Black River Falls, Wis. — John Barkley, Vice President and General Manager, and Sherri Hein, Human Resources Manager, were on hand at the recent meeting of the Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS) Board to receive the Futuremakers Partner Award.

The WTCS Board honored D&S Manufacturing for their broad based support and longstanding partnership with Western Technical College. In his presentation, Drew Petersen, WTCS Board President, highlighted the role D&S played as a driving force in establishing the Jackson County Welding Skills Institute, which serves to provide training for welders in the Black River Falls area. Petersen added that without the support of D&S the initiative would not have been possible. Additionally, D&S has a long history of providing funding for scholarships.

D&S is committed to providing leadership throughout the community and will continue its lab partnership with Black River Falls High School where it provides financial support, equipment and supplies to encourage students to pursue a career in welding. D&S employee owners continue to serve on WTCS advisory committees to provide support and feedback to ensure relevant, responsive programming for the community.

John Barkley was proud to receive the award and acknowledged that "Many of our employee owners have taken advantage of and benefited from the educational opportunities that Western offers. We look forward to continuing our support of Western and the opportunities it provides to our community and region."

Since 1965, ISO 9001:2008 certified D&S Manufacturing has served as a custom manufacturer of exceptional quality large scale components, assemblies and complete weldments for a broad cross section of well-respected corporations that include Caterpillar, Oshkosh Corporation, Parkson, The Trane Company and CNH. The company's extensive capabilities include technologically superior machining, laser, high definition plasma and oxy-fuel cutting, as well as manual and robotic welding. These resources are complemented by diverse value-added services ranging from liquid spray painting, powder coating and shot blasting to assembly and testing. A dedicated and highly skilled workforce lives a commitment to superior project management, exceptional quality, accountability, teamwork and continuous improvement, which empowers the company to live its slogan, D&S …. Solid™.

For more information, please contact John Barkley, General Manager, D&S Manufacturing, P. O. Box 279, Black River Falls, WI, 54615, 715-284-5376, ext. 307 or fax 715-284-4084. Send e-mail to jbarkley@dsmfg.com, and visit D&S Manufacturing's Web site at www.dsmfg.com.