Trade group bus tour makes two stops in Everett

EVERETT — A bus tour aimed at highlighting the contributions of Washington manufacturers to the state’s economy and the struggles the companies face made two stops in Everett on Thursday.

Officials from the trade group, the Association of Washington Business, visited the two companies, Access Laser and Eckstrom Industries, as part of their annual six-day bus tour across Washington.

This year was the ninth annual tour.

The two companies visited in Everett focus on completely different areas.

Access Laser, located on West Casino Road near the Everett Boeing manufacturing plant, produces specialized products that are used in medical and industrial applications. Eckstrom Industries, located on Hewitt Avenue near downtown, makes furniture, sheet metal, pulp and paper products, as well as precision components for the marine, aerospace, and defense industries.

Executives of both companies expressed concern about the Trump administration’s tariffs during their meetings with officials of the business group.

Gordon Bluechel, CEO of Access Laser, said the company had lost some business due to the Trump administration’s tariffs.

He said some of the company’s key suppliers are in China, and the company has been caught in the middle of the trade war.

President Donald Trump has introduced tariffs on goods reaching the US from countries around the world, and in turn, those countries have imposed their own tariffs on U.S. products reaching their borders.

Average US tariffs on Chinese exports now stand at 57.6 percent, while China’s average tariffs on US exports are at 32.6 percent.

“Most importantly for us have been the retaliatory tariffs,” Bluechel said, referring to China’s imposition of tariffs on the U.S.

“We’ve lost business, we’ve had a $200,000 order placement put on hold, we were only able to get it off hold when there was a pause with China,” he said.

Bluechel said business from other countries has also been affected.

“We have other orders that have been cancelled,” he said, citing Japan as one of the countries where the company has lost business.

Another problem, stemming from the trade issues, is China’s imposition of export restrictions on key rare earth elements.

“We have a component in our lasers that is beyond rare,” he said.

Bluechel said China won’t export the mineral to the U.S., forcing Access Laser to use recycled material, but at two and a half times the cost it was paying.

At another manufacturing stop in Everett, Jerry Cloud, the chief operating officer of Eckstrom Industries, said tariffs have led the company to worry about the cost of steel and metal for its fabrication work.

“These are kind of challenging times, but now we just order per job, ” he said. “We’re trying to make sure we pass along the real costs as much as possible.”

Cloud said the company had stockpiled material during the COVID-19 pandemic, when supplies were hard to obtain, but noted that this approach also comes with risks. He said Eckstrom can’t predict the number of fabrication jobs it will receive in the future.

The company, founded in the 1890s, employs 25 people.

Association of Washington Business President Kris Johnson also spoke Wednesday night at the Port of Seattle as part of the bus tour. He said that state manufacturers are at risk due to the combination of growing state taxes on businesses, complex regulations, and uncertainty created by tariffs.

New state taxes on Washington businesses were imposed on Oct.1 as part of Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson’s plan to cut a $16 billion budget deficit.

The Association of Washington Business has been a vocal opponent of the tax increases.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified the president of the Association of Washington. His name is Kris Johnson.

Randy Diamond: 425-339-3097; randy.diamond@heraldnet.com.