St. Marys Businessman Testifies in DC

Washington, D.C.—John Dippold, President of Innovative Sintered Metals in St. Marys today told the Committee on Small Business of the U. S. House of Representatives that “in crisis, there is opportunity.”

Dippold testified at the invitation of U.S. Representative Glenn ‘GT’ Thompson, R-Howard, during a hearing entitled, “Heroes of Small Business.” Dippold asked, “Why didn’t we collapse when the auto industry tanked? The answer has a lot to do with our size, the way we positioned ourselves in the marketplace, and our steady growth.”

“The powdered metals industry involves the production of a hard solid metal starting from powder,” Thompson explained to the Committee. “A much wider range of products can be obtained from powder processes than from direct alloying of fused materials.

“Mr. Dippold and his company sintered Metals are a true testament to the resourcefulness that is so prevalent in the Fifth Congressional District,” added Thompson.

Dippold’s success is evidenced by the fact that the company’s sales projections for 2010 are $4.5 million, an increase of nearly 100 percent over last year. Since 2004 they have doubled the workforce and corporate earnings are up 1,100 percent. But Dippold said it did not start out that way.

“In 2004, the company did little work for the auto industry, had 10 employees and was in the red financially,” said Dippold. He further explained, “Rather than scale, our competitive advantage is service. My partner is an engineer who spends countless hours working with clients on a personal basis. There is no administrative staff or phone tree standing between our customers and our key decision makers.”

Dippold explained that companies must change with the demands of the marketplace and in his case they went to smaller markets.

“Gone are the days when a young man out of high school would train on a machine and work it for 40 years. Our employees are constantly retraining, mastering new processes and production software to accommodate our ever changing lines of business. The company they work at today is different than the one they worked at a year or even six months ago.”

Thompson has been a strong advocate for retooling and transforming the American workforce, in order to compete in a 21st century global market, through his work on the House Small Business and House Education & Labor Committees.

“Many people in Washington believe manufacturing in America is dead. That is simply not true; I am reminded of that every day I travel throughout the 5th District.”

Pictured, John Dippold, at right, President of Innovative Sintered Metals, testifies as one of the Heroes of Small Business before the U.S. House Committee on Small Business.
Photo courtesy of Glenn Thompson's office