I think steelcase still has an IDEO office in GR. some of these include gunlocke, harter, paoli. HON is now the largest contact manufacturer, but they have acquired many smaller contract companies over the past 5-7 years. a lot fo restructing has been happening for quite some time. many companies are not positioned correctly to compete at the international level. The furniture industry is suffering again because competition from overseas. There are other tertiary industries, but i haven’t lived in the area for almost 5 years now. Atwood makes a lot of nautical equipment and accessories. chriscraft used to be in the area, but i don’t know about their operations anymore. this place is loaded with trans designers from CCS, art center, UofC, etc.īoats - tiara yachts is in holland, i believe they also own S2. There are a couple of other lesser recognized industries in that area.Īutomotive interiors - johnson controls in holland, used to be prince.

the HM design center (known as the design yard) and the haworth headquarters are about 3 miles apart. their design center is on the south side of holland. miller has chair plants all over those areas. they used to have a large oeration in grandville, but that is no longer used. herman miller has facilities scattered all over holland, zeeland, and norton shores. haworth has a main, centralized facility on the south end of holland, off 196. Not the highlight of my career, but a great learning experience.įurniture in west michigan is still isn’t just grand rapids. Harbor focuses on wood and metal, though they build with other materials. Harbor builds permanent and semi-permanent fixtures and displays. Xibits does a lot of custom and intricate displays and environments. that’s when i relocated to the SE for another furniture job ('03).Įxhibits and pop in west michigan there is Xibits near GR and Harbor Industries in Grand Haven. i took an exhibit and pop design job (point of purchase) and ‘nested’ until i could get back into furiniture. in '00, there was a huge downturn in the furniture industry. the west michigan/exhibit/furniture discussions. Ok, there are a few threads that are running sort of parallel to each other.

Synergy home furnishings manufacturer