By: Ryan Amundson, Senior Director of Communications
It’s the uncertainty of it all.
That’s the sentiment of one manufacturer when it comes to the roller-coaster ride his business and others like it have endured since the beginning of April and the introduction of across-the-board tariffs placed on imports from around the globe.
“We’re all unsure of the rules of the game,” said Jason Plowman, President of HeatTek Inc. in Ixonia.
For 26 years, the Jefferson County-based business has provided heat-treating solutions to other businesses across the globe. They manufacture industrial ovens, furnaces and washers for other businesses that produce everything from aluminum cans to electric vehicles.
While the Trump administration’s global trade policy has caused prices to jump on imports, Plowman said the biggest obstacle he and his business is facing is the unknown.
“How do you plan for everything,” he asked, pointing to projects and orders that have been put on hold.
Plowman said while orders have slowed, the company has a “decent backlog” to enable production to keep moving. On the expense side, Plowman said he’s seen an increase in price for parts and components – between 10 to 15 percent depending on where the part is from – but added that manufacturers in the same sector are seeing those same increases.
To be prudent, Plowman said the company has enacted some cost-cutting measures, like downsizing space. Those measures have also included minimal cuts to personnel.
Banking in uncertain times
One of the resources businesses like HeatTek can lean on during these uncertain times is Ampersand – a Waukesha-based startup serving its clientele by managing their cash deposits.
“We ensure that all cash deposits are fully FDIC-insured,” said Nicole Balistreri, Director of Marketing and Communications. “Secondly, we can help our customers get great rates on their cash deposits. In today’s financial and economic environment, people are concerned with the rate they’re getting on their cash. When you think about increased costs when it comes to a tariff, like materials costs rising, a lot of business leaders are looking for any lever they can pull to help bring in a little something extra to the bottom line.”
With clients across a variety of sectors – Balistreri said they’ve heard from several of them, expressing concern over the current economic climate when it comes to global trade.
“Two things can be true at the same time,” she said. “You can want to support efforts to onshore American jobs and to undo what one might perceive to be poor trade deals, at the same time understanding that uncertainty in the economy is a negative.”
Balistreri said tariffs and the uncertainty surrounding them could leave community banks vulnerable, as well. When margins become tighter with increased costs, business owners may have to dip into cash reserves, leaving gaps elsewhere. When those same businesses go to those banks for a line of credit, the uncertainty can create a domino effect.
“Let’s say I get in a bad position as a business owner. I have a line of credit at the community bank that I can’t pay back because my costs continue to increase,” she said. “Then what happens? That community bank is going to suffer, and then that community is going to suffer.”
Balistreri said Ampersand is providing the same advice to their clients in good times, challenging times and times of uncertainty.
“We want our customers to make their cash work for them,” she said. “Make sure it’s protected. We make sure their deposits are fully insured. We make sure they’re getting the best rate possible and they’re working with partners that are aligned with them and their business.”
“When you’re facing increased costs as it related to tariffs, cash management is a lever you can pull,” she added.
