American Manufacturing: 22 Tales of Integrity, Ingenuity, and the Modest Heroes Who Built a Nation

In this collection of his favorite manufacturing stories, industry veteran Jim Vinoski challenges one of the biggest, most harmful myths in our country today: "Americans don't make anything anymore."

Nothing could be further from the truth. Vinoski delves into the histories of some of the most fascinating manufacturers in the United States today to show that, yes, a whole lot of very cool people are still making very cool things here.

Did you know:

• Zamboni was founded in sunny California, when a Los Angeles-area skating rink owner got tired of the time and expense of having his ice manually resurfaced?
• A company established right after the American Revolution by one of our nation's founding fathers is still thriving today?
• Both the bell that gave the angel Clarence his wings in It's a Wonderful Life and the cowbell from the legendary Saturday Night Live skit were made in Connecticut by the last American bell manufacturer still in business?
• Every single Cirrus aircraft comes equipped with a whole-plane parachute so trouble in the air doesn't become a death sentence?

Vinoski shares these and 18 other stories of great products, businesses, and people that show the wide variety of things still being made on our shores.

There are lessons for his fellow industry insiders too. Aspiring manufacturers are focused on new tech like robotics and AI to build the factories of the future. But it's also vital that they learn how the folks who have fought and won in the extremely competitive marketplace of the past have survived and succeeded despite the many headwinds and crises they've faced over decades and generations.

The companies Vinoski celebrates in American Manufacturing have much to teach us all.