VERMILLION, S.D. (KTIV) – For the last 19 years Masaba has been operating out of Vermillion, South, Dakota. It’s also been a family-owned business for over the last 80 years.
The company was first founded in 1939 as Higman Sand and Gravel by Harold Higman Sr. in Akron, Iowa. His son Harold Higman Jr. would then start in 1962 what is known today as Masaba.
Fast forward to 1999, and Harold Junior’s son Jerad would become the CEO of the company which still is to this day. The operation would then move its headquarters out of Akron and over the state border to Vermillion, South Dakota.
The company now deals with equipment all over the world and brings in a big impact on South Dakota’s economy. But what does the company do, and why is it still family-owned after 80 years?
“I had an opportunity to go to the University of Nebraska, play football under Coach Tom Osbourne, and was part of something pretty special in 1994 being a part of the national championship team,” said Jerad Higman, CEO of Masaba.
From his hometown roots in Akron, Iowa, and the gridiron of Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Jerad Higman wanted to do something special of his own after college.
“What sets us apart from other manufacturers out there? You know being young and willing to try anything when it came to engineering or different projects. One of our first plans a lot of the big companies didn’t want to build it and I didn’t know any better so I figured ‘Yeah will give that a shot,’” said Higman.
Welding(KTIV)
Masaba now does many different things from welding, metal fabrication, and even constructing custom equipment. Much of what they produce goes into helping build roads and other infrastructure. Not only does it have dealers all over the country but the world as well.
“From Australia to Europe, to all over the U.S. and North America, Canada and down into South America,” said Higman.
The company has over 160 employees, and that number is only set to keep growing with expansion plans. Higman says he wants to keep the revenue in the Midwest Economy and the American Economy.
Team members put together machinery(KTIV)
“For us, you know for us, the impact on the economy is big here, just in payroll alone it’s 12-plus million dollars, 10′s of millions of dollars overall on the impact of the economy when you talk you know vendors and banking, legal, accounting and all that kind of stuff,” said Higman.
On top of that impact, the company has donated over $1 million to local schools, charities, and organizations. Higman says the impact would not be possible without the team members.
“This is not me, yeah I was a crazy guy to come up with a vision and put in the hours initially to do it, it’s the team that we’ve created that has made Masaba who we are today,” said Higman.
Masaba has new expansion plans for a new 140,000-square-foot fabrication space to be completed in early 2025. This will also add 35 additional jobs.
Keeping material and equipment local
Masaba also has maintained a mission to keep all materials and employees local.
Almost all of the equipment and material purchased for the company is bought in the United States or the Midwest. The employees are all employed in the Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota area. CEO Jerad Higman and his team members don’t look at it as a job but as a career. And, he’s found other things to create a good work environment.
“We started profit sharing, we do a lot of creative things, we have our Masaba Fishing Tournament every year and so forth but that’s probably one of our biggest team favorites out at the old gravel pit in Akron,” said Higman.
In total, the company has paid out over $2 million in the last 5 years to employees. On top of that, Higman also encourages his team members to grow within the company and try new things.
“It’s fun to watch these guys grow in their positions and so forth with what we’ve been able to accomplish out of this building. We’ve been able to engineer, manufacture, paint and assemble, and deliver, it’s pretty neat,” said Higman.
If you or someone you know wants to learn more about the company you can check out the link.
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Publish date : 2024-08-20 14:24:00
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