Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1463392
16 Worcester Business Journal | April 4, 2022 | wbjournal.com We fight for what's right, so our businesses can grow and our region can prosper. The Chamber has long been the best champion for local businesses throughout North Central Massachusetts. We are the resource you can rely on at northcentralmass.com The Chamber is courage. W F O C U S M A N U F A C T U R I N G E X C E L L E N C E A W A R D S Burkart-Phelan works with artists to develop the perfect instruments L illian Burkart, a flutist, founded her company Burk- art-Phelan, Inc. in 1982, aer receiving technical training in the construction of flutes. Located in Shirley, Burkart-Phelan has grown to be an internationally recog- nized maker of flutes and piccolos. "e job is so cool, so awesome," Burkart said. Burkart started her company during a time when it wasn't common for women to be involved in the manufacturing of instruments. But that didn't deter Burkart, whose workforce includes many women in- volved in the construction of flutes and piccolos. e company works with profession- al musicians and recording artists, as well as aspiring student musicians. e company is branching out to younger musicians, those students in middle school and high school. e company has developed a mid-price instrument for those students who have a serious interest in pursuing music, in order to help them develop their hand skills. Despite inflation, Burkart-Phelan is determined to maintain its quality, using precious metals of gold, silver, and platinum to create its flutes and piccolos. e images of the instruments on the company's website literally glow off the screen, gleaming and sleek flutes, giving off a magical aura. e company is hiring, seeking as- sembly technicians, who would receive on-the-job training for a year from flutists. e trainer would provide a new technician the knowledge needed by observing every stage of the pro- duction process. Many flutists work at Burkart-Phelan, which brings a level of expertise to the construction of the flutes. Burkart holds weekly meetings to discuss proposals for new innovations for instruments. A discussion is held with the engineer on the proposal. e company works with input from mu- sicians who provide the company with their instrument needs. e production of high-quality instruments can take several weeks or months, depending on design requirements. Lillian Burkart has been a fixture in the Shirley community as she sits on boards to work with vocational educa- tion professionals, supporting vocation education in schools. BY SHIRLEY JONES LUKE Special to WBJ Lillian Burkart Top Product Design & Innovation B u r k a r t - P h e l a n , I n c . Location: Shirley Industry subsector: Musical instrument manufacturer Founded: 1982 Employees: 20 Top executive: Co-founder Lillian Burkart Primary product: Handmade flutes and piccolos Well-trained experts: The founder and majority of Burkart-Phelan's workforce are musicians or active in the performing arts. PHOTO/COURTESY BURKART-PHELAN