Visual inspection tops list of key quality control procedures for Illinois-based Mennie Machine Co.
Driving down Route 71, about two hours southwest of Chicago, you pass classically American countryside including farms, fields, small businesses, and homes. Eventually, you reach the Mennie Machine Co., in Mark, IL (www.mennies.com). As you pull onto Mennie Drive and enter the grounds, what you see is a modern, state-of-the-art building, complete with Roman columns and statues. Inside is a 225,000 sq. ft. metal machining facility, employing over 300 people, with annual sales of more than $50 million.
However, owner Cheryl Mennie tells us things were not always so. Cheryl and her husband Hubert started the company in their home and garage in 1969. It has now grown to proportions Cheryl says “neither of us would have imagined.” Following Hubert’s death in 2009, Cheryl has continued to run the company, and now her entire family is also working in the business. Over the years, Mennie Machine Co. has survived the economic downturns that affected metal machine operations nationwide, in particular the well-documented drop in the manufacturing sector from 2008 to 2010.