A trailblazer in the manufacturing industry, Dowding Industries serves companies across the country as a stamping, machining and fabrications company in Eaton Rapids.
Dowding’s start goes back to 1965, when Skip Dowding founded his own tool-and-die shop in Springport. Over its 60 years of business, Dowding Industries has expanded into one of the state’s only manufacturers producing world-class metal stamping, fabrication and precision-machined components and assemblies. Run out of three self-contained facilities, Dowding produces parts for the automotive, railcar, defense and infrastructure sectors.
“We’re in an industry that is really ours,” said Jeff Metts, president of Dowding Industries.
Yet Dowding is more than just a manufacturer — it is a one-of-a-kind, family-owned and -operated company that is dedicated to its people. The company is also one of the largest women-owned manufacturers in the state, led by CEO G. Christine Dowding-Metts.
To remain a tight-knit company, Dowding is dedicated to only employing 200 people across its three facilities. That means incorporating automation into its processes to ensure efficient, high-quality services and products.
“We found that we didn’t lose a single person through automation,” said Metts. “Now, everybody in the world will tell you that’s the wrong idea — the whole idea of automation is to take people out. We don’t want to do that. We just want to give them better jobs and make it a better place for them to work.”
That people-first culture is what Dowding is all about.
“People are more powerful than they think they are,” Metts said. “They can do things they don’t think they can do. And so, we want to challenge you to go to the next step, go to the next phase and appreciate others.”
ELEVATOR PITCH:
“We’re a manufacturing company. People always ask, ‘What do you do?’ I’d rather tell you why I do it. We want to build people as much as we want to build parts. We want to build them and push them to be all they can.”
Emily Walters
Emily Walters is the PR and content intern at M3 Group. She is currently a senior at Michigan State University studying public relations and writing. She is passionate about all things storytelling and board games. She resides in East Lansing.
