Name/Title
Sand-Knit, Inc.Scope and Content
Historical information on Sand-Knit, Inc for 1976 Bicentennial Celebration in Waupun, WI.
*Facts are typed and handwritten and was scanned with mistakes, if any, left uncorrected.
Sand-Knit, Inc. From Leader-News Release, handwritten.
Sand-Knit was established in Chicago in 1919 by John Sand Jr. In1953, it was moved to Berlin. A tornado wiped out the plant in1956 and it was rebuilt. An addition was built in 1961, the year it became a subsidiary of Medalist, Inc. Milwaukee. It was brought to Waupun Jan. 1, 1973. The Berlin plant employs 250 persons, while about 100 are employed in Waupun.
Since sports are well covered on T.V., the call for colorful athletic uniforms has steadily increased. Most of them are made in Wisconsin. In fact, uniforms for 20 of the 26 teams of the National Football League are made by Sand-Knit in Waupun & Berlin.
Sand-Knit also makes the uniforms worn by high school teams and though Waupun's uniforms are purchased through Badger Sporting Goods at Madison, they have been made by Sand-Knit.
Because the business has grown so fast, it was necessary to expand to two buildings. The loca plant is located in the Ripon Industries building at 4 E. Franklin St., where Carl Duffy is the plant manager and Henry Derleth, the general manager.
Employees sew the uniforms and the warm up jackets, for baseball, football, basketball and design uniforms for track, wrestling & other sports.
The knitting and finishing is done in Berlin where the materials are also shrunk, softened & cleaned. The Waupun plant does its own cutting & sewing. The lettering is done in Berlin, but eventually that will be done in Waupun. The material is double knit stretch nylon, which is particularly suitable because it is easy to care for, holds the bright colors and is wear resistant.
The cutting is done on a 52 foot long table. The material is stacked six to 8" high and the pattern traced on the top piece. Approximately 1,000 pairs are cut on the table at one time by using a power tool that resembles a jig saw.
After the pants pattern parts are cut out, that are marked to show the pocket locations as the knee pocket is joined to the thigh pocket. Then they are sent to the various sewing operations on the production line.
Using high powered sewing machines, the women each, take care of one step in the process of production.
After the garments are finished, they are inspected and boxed for shipping. They are sold through some 500 sporting goods dealers through out the country.
Before the factory was turned over to athletic uniforms it was engaged in making slipper sox for men, women & children and was originally known as Ripon Industries, Inc. Which came to Waupun in 1958.
They bought the Breyer Bros. & Whiting Manufacturing plant and moved their machinery in immediately. The new plant was used entirely for the manufacture of Slipperette stretch slippers. They employed 60 people at the outset, some moved from Ripon to train the new employees.
The Ripon Knitting Works in Ripon was in operation 78 years & employed 300 people in the production of casual footwear, slipper sox, hosiery, gloves & mittens.
The Portage Hosiery Company, Portage, was an affliate of Ripon Knitting & employed 300 persons in the production of hosiery, slipper sox & mitten liners.
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This section was typed information.
Every Sunday the finished products of Medalist/Sand-Knit are viewed by millions of fans across the country. But its exposure does not stop there.
Every level of competition from the professional all the way down to the sand lot player, from the East coast to the West coast and in foreign countries use Medalist/Sand-Knit products.
Since its conception in 1921, Medalist/Sand-Knit has been a leader in the manufacture of exclusive athletic knitwear. Its "more than just a shade better" slogan refers not only to the quality of the product produced, but to the wide color range and overall service to its customers.
23 out of 26 teams in the National Football League currently wear Medalist/Sand-Knit uniforms. These uniforms are known for their durability and good looks.
Being primarily a custom order house, the customer of Sand-Knit is, for the most part, free to design his or her own uniform to meet their tastes. At certain points, specialists in the field of Research and Development advise in the construction of uniforms to produce only the highest quality product.
Medalist/Sand-Knit does not limit itself to just the manufacture of uniforms, however. Recently they have introduced a new line of kasual, with a "k" wear. Double knit, polyester shirts, slacks, shorts, and ladies wear of a wide range of colors and patterns now bear the high standard of the Medalist/Sand-Knit label.
Medalist/Sand-Knit is also famous for its development of new patterns and designs in uniforms. The unique design of the Marquette Warrior uniforms is a prime example of Medalist/Sand-Knit ingenuity.
It's easy to see why coaches across the country choose Medalist/Sand-Knit, the product that's "more than just a shade better."
PERSONNEL AT MEDALIST/SAND-KNIT
Hank Derleth - President
Joe Alaimo - Vice President, Manufacturing Production
Robert Meissner - Vice President, Marketing & Sales
Ron Eikens - Materials Control Manager
Dick Madden - Controller
Wayne Lutz - Credit Manager
Jon Hermanson - Director of Promotional Activities
Management in Waupun:
Carl Duffy - Plant Manager
People named in the photo; left to right - Hank Derleth, Bart Stare, Randy Kehrberg, and Tom MillerAcquisition
Accession
2016.0075Source or Donor
Waupun Area Chamber of CommerceAcquisition Method
Donation
