NARRATIVE: Responding to Crisis: Commerce-Supported Companies Step Up During COVID-19

As the novel Coronavirus spread closer to home during the early spring of 2020, Department of Commerce-supported businesses quickly shifted their product manufacturing lines to support the needs of the global pandemic.

Distilleries in nearly every corner of Montana started making hand sanitizer and shipping it to hospitals and health care centers by the truckload. "We are just trying to get it out to the people who need it the most," Gulch Distillers co-owner Steffen Rasile told the Helena Independent Record. "We felt like it was our duty to help out where we can. We are in a unique position, so we decided to step up."

Gulch Distillers, Bozeman Spirits and Headframe Spirits are among a handful of other spirits-turned-sanitizer companies that have accessed Commerce’s State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) grant dollars to expand their reach. The Montana Manufacturing Extension Center also assisted the distillers quickly shift their operations by hosting weekly conference calls where they collaborated on many issues, including finding bottles. It was MMEC that secured bottle and cap donations for the Montana businesses from Berry Global in Indiana.

Montana’s well-known pet accessory maker West Paw also shifted their manufacturing of indestructible dog toys and pet beds to make face masks for healthcare workers.

According to its website, West Paw worked to retool their Bozeman, Montana production facility, leveraging the skills of their employees who normally might be making dog toys, beds, collars, and leashes. “As a purpose-driven certified B Corp, we live our values of community and employee support by unleashing the capability and skills of our staff to make an impact,” says Spencer Williams, President and CEO of West Paw.

West Paw was MMEC’s first client in 1996 when Williams bought the company, and their relationship with Commerce started in 2006 when it first worked with the ExportMontana team. Since, it has grown to a large international exporter with assistance from the State Trade Expansion Program and Big Sky Economic Development Trust Fund Planning Grant program.

Several plastic injection molders in Montana; including Spark R&D, PDM, Diversified Plastics, Blackhawk, and Creative Sales; collaborated to produce nearly 20,000 facemasks for Bozeman Health and Billings Clinic. These masks were invented by Billings Doctor Dusty Richardson and made national news. Montana Silversmiths, Salient Technologies, and Thompson Precision also collaborated to produce these “Montana Facemasks” using their 3D printers.

These companies stepped up to make in-demand products and were able to adapt quickly through the support of the Montana Manufacturing Extension Center at Montana State University. MMEC partners with and is funded through Commerce.

“Seeing Montana’s manufacturers collaborate to meet the demands of the crisis in Montana is truly inspiring,” said Paddy Fleming, Director of MMEC. “Former competitors are now talking about how they can better work together in the future and there are even a few of them talking about forming joint ventures!”

Going from making pedicabs to protective face shields like Bonner-based Coaster Cycles, or from making world-class Gortex flyfishing waders to sewn surgical gowns like Bozeman-based Simms Fishing – these Montana-made companies have stepped up in a big way to respond to the crisis.