Eleven employees might seem like a small workforce, but in Conger it is a major employer.

Built-Rite Manufacturing Inc. began as a blacksmith shop in 1938. The company started making trenching cutters in Conger in the late 1940s and continues today using modern computer controlled mills and lathes. The company’s co-owner, John Doppelhammer, is the third generation of his family to carry on the business tradition.

“I believe all our workers live in Freeborn County,” Doppelhammer said. “Conger is a really nice place to be.”

Doppelhammer grew up around the metal-working business and earned a two-year degree in Tool & Die Machining at a Winona vocational-technical school. He began working full time at Built Rite in 1989. He lives with his wife and three children in rural Conger and said the business is here to stay.

“We have no plans to move,” Doppelhammer said. “We have a stable, longtime workforce and a solid market for our products.”

Built-Rite’s trenching cutters, gear reducers and other products are marketed by Ballantine Co., an Anoka-based wholesaler. The trench cutters are then shipped to Ditch Witch and other trenching and digging manufacturers and retailers.

Built-Rite also makes tractor parts that are shipped to various foundries and eventually wind up as components of John Deere tractors. The company makes its precision parts from steel, aluminum, cast iron and plastic. Machinists and punch press operators often multitask as part of their work process, moving among the six computer controlled computer numerically controlled machines — better known as CNC machines — in the company’s main manufacturing facility. Four milling machines and two lathes turn out a variety of precision made parts for construction, trenching and boring equipment. Gear reducers, which allow machinery to operate at slower speeds with greater power and accuracy, are among Built-Rite’s most recent products.

Doppelhammer and co-owner Bob Weiser have invested heavily in modern equipment through recent years. Plate-bending rollers, sheet-metal rollers and precision-cutting equipment allow the company’s workers to turn out high-quality industrial component parts.

One third of Built-Rite’s production is done as a job shop, making parts on demand for other manufacturers. The company has not yet seen the impact of the current economic slowdown. “We have seen our share of ups and downs through the years,” Doppelhammer said. “I think we will be able to ride out this one.”

Built-Rite relies on a workforce that has remained quite stable through the years, Doppelhammer said. Built-Rite’s workers range in age from their late 30s to their early 60s. While he has no plans for hiring anytime soon, Doppelhammer has concerns about the future.

“It is getting harder to find good tech people in this area,” Doppelhammer said. “Will we be able to replace our tech workers when they are ready to retire?”