so critical.”

Streblow—who was joined by NTTC Chairman David Price, United Petroleum Transports executive vice chairman—agreed, crediting STE for advancing tanker safety during a stop in STE’s service center. “This is one of the most critical components any OEM can bring forth to our industry—repairs being done here, and staying out of a court of law,” he said. “With the risk of liability our carriers go through when having to do repairs or spec a piece of equipment, they get scrutinized very quickly. And we’ve seen that in some of these frivolous nuclear verdicts.

“Having a facility of this nature step up, along with other OEMs, to take on repairs with pride, instead of pawning them off on the side, not only elevates STE, but … our carriers and our industry.”

A one-hour tour

Attendees walked the expansive factory floor during an eight-station exhibition of the facility, which began production in January and is expected to gradually ramp up operations over the next few years.

The first stop spotlighted STE’s ring-making machine and a hydroforming press that shapes tanker end caps with 1,500 tons of pressure, increasing throughput and accuracy. Previously, one person made about eight heads per day, Sipe shared. Now, robot-aided lines turn out caps in 6 minutes. “This facility was designed to take what I call the old ‘arts-and-crafts’ or ‘iron-hammer’ method and add automation and precision to it,” Sipe explained.

The second displayed STE’s up-front barrel processing capabilities. Using advanced automation, STE takes stainless-steel coils primarily sourced domestically and flattens, straightens, cuts, and rounds them into “cans” that are welded and polished in a fraction of the traditional time before moving into the final stages of construction. STE currently boasts the capacity to turn out 2,400 tankers—at an average length of 44 ft.—per year on two shifts, Sipe said.

Stations 3 and 4 demonstrated the precision of STE’s bending and welding robot cells in decelerated and shadow modes. Station 3 also featured two manual press brakes—a small one for small parts, and a larger bending backup; and Station 4 included a 6,250-gallon milk tanker and a hydrostatic system connected to a 60,000-gallon in-floor tank filled with filtered water for leak testing.

The fifth tour stop sent guests outside to view the facility’s vast trailer staging area; towering U.S. flagpole—which, at 132 ft., is the second tallest in Wisconsin (Acuity’s flag in Sheboygan waves 400 ft. in the air)—and a 9,500-gallon, four-axle food-grade trailer belonging to one of the country’s largest dairy haulers. STE’s concrete lot boasts enough space for 192 new trailers and 60 service trailers, Sipe said. Then they headed back inside for Stage 6, a look at the company’s 13-bay maintenance and repair shop that services all tanker makes. “The advantage of taking your trailer to an OEM is that we always fix it correctly,” Sipe maintained.

“Why? It’s a huge liability for us. We’re considered an expert in a court of law, so we always fix things correctly.”

The circuit ended with examinations of STE’s loading and unloading, and frame-welding machines in Station 7; and finishing space in Station 8, where workers affix fenders, lights, reflective tape, and more. Sipe also proudly highlighted the facility’s in-house welding school. The ASME-accredited builder partners with Blackhawk Technical College to train and develop technicians, driving value for customers and setting standards that are “second to none.”

“I love what I do, and I know Brent supports and feels the same way,” Diane concluded. “You see it in the communities we live in, the businesses around here, and the opportunities that drive us to buy new real estate and invest in companies—and we’ve got a great company here.”