Precision Manufacturing is a Foundational Industry in St. Cloud

Since the mid-1800s, when the first granite quarry opened in the region, St. Cloud has been known as the “Busy, Gritty Granite City.” Men used hammers, levers, and pulleys to pry rocks from the ground and export them throughout the United States. The quarry opening was actually the first step toward St. Cloud, Minnesota, becoming a precision manufacturing hub – a title it holds proudly today.

“St. Cloud is home to people who have worked in manufacturing for generations,” says Cathy Mehelich, Economic Development Director for the City of St. Cloud Economic Development Authority (EDA). “How they manufacture products and what they produce have changed over the years, but the core competencies remain.”

Explore St. Cloud’s precision manufacturing sector and see how historical factors contributed to the modern economy. Discover why 14.5% of all employment in the St. Cloud Metropolitan Area is tied to manufacturing. 

Precision Manufacturing Was Essential to the Granite Industry 

The granite industry started as a rudimentary field in St. Cloud. Workers used hand-held tools with the sole purpose of extracting rocks from the ground. However, as the local population grew, so did the number of innovators exploring ways to do things better.

Business owners started investing in new technology that made it easier to extract granite, scaling production and cementing St. Cloud’s reputation as the Granite City. However, other entrepreneurs began turning the raw materials into finished products, creating a value-added manufacturing industry within the region.

“Non-metallic mineral product manufacturing is a pretty specialized industry because granite is hard and heavy,” says Luke Greiner, a Regional Analyst for the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). “It’s not a product you want to send to Mexico and then ship back.”

Over the years, a precision manufacturing industry was built around granite. King Banaian, a professor of economics at St. Cloud State University (SCSU), says this marks a transition from gross motor skills in manufacturing to fine motor skills.

“There’s a long history of machine building in this community because we needed to make precision tools,” says Banaian. “Once you start engraving a name on a rock, you can employ the same kinds of activities to other materials and industries.”

Today, the granite industry is still strong in St. Cloud. Greiner reports that employment increased 47% between 2016 and 2026. There are currently nine establishments in St. Cloud producing non-metallic products, with wages averaging around $67,000 per year. Companies like Sunburst Memorials maintain the Granite City heritage by shipping 7,500 memorials annually to nearly 200 dealers across the country. Park Industries, also based in St. Cloud, is a manufacturer of machinery for stone fabricators, bringing the granite industry into the modern era. 

New Industries Formed With the Same Skills

The culture of innovation also remains in St. Cloud, even 150 years after the first precision manufacturers developed better tools and machines for the granite quarries. Many firms have opened that use the same skills as mineral product manufacturing, even though their products have nothing to do with rocks.

For example, there are more than 60 fabricated metal businesses in St. Cloud. Demand for welders, CNC machinists, mechanics, and industrial engineers is high as companies create machines and improve processes for in-demand products.

“You see a transfer of knowledge across the generations, with labor skills getting passed on to children and grandchildren,” says Banaian. “Once you know how to build a granite-polishing machine, you can take steps to create other machines for different industries.”

Greiner highlights a direct correlation between the granite industry and the eyeglass industry in St. Cloud. The same skills are used to seamlessly cut and polish surfaces at the best possible angles. Eyeglass manufacturers like Eye-Kraft and EssilorLuxottica have recently expanded to the area because of the skilled precision manufacturing teams found here. 

St. Cloud is Poised for Innovation in Manufacturing

Problem-solving is at the core of any manufacturing industry. Companies are always looking to do things better, faster, and easier. While St. Cloud may have started as a community pulling rocks from the ground, it has evolved into a metropolitan area that innovates and invests in solutions.

“St. Cloud is home to more than 26,000 college students, many of whom want to stay in the region after they graduate,” says Mehelich. “This is a highly educated region that also has workforce development resources to help residents grow their skills. No matter what the future of manufacturing looks like, St. Cloud will adapt and be ready to embrace new opportunities.”

It also helps that the manufacturing field in St. Cloud has diversified well beyond granite. Precision automotive firms like New Flyer of America manufacture buses, while German-based Geringhoff manufactures agricultural equipment for harvesting crops.

Learn More About Precision Manufacturing in St. Cloud

Precision manufacturing is one of four key industries in St. Cloud. Get to know the companies that operate here and the employees who work in this field. Your organization has a future in St. Cloud. Join a community of innovators and problem solvers that use their strong granite foundation to grow.

Contact us to discuss available sites and incentives. Let us show you how relocating to St. Cloud is a strategic move for your company.