Tag Archives: 80th Anniversary

Grand Opening! State Of the Art Lunchroom at Albina Co., Inc.

As we near the end of our 80th Anniversary celebration, and during this holiday season of Thanksgiving, we wanted to give a special “Thank You” to our employees and provide them with a modern, state of the art, relaxing place for them to enjoy breaks and lunch together. We decided to create an elevated lunchroom up on our mezzanine level, giving the employees a retreat away from the production floor and opening up more production space below the mezzanine. This new production space opens up many opportunities for new equipment and capacities, just like the DAVI MAV K30 Plate Roll we just purchased! More information to come on that next month.
Jackson-Barrett Construction did an amazing job on the project! They were professional and efficient and produced an extremely high quality room for us. With their help, we also commissioned a local company called PDX Wraps to create custom wall wraps for both the exterior and interior of the room. Such a cool product!
In addition, we surveyed our crew to find out what was most important to them when creating this new space. Items included cell phone and laptop charging stations, multiple microwaves and refrigerators, and ergonomic chairs

Elevated Lunchroom at Albina Co., Inc. Wall Wraps by PDX Wraps
State of the Art Lunchroom at Albina Co., Inc. Wall wraps by PDX Wraps
View out the lunchroom window down on shop floor at Albina Co., Inc.
Refrigerator and Microwave Wall in Lunchroom at Albina Co., Inc.
Lockers and custom painted doors in lunchroom at Albina Co., Inc.
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The “Springfield Flame” Graces the Cover of the West Coast Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine!

Check out the cover spot and three page feature article on Albina Co., Inc. in the June/July West Coast Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine. Pages 24-26! Portland artist Devin Laurence Field produced the laser-­cut stainless steel flame sculpture and Albina Co., Inc. bent 18″ STD A53B ERW 10 lens x 40 ft down to a 42 ft radius for the sculpture.

We had such a great time working with Linda and Kim to highlight and showcase all of the amazing curved steel projects we have done in Oregon, Washington, and California. Some projects featured in the article include:

Portland International Airport Curved Steel Canopy
Portland International Airport Canopy
Daly Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum Curved Steel Roof
Dale Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum- Seattle, WA.
The Spheres Curved Steel Spheres
“The Spheres” Seattle, WA.
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Happy Father’s Day

I’m proud of my hard work. Working hard won’t always lead to the exact things we desire. There are many things I’ve wanted that I haven’t always gotten. But, I have a great satisfaction in the blessings from my mother and father, who instilled a great work ethic in me both personally and professionally. –Tamron Hall

Father’s Day is upon us! Father’s Day is particularly important to me as I lost my father, Bill, over 8 years ago, and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about him or get a reminder of him while at work. It can be a phone call from someone in the industry who used to work with him, it can be an old quote I see come across my desk with his name on it, it can be my daily rounds through the shop where I can still see him problem solving with a machine operator on a particularly challenging job. Whatever it may be, I always remind myself that I am a representative of the Smith Family and the steel bending business that my grandfather and father helped to build. Jaime and I have been building on their values for many, many years now and feel great about where we have been able to take the business. All three generations have worked in both the shop and office during our careers. A fourth generation spends their summers pulling weeds, washing windows and doing database entry in their spare time. We have four generations of family who believe in the steel industry and believe in the value of hard work. I have no idea if my son and daughter will be interested in taking over the family business some day, but if they do, I am confident that they will work hard, be honest and carry on the traditions we have lived by for the last 80 years! I am a proud business owner and a proud Father. Happy Father’s Day to all you Father’s out there! 

Bill & Brian Smith-2001
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Utah District Courthouse Spiral Staircase Graces Cover of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine in June!

Check out the cover spot and three page feature article on Albina Co., Inc. in the June Rocky Mountain Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine. Pages 18-20! We had such a great time working with Linda and Kim to highlight and showcase all of the amazing curved steel projects we have done in Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. Some projects featured in the article include:

Sun Valley Music Pavillion in Sun Valley, ID. 220,000# of pipe rolled ranging from 10" Sch80 to 10" XXH
Sun Valley Music Pavillion in Sun Valley, ID. 220,000# of pipe rolled ranging from 10″ Sch80 to 10″ XXH
Custom Signage at Entrance to Yellow Stone National Park Attraction "Buffalo Bill Cody Stampede Park"
Custom Signage at Entrance to Yellow Stone National Park Attraction “Buffalo Bill Cody Stampede Park”
Ellie Caulkins Opera House Denver, CO. 210 lengths 1-1/2" x 1-1/2" x 3/16" angle rolled to numerous compound radii
Ellie Caulkins Opera House Denver, CO. 210 lengths 1-1/2″ x 1-1/2″ x 3/16″ angle rolled to numerous compound radii
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Feature Article & Cover Shot in May SW Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine

Check out the two-page feature article on Albina Co., Inc. in the May Southwest Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine. We had such a great time working with Linda and Kim putting the article together.

The article highlights several projects that we have participated in specifically in the states of Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico. Our company history, philosophy and future goals are also touched on in the piece. 

A2Z Manufacturing Cover Shot
50,000# of Bent Steel Provided by Albina Co., Inc. for Sloan Park- Home of the Chicago Cubs Spring Training Facility
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Feature Article in the Portland Business Tribune

Albina Co., Inc. is drawing a lot of attention locally and nationwide as we celebrate 80 years in the steel bending business. Our story is one of the unique ones as we span three generations of Smith owners! Check out the article on the Portland Business Tribune website. 

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Albina Co., Inc. Celebrating 80 Years in the Steel Bending Industry!

Albina Co., Inc., located outside Portland, Oregon, has been providing customers with innovative, quality curved steel services and products since 1939. A family owned and operated, third generation business, run by Brian Smith, specializes in structural steel, tube and pipe bending, plate rolling and fabrication. Albina produces virtually any metal component that needs to bend or curve without the use of pre-formed fittings. Albina has provided curved steel for many high-profile buildings, stadiums and structures in the United States and Canada. Albina was the steel bender of choice on the recently completed Amazon Spheres in Seattle,Washington.

Albina is an industry leader in research and development and in 2018, purchased an MCP30 by Davi, the first type of bending machine in the United States with a “iRoll” smart camera system, allowing operators to view the part being bent compared to a radius template on the control screen.  The machine has the ability to “learn and remember” how different materials bend, where the rolls need to be positioned, and how much spring back is associated with a bend / material.

Brian and Jaime Smith by the Davi Machine
Brian and Jaime Smith by the Davi Machine

Albina also purchased a Bend-Tech Dragon A400 Plasma Cutter, a commercial grade CNC tube cutting ,engraving, and marking machine with the world’s most powerful CAD/CAM software. Other new equipment included new welders, jib cranes, induction heating coils, an electric forklift and 40 sets of tooling.

Albina was an instrumental player in the development of the first ever Design Guide of its kind in the United States offering information on the fabrication, design and detailing of curved members. Design Guide 33 “Curved Member Design” was released in October 2018 by the AISC Bender/Roller committee and is an invaluable resource for the industry!

Front Cover of Design Guide 33: “Curved Member Design”http://www.aisc.org/curvedsteel

Albina not only has one of the newest, most technologically advanced machines on the market, Albina also has one of the oldest, custom made bending machines ever created! In honor of the 80th Anniversary, Albina created a museum on site, called “The Smith-sonian”, honoring the family name and housing one of the first ever pieces of equipment that Albina owned and used to bend materials. Brian’s grandfather built the“Model-T” bending machine in the early 1940’s utilizing the transmission and differential from a “Model-T” Ford. This machine was used until the 1990’s to bend various materials such as pipe, tube, and square and rectangular hollow structural steel. “The Smith-sonian” is ready for visitors. Cheers to 80 Years!

The Smith-sonian Is Open for Visitors! 
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Meet Brian and Jaime Smith-Happy New Year!

With every New Year comes excitement about the anticipation of what is to come, but also a bit of caution as to what may lie ahead. That is why we took two New Year’s pictures this year as a family! We must stick to what we know to keep our family and business strong, but we must also have the fortitude to take a leap when a project or challenge comes our way. The uncertain economic and social times we live in pose challenges each and every day, but I am confident in the companies we partner with, the people we work with, and the projects we invest in. Maintaining a strong steel industry, just like raising a strong family, is a collaborative effort. All hands on deck! Lets work together to get through these uncertain times and come out stronger on the other end!

And with every New Year comes reflection about the year prior. 2018 was one for the record books as we worked on many exciting curved steel projects. Albina was fortunate to team up with some great fabricators on a massive project in California this last year.  The project (to be named at a later date) consisted of 100’s of trucks, thousands of pieces and millions of pounds of bent steel.  This was the largest project Albina has processed to date and we look forward to working on more projects that have this level of complexity and excitement in 2019, the 80th Anniversary of our company!! Cheers to 80 Years! 

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Custom Made 1940’s Bending Machine Displayed On-Site at “The Smith-sonian” in Honor of 80 Years in Business!

In honor of our 80th Anniversary, Albina has created a museum on site, called “The Smith-sonian”, which honors the family name and houses one of the first ever pieces of equipment that Albina owned and used to bend materials. John Smith, Brian’s grandfather, built the “Model-T” bending machine in the early 1940’s utilizing the transmission and differential from a “Model-T” Ford. This machine was used to roll/bend various materials such as pipe, tube, and square and rectangular HSS (hollow structural steel). The machine would pull material around a bend die resulting in a smooth radius finished good. The “Model-T” was in operation at Albina until the 1990’s when it was replaced by more efficient bending equipment. “The Smith-sonian” is ready for visitors. Stop by to see us! Cheers to 80 Years! You can check out a virtual tour on YouTube.

Albina 80th Anniversary "The Smith-sonian"

Albina 80th Anniversary "The Smith-sonian"

Albina 80th Anniversary "The Smith-sonian"

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Gearing Up for Our 80th Anniversary in 2019!

We are hard at work planning lots of fun events and stocking up on lots of COOL Albina Company swag to prepare for the year-long celebration of our 80th Anniversary. We are in the planning stages of some great activities and events in order recognize all of our employees, customers and vendors that have helped us reach this milestone! We are also creating “The Museum” on site which will house one of the first ever pieces of equipment that Albina owned and used to bend materials. My Grandfather (John Smith) built our “Model-T” bending machine in the late 1930’s / early 1940’s utilizing the transmission and differential from a “Model-T” Ford. This machine was used to roll/bend various materials such as pipe, tube, square and rectangular HSS (hollow structural steel). The machine would pull material around a bend die resulting in a smooth radius finished good. The “Model-T” was in operation at Albina until the 1990’s when it was replaced by more efficient bending equipment.

We hope to have “The Museum” set up and ready for visitors after the first of the new year. Stop by to see us! We are happy to take you on a tour of our shop and show you the machine!

Bending Machine powered by Model T Ford Engine

Bending Machine powered by Model T Ford Engine

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