LINCOLN, Nebraska – October 30, 2024 – Timpte Inc. has been named Nebraska Manufacturer of the Year by the NE Chamber. The award recognizes a Nebraska manufacturer that implements innovative ways to conduct business using products, processes, technologies and other strategies.

“The Nebraska Chamber’s Manufacturer of the Year award celebrates a company that continuously betters its community and Nebraska’s overall economy, which is exactly what Timpte does,” said Mike Johnson, NE Chamber COO & EVP of Manufacturing. “Timpte embodies what it means to be a Manufacturer in Nebraska, from its state-of-the-art facility to being a competitive and desired place to work. We’re thrilled to honor Timpte as this year’s Manufacturer of the Year.”

Timpte is located in David City and has been there since 1980, however the Timpte organization has been open since 1884. Over 140 years in business has established Timpte’s sole focus of designing and building trailers for any dry bulk commodity. Timpte trailers are custom-built to ensure each trailer that hits the road does its job efficiently and effectively.
"We're a company founded on innovating transportation to help people move materials more efficiently and more effectively," said President and CEO Tim Carpenter. "Headquartered in David City, we take our Midwestern roots seriously, applying solid manufacturing principles and state-of-the-art technology to produce the industry's best dry bulk commodity and equipment trailers."
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Timpte was presented the award on October 29 by Senator Pete Ricketts at the annual NE Chamber Manufacturing Summit, co-hosted by RSM US LLP. RSM is a leading provider of audit, tax and consulting services to manufacturing and wholesale distribution industries.
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LINCOLN, Nebraska – October 29, 2024 – Valley Irrigation’s Valley Center Pivot has been named the 2024 “Coolest Thing Made in Nebraska.” This is the competition’s third year, and it yet again garnered tens of thousands of votes.

Manufacturers, students, and all Nebraskans were invited to vote in a head-to-head, bracket-style matchup of 16 finalists to determine the 2024 winner. Learn about each of the finalists at nemanufacturingalliance.com.

“Nebraska’s Manufacturing sector is not one size fits all, and this contest really shows that,” said NE Chamber COO and Executive Vice President of Manufacturing, Mike Johnson. “This industry is vital to Nebraska, and this contest recognizes the creativity and ingenuity of Nebraska’s Manufacturers. There’s so much more to Nebraska Manufacturing than one might think, and this fun contest merely scratches the surface of the variety of amazing products manufactured right here in Nebraska.”

The champion was announced on October 29 at the NE Chamber’s Manufacturing Summit in La Vista by U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts. The 16 products featured in the tournament were also invited to display their products.

“This award is a testament to all the hard work, innovation and dedication our team pours into every single pivot,” said Valley Irrigation’s SVP of Product Excellence & Commercialization, Matt Ondrejko. “Our Center Pivot isn’t just a piece of machinery, it’s a symbol of Nebraska ingenuity and resilience. It represents generations of farmers committed to feeding our world sustainably and efficiently.”
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The contest – hosted by the NE Manufacturing Alliance and powered by the NE Chamber – celebrates the state’s thriving manufacturing industry with Nebraska residents, students, educators, community leaders, manufacturers and especially, the vast number of Nebraskans working in manufacturing every day. The popular contest takes place during October while NE Manufacturing Month is celebrated each year.

​Public voting for the finalists in the bracket-style competition is now open and will be held Wednesday, October 9, through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, October 13. All Nebraskans are invited to vote for the 2024 champion here. Each voter is permitted one vote per matchup, per round.
 
The contest, hosted by the NE Manufacturing Alliance and powered by the NE Chamber, celebrates the state’s thriving manufacturing industry with Nebraska residents, students, educators, community leaders, manufacturers and especially, the more than 100,000 Nebraskans working in manufacturing every day.
 
The tournament leads Nebraskans into the annual celebration of NE Manufacturing Month. The Coolest Thing will be announced October 29 at the NE Chamber’s Manufacturing Summit in La Vista, where the top 16 finalists are invited to display their products.

​​LINCOLN, Nebraska — October 2, 2024 — Four Nebraska-made products have advanced to the semifinals of the Coolest Thing Made in Nebraska competition following thousands of votes in round two.
 
The following Nebraska manufacturers and their products are semifinalists:
• Valley Center Pivot, Valley Irrigation – A Valmont Company, Valley
• Barrel Aged Lord of Ord, Scratchtown Brewing Company, Ord
• Toilet Paper, Outlook Nebraska, Omaha
• Autonomous Feed Truck, ALA Engineering, Scottsbluff
Descriptions of each product and its manufacturer can be found here.

Public voting for the top four products in the bracket-style competition is now open and will be held Wednesday, October 2, through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, October 6. Manufacturers, students and all Nebraskans are invited to vote for their favorite product manufactured in Nebraska each week here.  Each voter is permitted one vote per matchup, per round.
 
The contest, hosted by the NE Manufacturing Alliance and powered by the NE Chamber, celebrates the state’s thriving manufacturing industry with Nebraska residents, students, educators, community leaders, manufacturers and especially, the more than 100,000 Nebraskans working in manufacturing every day.
 
The tournament leads Nebraskans into the annual celebration of NE Manufacturing Month this October. The Coolest Thing will be announced October 29 at the NE Chamber’s Manufacturing Summit in La Vista, where the top 16 finalists are invited to display their products.

​LINCOLN, Nebraska — September 25, 2024 —The field in the Coolest Thing Made in Nebraska competition has been set. Tens of thousands of votes were cast in the first round, shrinking the field from 16 products to eight.
 
The following Nebraska manufacturers and their products are among the top eight contenders.
• Valley Center Pivot, Valley Irrigation – A Valmont Company, Valley
• Barrel Aged Lord of Ord, Scratchtown Brewing Company, Ord
• Toilet Paper, Outlook Nebraska, Omaha
• Autonomous Feed Truck, ALA Engineering, Scottsbluff
• 9mm Luger +P Critical Duty, Hornady, Grand Island
• Hand-Painted Wallpaper, Vahallan, Lincoln
• Convertible Checkout Counter, Lozier, Omaha
• Insulin Syringes, embecta, Holdrege
Descriptions of each product and its manufacturer can be found here.

​Public voting for the top eight products in the bracket-style competition is now open and will be held Wednesday, September 25, through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, September 29. Manufacturers, students and all Nebraskans are invited to vote for their favorite product manufactured in Nebraska each week here. Each voter is permitted one vote per matchup, per round.
 
“It’s exciting to watch the votes roll in and see results begin to take shape,” said Mike Johnson, NE Chamber COO & EVP of Manufacturing. “These eight products are all so unique and perfectly represent the diversity of Nebraska’s Manufacturing sector.”
 
The contest, hosted by the NE Manufacturing Alliance and powered by the NE Chamber, celebrates the state’s thriving manufacturing industry with Nebraska residents, students, educators, community leaders, manufacturers and especially, the more than 100,000 Nebraska makers working in manufacturing every day.
 
The tournament leads Nebraskans into the annual celebration of NE Manufacturing Month this October. The Coolest Thing will be announced October 29 at the NE Chamber’s Manufacturing Summit in La Vista, where the top 16 finalists are invited to display their products.

LINCOLN, Nebraska — September 11, 2024 — Voting for Round 1 of the third annual “Coolest Thing Made in Nebraska” competition is officially open.  Votes can be cast here.
 
Public voting for the top 16 products in the bracket-style competition will be held Wednesday, September 11, through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, September 22. Manufacturers, students and all Nebraskans are invited to vote for their favorite product manufactured in Nebraska each week through the month of September at nemanufacturingalliance.com.  Each voter is permitted one vote per matchup, per round.
 
The following Nebraska manufacturers and their products are among the top 16 contenders.
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• Valley Center Pivot, Valley Irrigation – A Valmont Company, Valley
• Barrel Aged Lord of Ord, Scratchtown Brewing Company, Ord
• Toilet Paper, Outlook Nebraska, Omaha
• Autonomous Feed Truck, ALA Engineering, Scottsbluff
• 9mm Luger +P Critical Duty, Hornady, Grand Island
• Conti SilentSync, ContiTech, Lincoln
• Hand-Painted Wallpaper, Vahallan, Lincoln
• Convertible Checkout Counter, Lozier, Omaha
• Grandma’s Fruitcake, Beatrice Bakery Company, Beatrice
• Sugar, Western Sugar Cooperative, Scottsbluff
• Insulin Syringes, Embecta, Holdrege
• Marble Pack-Off, Marble Technologies, Lincoln
• USB Charger, Lester Electrical, Lincoln
• Simply Sunflower Oil, Simply Sunflower, Ord
• BonnaVilla Modular Home, Chief Industries, Aurora
• MIRA - miniRAS, Virtual Incision, Lincoln
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Descriptions of each product and its manufacturer can be found here.
 
The contest, hosted by the NE Manufacturing Alliance and powered by the NE Chamber, celebrates the state’s thriving manufacturing industry with Nebraska residents, students, educators, community leaders, manufacturers and especially, the more than 100,000 Nebraska makers working in manufacturing every day.
 
The tournament leads Nebraskans into the annual celebration of NE Manufacturing Month this October. The Coolest Thing will be announced October 29 at the NE Chamber’s Manufacturing Summit in La Vista, where the top 16 finalists are invited to display their products.

LINCOLN, Nebraska — September 3, 2024 — The top 16 products in the third annual “Coolest Thing Made in Nebraska” contest have been announced.

Public voting for the top 16 products in the bracket-style competition will be held Wednesday, September 11, through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, September 22 with advanced rounds to follow. Manufacturers, students and all Nebraskans are invited to vote for their favorite product manufactured in Nebraska each week through the beginning of October at nemanufacturingalliance.com.

The contest, hosted by the NE Manufacturing Alliance and powered by the NE Chamber, celebrates the state’s thriving manufacturing industry with Nebraska residents, students, educators, community leaders, manufacturers and especially, the more than 100,000 Nebraskans working in manufacturing every day.

The following Nebraska manufacturers and their products made it to the top 16.

• Valley Center Pivot, Valley Irrigation – A Valmont Company, Valley
• Barrel Aged Lord of Ord, Scratchtown Brewing Company, Ord
• Toilet Paper, Outlook Nebraska, Omaha
• Autonomous Feed Truck, ALA Engineering, Scottsbluff
• 9mm Luger +P Critical Duty, Hornady, Grand Island
• Conti SilentSync, ContiTech, Lincoln
• Hand-Painted Wallpaper, Vahallan, Lincoln
• Convertible Checkout Counter, Lozier, Omaha
• Grandma’s Fruitcake, Beatrice Bakery Company, Beatrice
• Sugar, Western Sugar Cooperative, Scottsbluff
• Insulin Syringes, Embecta, Holdrege
• Automated Meat Processing System, Marble Technologies, Lincoln
• USB Charger, Lester Electrical, Lincoln
• Simply Sunflower Oil, Simply Sunflower, Ord
• BonnaVilla Modular Home, Chief Industries, Aurora
• MIRA - miniRAS, Virtual Incision, Lincoln

“The Coolest Thing Made in Nebraska competition is a great way to bring awareness to Nebraska’s diverse and abundant manufacturing sector,” said Mike Johnson, NE Chamber Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of Manufacturing. “It’s so impressive to see all of the incredible things made right here in Nebraska, and we’re thrilled to be sharing the third year of this competition with all Nebraskans.”
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The tournament will once again lead Nebraskans into the annual celebration of NE Manufacturing Month this October. The Coolest Thing will be announced October 29 at the NE Chamber’s Manufacturing Summit in La Vista, where finalists will be invited to display their products. Registration for the event will be available soon on the NE Chamber’s Event page.

​​On August 19th, the NE Chamber Foundation hosted its inaugural Chamber Cup at Wilderness Ridge in Lincoln.  The tournament, sponsored by Cox Communications, brought together 26 teams from companies across the state for a day filled with fun and golf – all while supporting the NE Chamber Foundation’s work.

Teams were made up of business leaders from some of the NE Chamber Foundation’s most valued supporters, representing the strength and diversity of Nebraska’s business community.  The 26 teams included:

The NE Chamber Foundation was thrilled to have Cox Communications as the Title Sponsor for the event.  Cox’s commitment to supporting the NE Chamber Foundation was instrumental in making the day a success.  We were also fortunate enough to have several hole sponsors -– JE Dunn Construction, Leuder Construction, Nebraska Independent Community Bankers and SiteScapes Inc.

Prizes for the top three golf teams were awarded. Congratulations to Frontier Bank for winning first place!  SiteScapes/Sampson Construction came in with second and Fremont Automation claimed third.
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Thank you to all the teams and sponsors who contributed to the success of the Chamber Cup!  We look forward to welcoming everyone back for next year’s tournament – more details to come soon!

LINCOLN, Nebraska — September 25, 2024 —The field in the Coolest Thing Made in Nebraska competition has been set. Tens of thousands of votes were cast in the first round, shrinking the field from 16 products to eight.
The following Nebraska manufacturers and their products are among the top eight contenders.

• Valley Center Pivot, Valley Irrigation – A Valmont Company, Valley • Barrel Aged Lord of Ord, Scratchtown Brewing Company, Ord • Toilet Paper, Outlook Nebraska, Omaha • Autonomous Feed Truck, ALA Engineering, Scottsbluff • 9mm Luger +P Critical Duty, Hornady, Grand Island • Hand-Painted Wallpaper, Vahallan, Lincoln • Convertible Checkout Counter, Lozier, Omaha • Insulin Syringes, embecta, Holdrege

Descriptions of each product and its manufacturer can be found here

​Public voting for the top eight products in the bracket-style competition is now open and will be held Wednesday, September 25, through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, September 29. Manufacturers, students and all Nebraskans are invited to vote for their favorite product manufactured in Nebraska each week here. Each voter is permitted one vote per
matchup, per round.

“It’s exciting to watch the votes roll in and see results begin to take shape,” said Mike Johnson, NE Chamber COO & EVP of Manufacturing. “These eight products are all so unique and perfectly represent the diversity of Nebraska’s Manufacturing sector.”
​
The contest, hosted by the NE Manufacturing Alliance and powered by the NE Chamber, celebrates the state’s thriving manufacturing industry with Nebraska residents, students, educators, community leaders, manufacturers
and especially, the more than 100,000 Nebraska makers working in manufacturing every day.
​
The tournament leads Nebraskans into the annual celebration of NE Manufacturing Month this October. The Coolest Thing will be announced October 29 at the NE Chamber’s Manufacturing Summit in La Vista, where the
top 16 finalists are invited to display their products.

The NE Chamber recently welcomed Dena Beck, Toshia Jones and Zane Francescato as the Central, Western and Southeastern Regional Navigators through 6 Regions, One Nebraska.  6 Regions, One Nebraska is a new regional development initiative designed to reflect a new era of economic development in Nebraska.  Spearheaded by the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce, Governor's Office, and the Nebraska Department of Economic Development (DED), this initiative focuses on identifying and leveraging each region's unique assets and resources to best benefit statewide communities.  The goal of 6 Regions, One Nebraska is to foster regional cooperation, making partnerships the norm for pursuing economic development across the state.