The Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS) board recently bestowed the Futuremakers Partner Award on D&S Manufacturing of Black River Falls, Wis.
D&S Manufacturing Vice President and General Manager John Barkley, and Human Resources Manager Sherri Hein accepted the award.
The WTCS Board honored D&S Manufacturing for their broad based support and longstanding partnership with Western Technical College. In his presentation, Drew Petersen, WTCS board president, highlighted the role D&S has played “as a driving force in establishing the Jackson County Welding Skills Institute, which serves to provide training for welders in the Black River Falls area.”
Petersen added that without the support of D&S, the initiative would not have been possible. Additionally, D&S has a long history of providing funding for scholarships.
D&S Manufacturing is an employee-owned company that custom manufactures large-scale components, assemblies and complete weldments for customers including Caterpillar, Oshkosh Corp., Parkson, The Trane Company and CNH.
D&S’s plate-metal fabrication processes include machining, laser, high definition plasma and oxy-fuel cutting, and manual and robotic welding. The company also provides liquid spray painting, powder coating, shot blasting, assembly and testing services.
Barkley said, “Many of our employee owners have taken advantage of and benefited from the educational opportunities that Western offers. We look forward to continuing our support of Western and the opportunities it provides to our community and region.”
D&S employee owners serve on WTCS advisory committees to provide support and feedback to ensure relevant, responsive programming for the community.
D&S also is committed to providing leadership throughout the community, said Barkley. It will continue its lab partnership with Black River Falls High School, where it provides financial support, equipment and supplies to encourage students to pursue a career in welding.
