One local business has been a consistent contributor to the local workforce and to the community itself.

Innovance — the holding company for Lou-Rich, Almco and Exact Manufacturing — has several employees who are a part of chamber committees and has been voted best place to work multiple times through the Albert Lea-Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce.

The companies that are divisions of Innovance create products used in the food industry — such as freezer elements for convenience stores and restaurants — and the medical industry — such as portable X-ray machines and parts used in surgeries. Other areas the company contributes to are in construction, the airplane industry and mechanics, to name a few. Some clients include Harley-Davidson and John Deere, and products made by the company’s different divisions are distributed nationally and internationally.