Wilson Bohannan Lock Named to Made in America Product Showcase

Sept. 21, 2020

The 160-year-old, family-owned company based in Marion, Ohio, represents the Buckeye State.

Sarah Rassell and Trish Smith (seventh generation family business leaders) with their father, Howard Smith, CEO and president and sixth-generation leader of Wilson Bohannan Lock Company.

The Wilson Bohannan Lock Co., a 160-year-old, family-owned padlock and commercial locking systems manufacturer in Ohio, was named to display its 100 percent U.S.-made brass padlocks at the Made in America Product Showcase, which had been scheduled to take place Oct. 5 at the White House. (According to a Reno, Nevada, news report, the event has been postponed after it was announced that President Trump contracted COVID-19.)

Businesses from each of the 50 states are invited to display their U.S.-made products at the event. Wilson Bohannan had planmed to showcase its customized, high-security padlocks, key systems and lock accessories during the event.

“We are proud to represent Ohio — and our community of Marion — at this year’s Made in America Product Showcase,” says Howard Smith, president and CEO of Wilson Bohannan, after the announcement. “Our American-made, brass key padlocks are used by a variety of industries all over the world, and we look forward to promoting the strength and dedication of the 72 associates at Wilson Bohannan who work hard every day to produce our high-quality, customized locking devices.”

For a product to be called “Made in America” and to be eligible for the showcase, the product must be “all or virtually all” made in the United States, according to the Federal Trade Commission. “All or virtually all” means that all significant parts and processing that go into the product must be of U.S. origin, and the product should contain no — or negligible — foreign content.

Wilson Bohannan uses the most technologically advanced manufacturing processes of any padlock manufacturer in the world. The process starts with U.S.-made brass bars, which are cut into varying sizes for the lock bodies and then fit with custom-made, internal locking mechanisms using state-of-the-art CNC machines. The company’s in-house, end-to-end padlock design system allows Wilson Bohannan to customize and build almost any possible locking device a customer might want. All manufacturing is performed at the company’s 42,000-square-foot plant in Marion, Ohio.

“I believe that the Wilson Bohannan Lock Co. spirit is being 100 percent American-made,” says Sarah Rassell, a seventh-generation owner of the Wilson Bohannan. “We believe in providing the best quality locking product on the market.”

Wilson Bohannan was founded in 1860 and continues to make high-level security locking mechanisms and key systems that are used by industries as varied as construction, utilities, transportation, government, oil fields, military and heavy industry. The company has been family-owned since its inception, and the current leadership is the sixth and seventh generation to own and operate it. More information can be found at www.padlocks.com.