Basic Industries started like many manufacturing companies: with a simple goal of producing quality products and serving customers well.
Over the years, we built relationships with contractors, surveyors, erosion-control companies, lumber yards, landscape suppliers, and distributors who needed dependable wood stakes, survey lath, and custom wood products. We learned the realities of manufacturing. We learned how important reliability is. And we learned that when customers call, they need someone who can say yes.
But our story took a turn we never expected.
Years ago, while operating in Colorado, we began working with individuals participating in work-release programs through the Department of Corrections. What began as a practical solution to workforce challenges quickly became something much more meaningful.
We met men who wanted to work.
Men who wanted to learn.
Men who wanted to support their families.
Men who were preparing to return to their communities and build a different future than the one that had brought them to prison.
As we worked alongside them, we realized something simple: most people are far more than the worst decision they’ve ever made.
We watched individuals develop skills, confidence, and pride through meaningful work. We saw what happened when people were trusted with responsibility. We witnessed firsthand how employment can become the foundation for rebuilding a life.
Those experiences changed us.
As Colorado’s programs evolved and opportunities shifted, we faced an important decision. We could return to a traditional manufacturing model, or we could continue investing in a workforce that had already taught us so much.
We chose to continue.
Today, Basic Industries operates manufacturing inside a Kansas correctional facility, creating opportunities for individuals who are preparing for life after incarceration while helping solve one of the biggest challenges facing American manufacturing: workforce availability.
The result is a company built on two commitments.
First, we are committed to producing quality products with dependable service and the ability to scale when our customers need us most.
Second, we are committed to creating opportunities for people who are working to change the trajectory of their lives.
These commitments are not separate from one another. They strengthen one another.
- Quality products from a motivated workforce.
- Experience, income, and skills for our workforce.
- Stronger communities when people leave prepared.
Everybody wins.
Today, Basic Industries serves customers throughout construction, surveying, stormwater management, landscape supply, and lumber industries. We manufacture wood stakes, survey lath, erosion-control products, and custom wood products.
But products only tell part of the story.
At the end of the day, we’re in the business of building things. Sometimes that’s a truckload of wood stakes. Sometimes it’s a future.
