In metal fabricating, it’s about family

Dan Conner founded Industrial Machine and Engineering Co. in 1982, and the business has grown to the point where it’s a family affair. Charlotte Conner oversees bookkeeping and records, and son-in-law Eric Merriman and son Mark Conner have been with the company 14 and seven years, respectively. Shown in the picture are (from left) Eric Merriman, daughter Rebecca Merriman, Charlotte, Dan, and Mark. Image provided by IMEC

2020 marks the 50th anniversary for both The FABRICATOR and its parent organization, the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association. In preparing one of the features (FMA members reflecting on their time in metal fabrication) in our anniversary package for January's issue, I was reminded of just how important family is to this industry.

Talk to enough fabricators and you’ll hear some common elements in their personal stories. The family was there to provide funding for someone to break off on their own. Someone marries into a family, which provides them with a career path they never expected to follow. Family members have to be willing participants as one of their own chases an entrepreneurial dream, which might mean working at night or weekends to help out in the new business while also holding down a regular, 40-hour-per-week job.

And let’s not forget parents or guardians. They often have an influence that goes beyond simple monetary or in-kind support.

Dan Conner, founder and owner of Industrial Machine and Engineering Co. (IMEC), shared a story with me about how he found his footing in the metal fabricating industry. You can read the abbreviated version in the “Looking back on the fabricating business” feature.

Conner said his dad had a radiator repair and garage business while he was growing up. He spent a lot of time at the shop, working on cars and just observing how his father worked. His dad had worked for the military, supporting the manufacture of aircraft and making things in an R&D role. After the war, his metal fabricating skill helped him earn a living.

“People would bring in something to be welded up, not necessarily big things, but in little pieces, and he’d fix things up and make them work. It was kind of amazing to see,” Conner said.

Conner said he went to college for a year and a half, but later quit. He headed home and planned to work for his dad and to hang out with his friends. After about a week in the shop, he asked his dad what he was going to be paid. His dad said his payment was going to be room, board, and $1.75 a week.

“That made me so mad. I didn’t speak to him for months,” Conner said.

He later decided to strike out on his own and moved up to Kansas City, Mo., to work for the Bendix Corp. (An uncle helped him get the job.) That was his first real taste of manufacturing in a major setting and also led him on the path to becoming a tool- and die-maker. He also went back to college to earn a couple of engineering degrees. He later returned to Monett, Mo., where he eventually founded IMEC.

Conner said it wasn’t soon after leaving his dad’s house that he realized the old man knew what he was doing. He needed that push to get him on the path to adulthood.

“The more I think back, the more I understand just what I learned from him and how much of an example he was in all kinds of different areas,” Conner said.

Today Conner has a thriving metal fabricating business that employs just under 40 people. The company also keeps the family together, with wife Charlotte Conner overseeing the books, son Mark Conner handling sales and marketing, and son-in-law Eric Merriman acting as plant manager.

“They are a vital part of what we are and what keeps us going,” said Conner of his family.

IMEC is only one example of family providing the solid foundation for a company’s success. You could also argue that they are the backbone of this country’s free enterprise system. SCORE, a network of volunteer, expert business mentors, published the results of a story in 2018 that said family businesses, defined as companies operated by two or more family members, employ 60% of the U.S. workforce and create 78% of all new jobs. That’s a significant economic engine.

It’s also important in a capitalist economy where hardships are not uncommon. A company run by a family is likely to treat employees as family. They are much more likely to support employees during tough times than, say, public entities that have to answer to faceless shareholders.

As we celebrate 50 years of metal fabricating, we’d love to hear about your family company or those that influenced you to enter the trade. We’ll share your stories in the publication’s Readers’ Forum section.

In the meantime, we hope you enjoy our 50th anniversary coverage throughout the year.