"We really see our community investments as a means of increasing the quality of life for our employees and their families," says Bill Dobbins, president of Castor Concepts.
Castor Concepts, based in Albion, Michigan, builds industrial, heavy-duty casters and wheels. It was recently recognized for its outstanding work in this area winning Michigan’s 2022 Corporate Impact Award.
“The award emphasizes the importance of corporate responsibility to the community that they reside in,” said Bill Dobbins, president of Cater Concepts. “At Caster Concepts we take that responsibility seriously as does the leadership team. The award is very special to me as it does not focus on philanthropy. While philanthropy (writing a check) is very important, many times leveraging funding with volunteer work is the key to impactful projects within a community.
“This Corporate Impact Award focuses on the effort of volunteers, supported by corporate sponsorship to make a lasting impact in and around our communities.”
Community Investment
Over the past five years, Caster Concepts has partnered to relocate and open seven small businesses, including the town’s first local bakery in decades and the only independent market for miles. It also invests in the construction of new housing and redevelopment of older homes and apartments, attracting new residents and improving property values.
“We really see our community investments as a means of increasing the quality of life for our employees and their families,” says Dobbins. “We aspire to be a vibrant community, one of those places where you want to be on a Saturday afternoon.” part of that community town feeling is reflected in the company's involvement with Pure Albion, which supports new businesses that open downtown.
Education is also an important part of the company’s community investments. In 2019, Caster Concepts launched INNOVATE Albion, a tech-education nonprofit that is building an engineering and technology pipeline for Michigan businesses. The company purchased and renovated a 100-year-old, three-story Masonic temple to house the program that educates area students from grades K through 12 and prepares them for careers in technology.
“Our goal is to develop a talent pipeline,” said Caroline Hurteau, special projects manager at Castor Concepts and executive director of INNOVATE Albion. “We believe for that to happen successfully programs and opportunities need to be offered as early as kindergarten.”
