Eight Iowa-made products – including Tiki Bar Boats made in nearby Princeton – have advanced to the next round in the Coolest Thing Made in Iowa competition, the Iowa Association of Business and Industry (ABI) and MidWestOne Bank announced.
In a news release Thursday, May 9, ABI and the contest sponsor MidWestOne Bank revealed the eight products that moved on in an online, head-to-head matchup in the Top 16, bracket-style tournament.
The 2024 Top 8 Coolest Things Made in Iowa contestants are:
- Vermeer ZR5-1200 self-propelled baler (Vermeer Corporation, Pella).
- Tiki Bar Boats (Big Huts, Princeton).
- Musco Sports Lighting (Musco Lighting, Oskaloosa).
- Explosion-Proof Electric Motor (Bodine Electric Company, Peosta).
- Custom Built Pipe Organ (Dobson Pipe Organ Builders Ltd., Lake City).
- Butter Braid® Pastries (Country Maid, Inc., West Bend).
- Safe T Home (Sukup Manufacturing Co., Sheffield).
- Winnebago® Revel® (Winnebago, Lake Mills).
Online voting continues to choose the Coolest Thing Made in Iowa and the public is invited to vote daily in all four matchups here. Dozens of Iowa companies’ products were nominated for the first-time honor, which began in April.
The competition aims to highlight the state’s vibrant manufacturing industry, which employs more than 330,000 Iowans and creates $38 billion in annual economic output.
“We are proud of our state’s manufacturers and the products they make,” ABI President Mike Ralston said in the release. “The innovation, creativity, and utilization of technology happening every day is something to celebrate. We can’t wait to see which product will be crowned the coolest.”
The next round of voting will consist of four head-to-head matchups that will determine the Top 4 Coolest Things Made in Iowa. Voting begins today, May 10, and concludes at midnight Thursday, May 16. Manufacturers, consumers, and the public are invited to vote once per day, per device at www.coolestthingia.com.
The winner will be announced at ABI’s annual Taking Care of Business Conference, taking place June 4-6 in the Quad Cities.
