In its showcase of the state's manufacturing industry, The Making Kansas Bus Tour will roll into Wichita on Friday, making stops at seven local companies, including Spirit AeroSystems, WSU Tech and Cocoa Dolce.
The bus is scheduled to be in Wichita from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday, which is also National Manufacturing Day.
The statewide tour from the Kansas Manufacturing Council, an affiliate program of the Kansas Chamber, aims to bring awareness about the state's manufacturers and career opportunities in the industry. Already the bus has stopped in Hutchinson, Topeka, Emporia, Dodge City and several other towns and cities.
On Friday, the bus is scheduled to make the following stops:
- 9:15 a.m. at Spirit AeroSystems
- 10:45 a.m. at BG Products, El Dorado
- 12:30 p.m. at WSU Tech
- 1 p.m. at Lee Aerospace
- 2 p.m. at Johnson Controls
- 3 p.m. at Reiloy USA, Maize
- 4 p.m. at Cocoa Dolce
The Kansas Manufacturing Council's Coolest Thing Made in Kansas competition is also going on, with the third round of voting open until Friday. Then, Oct. 4 through 11, voters will narrow the competition from eight products to four, and a winner will be announced during the Kansas Manufacturing Summit on Oct. 12 at the Kansas Star Casino and Event Center in Mulvane.
Vote for the Coolest Thing Made in Kansas online at kansascool.com.
The eight products still in the running include:
- Park Aerospace in Newton is competing with its design and manufacture of parts for the James Webb Space Telescope, which will succeed NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in a new program that launches in October.
- The Hutchinson-based Yoder Smokers has a Frontiersman offset smoker that could be used for competitive cooking, event catering or even a restaurant.
- Coleman's 316 Series 100-quart wheeled cooler, named for its Wichita roots, is in the running.
- The Clay Center-based ESPi Corp. has engineered, designed and manufactured the VOLTAR 2.0 Solar UPS solar panel, which provides uninterrupted off-grid power, predominately for reliable internet coverage in rural communities.
- Wichita's own Cocoa Dolce is a competitor for its innovative and creative approach to chocolate-making, with a state-of-the-art production kitchen in the former Coleman factory building downtown.
- MPix in Pittsburg prints images on a variety of substrates and products, their metal and wood prints being the most popular and high-tech.
- Pat's Beef Jerky has nearly turned Liebenthal, Kan., into a tourist destination, with a loyal following traveling long hours for jerky made with Kansas-raised meat products.
- Hometown Pie Co. got its start in 2011 in a family home in Waverly. Now headquartered in New Strawn, it's turned into a wholesale distribution company, preparing dozens of flavors of from-scratch pies and cheesecakes.
