Induction Innovations: Producing quality tools “Made in the USA” for more than 20 years

Induction Innovations has been around for more than 20 years manufacturing product in the United States, and they’ve seen their process evolve over the years. 

They pride themselves on providing the highest quality, high-performance induction heaters on the market. They ensure quality by manufacturing products in-house. The company spoke with ABRN about their history with industry heat, their manufacturing process and the impact their tools can have on shop profitability.  

Tell us about your history with induction heat.  

The induction heat technology has been around for hundreds of years. In the year 2000, Induction Innovations applied induction heat to the Automotive Aftermarket Industry. Let us begin with how Induction Innovations founder and president Tom Gough was introduced to magnetic induction heat technology. 

As an adolescent, Tom worked in his father's dental lab. He prepared dental work that was to be entered into an induction casting machine. The machine used induction heat to melt down the gold and other alloys. The metals were injected into dental molds and this process piqued Tom's interest. 

As time went on, Tom worked in the collision repair field as well as volunteered for the local Rutland Dundee Townships Fire Department. A fellow volunteer then re-sparked Tom's interest in induction heat and the idea for the first Inductor series was on its way. 

Tom's 28 years working in collision repair helped him out quite a bit. He knew first-hand the frustrations that came from time-consuming processes like removing corroded nuts and bolts. He took his knowledge of induction heat and applied it to these collision repair applications, knowing he could solve some of those problems! 

What is the story behind the Induction Innovations logo? 

When it came to deciding on a logo, he wanted it to be modeled after his badge. And, the original business cards had silver foiling, mirroring the real badge. 

Where are your products made? 

Many of our products are manufactured at our headquarters in Elgin, IL using genuine OEM parts. 

Walk us through your manufacturing process. 

To learn about the production process, we spoke with Tom Gough as well as Operations Manager, Paul Astrowski. Astrowski has been with Induction Innovations for over 14 years.   

“In the beginning, Tom did the manufacturing in his basement and shipping in the garage,” Astrowski recalled.   

Members of the Gough family assisted in production to help keep up with the orders. At the time, Tom was still holding onto his full-time job in collision repair and had to work all hours of the night. He eventually left his full-time job in 2001 after orders doubled. He knew that he could always go back to collision repair if he needed to. Thankfully, we have been in business for over 20 years! 

“As the company grew, we hired contract manufacturers to build parts of the products,” Astrowski. 

Later, the company decided to bring more manufacturing in-house to improve the level of quality with each product and ensure that every item sent out was in perfect operating condition. Each item goes through many quality checks before being sent out the door. 

“Tom eventually started his own contract manufacturing company (Circuits by US),” which added another level of quality control to our products, Astrowski said. 

Today, Circuits by US, with 35 years of experience in manufacturing, starts the production process by assembling the circuit boards that power every Induction Innovations product.  

The boards are assembled first by machine and later by hand as larger parts are added. The remainder of the assembly is also done by hand, in-house. 

At each step of the assembly process, the products undergo various quality checks to guarantee that every aspect of the product works perfectly and looks just as good. 

Whenever possible, Induction Innovations sources materials in the U.S. such as injection-molded housings and blow-molded cases. This is something many companies do overseas. While not every raw material is sourced in the U.S., we do as much as we can to ensure that as much as possible is made in America. This not only helps us control the quality of our products, but it is a source of pride to be able to say that our products are made and assembled in the U.S.A. 

Our Made in the USA lines include the Inductor® Series which consists of the Pro-Max, Max, Glass Blaster® and attachments as well the Mini-Ductor® Line (Mini-Ductor II, Venom®, Venom HP and 12 Volt) and all Mini-Ductor accessories. 

How do your tools impact shop profitability? 

Induction heating tools allow users to salvage parts that may otherwise be discarded. When using a torch, consumables such as gas expenses can add up quickly. By switching to induction heat, those expenses can be reduced or even eliminated. After purchasing the tool, additional costs may arise from purchasing new coils. Our coils are built to last around 200 uses and should be replaced when they start to look worn. 

What industries does Induction Innovations serve beyond automotive?

Agriculture

Boat & Marine Repair

Body Shops

Construction

Fleet Maintenance

Salvage Yards

Trucking

How can readers learn more about your products? 

To learn more about induction heat and how our products can save you time and money, visit our website at www.theinductor.com. Reach out to us via phone at 877-688-9633 or email at [email protected]. Additionally, you can find Induction Innovations on these social media channels: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube.