Manufacturing ?success still ?possible in R.I.

Last week Providence Business News held its second Manufacturing Awards event.

The winner for strategic leadership, Todd Blount, the head of Blount Fine Foods, has transformed the family-owned enterprise through persistent, thoughtful innovation. No longer a sleepy purveyor of clam chowder, Blount saw sales grow nearly 60 percent from 2011 to 2014 to $181 million. Mr. Blount sees himself as “a steward, plain and simply,” of the family business, but his active leadership represents far more than that.

The Manufacturing Awards program is something far larger than a chance to hand out trophies. The 11 winning companies – profiled in the special section inserted in this week’s edition – are lighting the way to what can be.

One very important lesson from the award recipients is that success can come at any stage of a company’s development. Startups to more than century-old enterprises are among the honorees. It’s a lesson the state should take to heart. •

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