Little Piece of Detroit History - ACME Manufacturing

[72heavychevy]

Thought I'd share a piece I picked up fairly recently. I think it's pretty cool to own this small plaque of little-known automotive supplier history. Lots of people collect and research material from the Big 3 and their respective manufacturing plants, but it's fairly unusual to go the next step and see who the suppliers were that provided parts to the manufacturing plants.

After reading up about ACME they were a metal finishing supplier for the Big 3 and they're actually still around today!
Crazy to think this employee, Bill Szur, could have actually helped build a trim piece that went onto my car!

If anyone's interested in reading more up on it, check out their website below-
Link to current ACME website (https://www.acmemfg.com/)

https://i.imgur.com/PfG50Mx.jpg

[scuncio]

That's way cool! I see the current HQ is in Auburn Hills - any idea where the operations were located back in the day?

[Lynn]

This guy helped keep them in business, that's for sure.

Sorry; it's what I think of when I hear "Acme."

[AnthonyS]

Cool!

[Keith Seymore]

It's pretty typical for folks around here to make a going away or retirement gift, especially when they "make things" for a living.

My dad worked at Chevrolet Pressed Metal (aka "Chevy in the Hole") as a die maker for 26 years (32 years total with GM). He said at one point they did a run of 1/4 scale oil pans to check the draw and material flow of a new design.

For quite a while after that anybody that retired or left the group got a chromed 1/4 scale oil pan mounted to a wooden plaque as a parting gift.

The gifts that come from "the guys" are always the ones that mean the most.


Crazy to think this employee, Bill Szur, could have actually helped build a trim piece that went onto my car!

I think ACME made the machines that polished the parts, rather than supplying the polished parts themselves.

K

[Burd]

There used to be Acme Paints too, same company?
Very cool plaque.

[72heavychevy]

That's way cool! I see the current HQ is in Auburn Hills - any idea where the operations were located back in the day?

I did some digging and it seems like they were originally out of Detroit, then to Ferndale, then Madison Heights, and eventually to Auburn Hills! However I believe they had multiple locations over the years.

Here's a bit more history if you're interested -
https://www.aerospacemanufacturinganddesign.com/article/amd-1010-automating-metal-finishing-acme/amd-1010-automating-metal-finishing-acme/

It's pretty typical for folks around here to make a going away or retirement gift, especially when they "make things" for a living.

My dad worked at Chevrolet Pressed Metal (aka "Chevy in the Hole") as a die maker for 26 years (32 years total with GM). He said at one point they did a run of 1/4 scale oil pans to check the draw and material flow of a new design.

For quite a while after that anybody that retired or left the group got a chromed 1/4 scale oil pan mounted to a wooden plaque as a parting gift.

The gifts that come from "the guys" are always the ones that mean the most.



I think ACME made the machines that polished the parts, rather than supplying the polished parts themselves.

K

Very cool! Yeah, I've seen a few different retirement gifts like this, however I like how this one uses the actual trim pieces and the Fisher Body logo you'd find on a door sill.

And it seems they did manufacture the machines, but I was assuming they did some of the polishing too based on the job title listed as "Acme Polish Operator". I really don't know!


There used to be Acme Paints too, same company?
Very cool plaque.

Not sure! Based on the history I've found they seem to be different companies.