Burns Manufacturing Customer Spotlight
This customer spotlight features a conversation between Nick Burns, the Vice President of Burns Manufacturing in Erie, Pennsylvania and Aaron Anderson, Customer Service Manager for Reliant Finishing Systems. Nick talks about how the company has grown and explains how bringing powder coating in-house has helped propel the company forward.
Tell us about the history of your company
Burns Manufacturing has been supplying products to the architectural door trim industry since 1965, so sixty-one years in business as of this year. I work with both my brother and sister, and we’re the third generation of our family running the business. My dad just retired last year. He was the second generation and ran it with his cousin Mike. My grandfather originally worked for a competitor but wanted to do his own thing, so he left. He started it with his brother Regis, selling kick plates and wall stops. We’ve really grown into something I don’t think even he expected.
What do you make?
We make commercial door hardware. There used to be a lot of independents and now there’s only a handful of us that aren’t owned by the big package operations.
What’s your best-selling product?
Vertical pulls. I’d like to sell just vertical pulls that are powder coated black. We can crank those out up to 12′ long. But the custom pulls are what we love to make because it breaks up the monotony of making our standard products.
Who is your primary customer?
Most of our products get sold through distribution, architects and OEMs. We do very little work directly with end-users.
What sets you apart from your competition?
We offer quality products and you can always call us and we’ll answer the phone. We pride ourselves on being a stable company where our customers matter. With some of these big companies–and I experience it a bit when buying powder–you deal with a different person every time you place an order, and some folks are better than others. That’s especially a problem if you need something quick or a modified option, and I feel like responsiveness is an area where we excel. We’re very attentive to our customers’ needs.
You’ve been in business a long time. Has your business changed throughout the years? If so, what drove those changes? Was it the market, your capabilities, or some of both?
A little bit of both. Our product offerings have expanded, and we’ve increased our in-house capabilities a great deal. I’ve been here 16 years now. When I first started, we outsourced all the press brake work, welding, and powder coating. Since then, we’ve added another full-time welder, a brake (that had a pad poured in 2001 and we finally got in 2012). We’ve also added powder coating capabilities. I think our growth was not just about the equipment and processes but having the right people in the right places and evolving with technology and getting out of the, “Well that’s how we have always done it” mindset.
Do you have a core group that has stayed with you for a long time?
We’re a small shop and we’ve always had a close-knit group of employees. In the last six years or so, we’ve had eleven guys retire that all had forty years of experience. And I tell you what, it’s not fun replacing those guys. But, we’ve gotten very lucky with the people we’ve hired, and we’ve got a great team right now.
What about other obstacles you faced?
Powder coating was a big issue. We work to get projects done in about two weeks, and powder coating was adding another week or more to that. We’d almost never get our parts back from the powder coater in less than a week. It was often two weeks, and then you might have parts that needed extra attention or rework. That was probably the biggest hurdle we’ve gone through. Bringing powder coating in-house saved us so much. We might have twenty-five different line items on an order, and maybe five of them get powder coated. When we were outsourcing coating, if there were defects, it held the order up. We would constantly be waiting for a part or two to come back. We’d tell customers “we’ll ship it tomorrow” and then the powder coater wouldn’t have it back to us for another week. It really made us look bad, even though we didn’t do anything wrong. I don’t like telling customers something and then not being able to back it up.
A lot of it was seeing Reliant in the market. I saw your ads in some of the manufacturing magazines that we get and that led me to give Reliant a call. When I called and set up a sales appointment, we had a lot of questions and you guys had the answers. We originally thought we needed a conveyor line, but Bart and Aaron talked us into a batch system and it was one of the best equipment purchases we have made. It was very easy to deal with Reliant. We didn’t shop around a whole lot because we were confident about what you offered. The decision we made was the right one. Support has been a big part of it. If I call with a problem or need filters, I know I’m going to speak with a tech and he’ll work with us and get us back up and running–but we have had very minimal downtime.
How has the equipment helped your business thrive?
It took us from a 3-4 week lead time to a 3-day lead time and gave us more control over the coating process. Time is everything in our industry, so that’s been a big competitive advantage, helping us get our customers’ projects wrapped up so they can get off the job site.
What are your future plans for the business?
Honestly, I’m perfectly fine with where we’re at right now. We are busy and need more employees. We had to get creative to fit the oven and spray booth in the building and we are running out of room. Top of my wish list would probably be a laser, but that will be sometime in the future.
Nick, thank you very much for taking time to talk with me, and thanks for being a Reliant customer. We wish you the best and hope Burns Manufacturing continues to grow and thrive.
Visit Burns Manufacturing online at https://www.burnsmfg.com/ to learn more about their company and products.
Considering bringing powder coating in-house? Give us a call at (256) 355-9000 and let Reliant’s experts help you get the perfect coating system for your business.
