TNT was launched from a garage by a pair of brothers, Roy and Bill Trout–one was an apprentice tool and die maker and the other a vocational education teacher–and their respective spouses, Betty and Wanda. Founded in 1978, when interest rates were at their highest level in decades, the foursome took out a loan at a lofty 18 percent to buy the company’s first machine, and initially worried about whether they’d be able to make the payments.

But that proved not to be an issue. The company grew steadily, filling the garage at first, before the partners decided to move their operations to a 40 by 60-foot building, soon doubling that space. In 1994, TNT moved to its much larger current location in Barberton, Ohio, and has added space in that location as well. Today, TNT has about three dozen employees, who work three shifts to keep up with the booming demand for its parts. In 2010, the company earned the coveted ISO-9001 certification, which designates manufacturers with world-class quality. It produces mission-critical components used by some of the most prominent companies in the world.

Co-founder & President

“Death ends a life, not a relationship.”
-Mitch Albom