Meet Cody Highfield | Owner/Operator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cody Highfield and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cody, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I’ve wanted to own my own “shop” since I was 13 years old. What I envisioned 16 years ago has morphed into something that looks a little bit different than what I expected as a 13 year old kid. I wanted to focus on offroad fabrication (building jeeps, sand cars, prerunners, etc.) As I got older, I realized that industry can fluctuate a lot with swings in the economy. As a result of that volatility, I decided to focus more on manufacturing as a long term objective.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
The number one thing that I’ve learned in business is that out of all of the connections that I’m making in this industry, the most important connection that I have ever made is with God. I rely on God in my day to day operation more than I rely on any of my other resources. I decided to name my business Trinity Fab Works as a constant reminder that my business belongs to me, my wife, and to the Lord. That helps me stay focused on why I’m really doing what I’m doing. If my business ever gets to a point where it becomes more of a strain on my family, or my relationship with God, I’ll shut it down and go back to a 9-5. My business is not my life, my life belongs to God and to my family. I often see people lose themselves in their business, and neglect the rest of their lives. Don’t get me wrong, I love what I do, but I’m trying to keep my priorities straight so that I don’t lose my top 2 priorities to accomodate number 3 on the list.

I started my business in a 484sqft garage. My first welding table was a 16″ square piece of sheetmetal, that I bought from the junk yard, resting on top of a plasitc stool. My ideas have always been bigger than my budget, which resulted in me building a lot of my machines before I could afford to buy one from an actual machine manufacturer. I built my first 2×72 belt grinder in 2017, my CNC plasma table in 2018, my first press brake in 2019, and my second cnc plasma table in 2020. 2021 really became the year that I could start to afford to buy purpose built equipment. My largest investment, as of 2021 was purchasing my 6-axis Amada press brake. It was a used machine, but still very new to me. It opened up a lot of doors for me by allowing me to reliably form parts that I cut out on my plasma table. In 2022, I purchased my 5’x10′ 3kw cnc fiber laser. That obviously wouldn’t fit into the garage, so we moved into a 4k sqft shop. I’m still a sole operator, with occasional help from friends and family. This can be difficult at times, but it also helps me learn every aspect of the business before bringing in others to fill crucial roles as the business grows. I run my business after what’s written in Colossians 3:23 where we’re called to work dilligently for the Lord. That keeps me accountable on quality control of products leaving the shop. If I think that I could have done better, I’ll redo the project even if that means that I lose money. This has directly translated to customer satisfaction because they don’t have to worry about issues in quality control.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would take them to the Silver Lake Sand Dunes in Mears, Michigan. Silver Lake is an ORV scramble area where people can drive their jeeps, trucks, sand cars, prerunners, dirtbikes, fourwheelers, etc. We would probably just pack our meals, and eat while we were watching others drive on the sand.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I absolutely could not have done any of this without the love, support, and encouragement of my mom, dad, sister, my grandma, my wife, a couple of my uncles, and my brother inlaw (who would come over to help me lift heavy material before I could afford to buy a forklift). They have all been a crucial part of my life, and of my business.

Website: https://www.trinityfabworks.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trinity_fab_works/