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Inside Hutchinson manufacturing: 3M anchor, medical devices and fast-growing startups
Summary
Economic development director Miles Seppold guided listeners through Hutchinson’s manufacturing ecosystem, describing 3M as the largest local employer and highlighting advanced manufacturers (Resonetics, RD Machine), specialty firms (Warrior, Titan, Pride Solutions) and a fast-growing wind-services startup, Zephyr Wind Services.
Miles Seppold led a guided tour of Hutchinson manufacturers, describing a diverse cluster that ranges from the 1.4-million-square-foot 3M plant to small, high-tech startups and niche makers.
Seppold said 3M arrived in Hutchinson in 1947 and remains the city’s largest employer, with "over 1,300 employees" at a 1,465,000-square-foot site on 230 acres, producing many consumer and industrial products shipped nationwide. He described the plant as the largest 3M production facility in the United States.
The tour highlighted advanced and medical-device manufacturing. Seppold described Resonetics as a medical-device manufacturer that makes surgical tools and stents, noting the Hutchinson site is a principal location with roughly 175 employees and ongoing expansion plans. He also noted RD Machine’s advanced metal work and a local capability to produce steel parts with 3D powder-printing processes.
He described specialized fabricators: Warrior Manufacturing (steel fabrications for bridges and industrial structures), Titan Machinery (fertilizer applicator equipment) and Pride Solutions (plastic parts for agriculture and niche products). Seppold said these firms provide a range of heavy and precision manufacturing jobs.
Seppold emphasized small and growing companies, including Zephyr Wind Services, which refurbishes wind generators rapidly and aims to return a generator to service in less than 24 hours. "That's the huge innovation," he said, noting Zephyr’s quick growth and expansion into facilities in Wisconsin, Iowa and Texas.
Other local manufacturers noted include Millrock Packaging (printing packaging components for 3M), Linn Card Company (niche greeting-card printing), Stearnswood (transport packaging and McLeod County’s oldest company), Innovative Foam (Styrofoam fabrication) and food makers such as Smokey Duke’s and Lallemand yeast downtown.
Seppold used the tour to argue that Hutchinson is "Minnesota's manufacturing city," pointing to the mix of high-tech precision shops, legacy firms and startups that together support local employment and supply chains. He closed by inviting listeners to contact his office with questions and to follow future updates.
