On Tuesday, the Manufacturing Express joined nearly 200 manufacturing workers at Crenlo Engineered Facilities to celebrate the achievements of the equipment manufacturing community here in Watertown, South Dakota. It’s the hard work of these men and women that have led Crenlo to its perch as the technology leader of the off-highway vehicle operator cab industry. Their Lead Manufacturing Manager, Jessica Pickrel, calls them “artists.” Pay a visit to Crenlo and you’ll soon learn why.
Crenlo’s Watertown plant might seem utilitarian… because it is. But stepping onto the shop floor reveals a place devoted to producing the best cabs in the world, unrivaled in their precision, durability, and quality. Their customers sure think they are succeeding.
It’s a pursuit that Christian Weseloh, Quality Manager at Crenlo, takes personally because safety is always front and center: “These cabs are the thing that keeps you alive.” For each job, Crenlo Engineered Cabs starts from scratch. Upstairs, resident cab experts develop custom design, engineering, and manufacturing processes to suit the particular needs of the cab. They also offer modular, heavily configurable products, featuring cabs that will work with anything from railcar movers to sprayers. “We cut it, we bend it, we form it,” Weseloh said. “We solve problems.”
But Crenlo doesn’t make cabs to win engineering contests; they make them for the equipment operators that build, power, and feed the world. Pickrel explains that, when you make cabs for “the big boys”—John Deere, Caterpillar, CNH are just a few of their partners—they better be darn good cabs. As Pickrel puts it: “We’ve succeeded because there’s so much we’re able to do. So, when they ask if we can do it, the answer is almost always yes.”
That drive explains why Crenlo has invested in a cutting-edge E-Coat system for its products, including a 13-tank primer process that ensures its cabs resist rust better than just about anything. It’s why each of their cabs is carefully painted, riveted, sealed and inspected by 20-year veterans of the company. It’s why they subject each cab to a water-jet firing squad, all to make sure that the cab is 100% waterproof, meaning the operator stays 100% dry. Every inch of material in every cab is traceable, so in the unlikely event of equipment failure, Crenlo can quickly rectify the problem and remedy its production technique.
All these processes take time, it’s true. But at Crenlo Engineered Cabs, quality comes first. An obsession with detail is required to produce Crenlo’s best every single day. This is what perfectionism looks like. It’s something everyone at Crenlo and the city of Watertown can be proud of.
