Leavenworth-based Henke Manufacturing transforms plates of steel into snow plows

LEAVENWORTH, Kan. — It seems like there have been more days than ever this winter where drivers woke up hoping the snow plow hit the streets.

It turns out hundreds of snow plows start their journey in Leavenworth, Kansas. Henke Manufacturing is based in the Kansas city and makes snow plows which cities such as Lenexa, Olathe, Kansas City, Missouri, and agencies all over North America use to clear the roads.

The company showed 41 Action News a behind the scenes look at the step by step process of building a snow plow.

“If you didn't know any better, you'd never know we were here,” said Bob Wood, a regional sales manager with Henke Manufacturing.

But every driver depends on what happens inside a warehouse wedged between the VA Medical Center and Highway 73 in Leavenworth. Here a team transforms a plate of steel into a plow that will attach to a truck or motor grader to plow roads as far away as Argentina.

First, engineers design a plow. Some orders are custom-built for a specific purpose. Others are standard plows.

Next, machines shoot out hot plasma to cut plates of steel into the necessary pieces.

“We need very intricate holes and designs,” Wood said.

After a series of lathe work, trimming, drilling and welding, the plow starts to look like something you'd recognize.

"You can start to really see that curvature shape," Wood said, tracing his hand along a half-built plow.

Final assembly takes place in a neighboring building where crews combine all the pieces together in time for a coat of paint.

"Heavy material, all that cutting, grinding, that assembly work. It's critical we provide the highest quality product - the most durable product. Because at the end of the day, when the snow starts falling, that Henke snow plow has to perform, and it does," Wood explained.

Wood said 100 "souls" keep the Henke plant in Leavenworth cranking all year round. The company moved to the area from northern Iowa about 25 years for one strategic reason: location.

"Being centrally located in the country here near Kansas City gives us a huge advantage over our competitors," Wood said. "Kansas City offers us a lot of transportation options."

The work taking place in Leavenworth helps agencies clear roads, highways, and parking lots all over the world. On the day 41 Action News visited, Henke was shipping plows to the Wyoming Department of Transportation.

"You kind of look at that load leaving and it's kind of like your kid going off to college, It's a tough moment," Wood admitted. "But we have more plows to build behind it."

So many plows to build that Henke is hiring. The company has job openings in just about every position from engineers and sales reps, to welders and painters.

Over the last several years, the company has started an evolution beyond snow. Henke installs and services equipment, makes salt spreaders, blades for bulldozers and recently began working on a claw-like attachment to pick up brush or other debris.

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