N.W. Metal Fabricators, Inc. was established in October 1986 by Kerry and Vendla Karlson. We currently employ approximately 30 employees, with the summer being our busiest time. From metal fabrication to machining to sandblasting, our team tackles it all in Hermiston, Umatilla County, Hinkle, and Charleston, OR. We hope that you contact us soon.
Our main source of projects is in the food processing industries (potatoes, cheese, onions, etc.). The following is some of our key employees and their years of experience.
- Kerry Karlson – Majority Owner: background – 40+ years working in food industry, Bachelors Degree in manufacturing engineering.
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Aaron Karlson, General Manager, background – 20+ years in accounting and management. Master’s degree in Accounting, MBA degree, and former CPA.
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Bob Cooley, Shop Foreman, background – 30+ years of welding, metal fabrication and installation in agricultural and food industry. 20+ years with NWMF.
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Gary Loftus, Field Superintendent, background – 30+ years of metal fabrication and installation specializing in the food processing industry. 20+ years with NWMF.
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Josie Miears, 16+ years of experience in accounting, marketing, and IT.
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James Yates, Powder Coating Manager, B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 20+ years of experience systems flow and process design.
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John Gregerson, Field Supervisor, 30+ years experience in food processing plant maintenance and equipment installation.
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Michael Cowan, Field Supervisor, 15+ years experience in stainless steel fabrication and piping. Holds Oregon Class 5 boiler license
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We at N.W. Metal Fabricators, Inc. have surrounded ourselves with key people in the fields that we pursue. We are ASME Certified, carry O Stamp and currently have qualifications up to Class 5 Boiler License. We have certified welders in up to 15 special materials/applications, Certified Crane Operators, TWIC Certified, OSHA 10 and other OSHA certifications, D2000, and other industry-specific certifications. All of our employees are required to go through pre-employment and random drug testing and a comprehensive training program. Safety is our number one concern for our employees and all individuals exposed to our jobs and jobsites. We promote ongoing training, both safety and industry specific training, among all of our staff.
We have limited plans to expand our business into other areas. At the present we will strive to maintain quality in workmanship and service all our customers’ needs in the best possible manner.
The following is an example of some of the last couple of large projects we have completed:
- Dahlgren Industrial – Columbia River Cheese Plant in Boardman, Oregon. Job description, to fabricate and install stainless steel catwalks, stairs and handrails. Note, all the engineering and design was done by the general contractor, our contract was to fabricate and install. The value of the contract was over $1,000,000.
- Oregon Potato – Replace AMU duct work that damaged in fire. Included fabrication of ducting and installation. The value of the work completed was $350,000.
Community
N.W. Metal Fabricators, Inc. continues to reach out in the local community to help keep our youth involved in healthy activities and excel in their fields of interest.
We have made contributions to Boy Scouts of America, HHS Project Graduation, area sports and booster clubs, Hermiston Linebacker Club, Umatilla and Morrow County FFA, HHS FFA Career Day, Echo Kiwanis Scholarship, March of Dimes, Relay for Life, Kevin P Gregerson Memorial Scholarship, and many others.