Key Knife, Inc., a manufacturer of industrial chipping systems for the global wood products industry, is celebrating their 30th anniversary this month. For the last 18 years the company’s headquarters and manufacturing facility has resided in beautiful Tualatin, OR.
The company was started in 1986 when Bob Bayly and Tom Carpenter joined forces to develop a disposable knife for the Oriented Strand Board (OSB) industry. Over the years Key Knife expanded into the sawmill, planer, pulp mill, and particleboard industries. In 2010 the loyal and hardworking employees became 100% owners of Key Knife through an ESOP.
Key Knife now employs 89 wonderful men and woman world-wide, with 63 of the employees working at the Tualatin facility. Average tenure of a Key Knife employee is an impressive 12.2 years. The dedicated and talented employees of Key Knife share their spirit with the surrounding communities by volunteering with local sports clubs, park and recreation districts, and local charities. In addition, employees have dug deep into their pockets donating $23,000 to over 40 local and national charitable causes.
During the week of July 18th, Key Knife employees and their families from as far away as Austria, will converge on Tualatin to celebrate the monumental occasion. During the fun-filled week employees will carve out some time to help the City of Tualatin by volunteering on the gorgeous Tualatin River Greenway Trail.
From the company’s inception to now the employee-owners of Key Knife carry on the tradition of helping the company and surrounding communities to THRIVE.
On August 4th the employee-owners of Key Knife will host Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici, a strong advocate of ESOPs in the U.S. Congress, will experience first-hand the positive impacts an ESOP can have on employees and the local community.