ALLIANCE, Neb. (AP) - In any given month, two to three million feet of hydraulic and industrial hose is produced out of the Parker Hannifin facility in Alliance.
Parker Hannifin is the world’s largest motion and control technological company with manufacturing facilities worldwide. Anything from valves to hoses or solenoids can be manufactured at Parker facilities. The Alliance location employs 230 people and operates three shifts five to six days a week.
The factory has been in the same location on the east side of Alliance since 1965, but hose manufacturing didn’t start there until 1972 when Electric Hose and Rubber bought the building, according to the Scottsbluff Star-Herald. In the 1980s, it became Dayco, then Parker purchased the operation in 2001.
The building itself went through several occupants prior to Electric Hose and Rubber. It was a soft drink bottling plant, then a wooden ski factory for a short time before the advent of fiberglass skis. Since becoming a hose factory, several additions have been done to bring it to its current 270,000 square-foot size.
Hoses from 3/16 to 4 inches are manufactured in Alliance and are typically used for hydraulics or liquid propane. In all, there are more than 500 part numbers on the production list for a wide range of customers that include everything from distributors to sales directly to the end customer.
Alliance has been a good home for Parker Hannifin, one of four locations in Nebraska, along with McCook, Gothenburg and Kearney. The central location in the United States is helpful for logistics and Dayco was already reputable and well-established when Parker chose to purchase the plant in Alliance, but the people of Nebraska are a key reason the company has the four locations.
“Nebraska has a great work ethic,” Plant Manager Chris Nelson said. “The team here performs very well, not just saying Alliance, but Nebraska itself is a good state. … Quite a few employees work for Parker in Nebraska.”
Nelson started with Dayco in 1999, running a machine on the factory floor. He is among 40 to 50 employees who remain from the Dayco days. Nelson said the company is able to maintain long-term employees because of competitive wages and benefits and the security of the company.
“We try to make sure things are stable,” Nelson said. “The market changes a lot, but we try to take a lot of precautions to make sure that we can weather any ups or downs. Being a global company, there is always opportunity to improve one’s career. That’s another thing that attracts a lot of people to Parker is you can be developed, and if you want to go out in the world and promote yourself and try to make a stair-step career for yourself, there’s a lot of opportunity for people to do that.”
Nelson, who is in his sixth year as plant manager, said technology has been the biggest change since he started. The machinery making the hose is very similar, but the interface with computers has made processing easier. That said, Nelson added that the biggest resource is always the people.
“There’s never been a time they weren’t an A-plus team,” he said. “I’m always surprised that, no matter what challenge is put in front of them, they always seem to overcome it and get the work done. Another thing about Alliance is we have a very good safety record here. … The people here take the safety aspect very seriously. I think just knowing that we care about each other helps us to be motivated to do a good job at work. They stick up for each other. They realize that the team itself has to be successful, so they stick up for each other when the chips are down and they support each other. Another reason I have always loved working here.”
Nelson is an Alliance native and has lived there with the exception of a brief time living in Scottsbluff and commuting to Alliance for work.
“I’ve always loved living here,” Nelson said. “I love the Sandhills - we’re not necessarily in the Sandhills, but it’s just five miles to the east. But I’ve always loved the Panhandle of Nebraska. It’s not for everybody, right? But it’s definitely for me. I’ve taken assignments in other facilities, but it’s always temporary, and I come back here because this is my job and my home.”
Like many employees of Parker Hannifin and residents of Alliance, Nelson said it’s the feeling of community that keeps him in Alliance and a love of his job that keeps him at Parker.
“I feel like I belong here,” he said. “I know myself, and this is where I belong. Actually, it’s always a privilege to be the plant manager here, and I feel I belong here, too. Quite often I like to remind the workforce that I appreciate that they’re here.”
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