Washington Business Spring 2018 | Washington Business | Page 43

Bus No. 1 began the day in
Everett by creating custom plastic
tumblers and visiting the maker of
the historic racing shell used by
the “Boys in the Boat” who won
the 1936 Olympics, plus a stop
at the working Seattle waterfront.
Bus No. 2 pulled onto the shopfloor
of craft beverage-maker Schilling
Cider before joining Bus No. 1 in the
industrial heart of Seattle for the
2017 Manufacturing Summit and
presentation of the Manufacturing
Excellence awards.
The buses crossed paths in Eastern
Washington as Bus No. 1 began the
day in Spokane at Kaiser Aluminum,
which makes material that’s used
in F-15E Strike Eagle wing tips and
much more. “It’s pretty important
stuff,” said Kyle England of Kaiser.
Other stops included Dry Fly
Distilling, Pearson Packaging
Systems in Spokane and Genie Lift
in Moses Lake. The big bus ended
the day with a unique trip down one
of North America’s longest runways
and a beautiful sunset (above), at
the Grant County International
Airport. Bus No. 2 visited the high-
tech headquarters of Schweitzer
Engineering Laboratories in
Pullman as well as fruit processors
and makers of high-quality mint
extracts.
washington business
The two teams joined together
and headed south for national
Manufacturing Day. Brian Bonlender,
d i r e c t o r o f t h e Wa s h i n g t o n
Department of Commerce, joined
the tour for a look at the fires of the
eco-friendly molten cauldrons at
Nucor Steel Seattle and a rally with a
cheerful crowd of workforce-minded
students at Raisbeck Aviation High
School. Then it was on to see the
makers of custom computer chips,
aviation parts, all-weather paper and
more before the busy Manufacturing
Week tour concluded with a crowd
of cheering employees at Alaffia
in Tumwater and a final stop for a
celebratory snapshot in front of the
Washington State Capitol.
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