Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Are you curious about how Marian can help your company? Check out some frequently asked questions (FAQ) related to Marian, our capabilities, the converting and die cutting work we do for our customers, and more.

If you don’t see your question on our FAQ or if you want to learn more, please feel free to contact us with your specific needs and questions.

JUMP TO TOPIC:

1. Marian Locations

2. About Marian

3. Marian Supply Chain, Lead Times, and Prototyping

4. Marian Suppliers, Materials, and Partnerships

5. Marian Value FAQ

6. Marian Culture

7. Marian Employment

8. Marian Capabilities FAQ

9. Marian Resources

The Marian Process

Marian Locations

Does Marian sell and convert parts globally?

Marian has 12 manufacturing locations around the world and sales offices in many regions. Regardless of your location, our facilities have the capability to convert and ship to wherever you need.

Which Marian location should I contact?

All Marian locations have similar capabilities along with their own teams of sales, engineering, customer service, and purchasing representatives, so you’ll receive the same high-quality service and parts no matter the location.

Our teams will work with you to find the best Marian location based on your location(s) for design and manufacturing.

Take a look at our locations across the globe.

Does Marian have a sales/engineering representative near me?

Marian sales engineers across the US, Europe, and Asia can be in touch electronically in minutes. We can arrange to visit your location as needed.

All Marian locations also have a complete team of engineers and customer service staff available onsite. Contact us and the right engineer will be in touch with you within 24 hours.

About Marian

What are Marian’s certifications?

Each Marian location maintains certifications to multiple quality and business standards that are equal to or above industry standards.

Other quality certifications and recognitions, as well as how each Marian location is certified, can be found here.

Some of the standards Marian is certified to include:

What is Marian doing to practice sustainability?

Marian prioritizes sustainability in our daily operations whether it’s using renewable energy sources for power, complying with local environmental regulations where we operate, or gaining environmental certification from ISO 14001.

What industries does Marian support?

Marian has strengths in key industries such as:

Transportation (automotive, aerospace, rail, marine, HOV, eVTOL)
EV and Battery
Consumer electronics
Medical
General industrial
LED
Data centers
And more

We don’t limit ourselves or our customers to a given industry. We focus on application needs and the required industry standards.

Check out some examples of our unique solutions here.

Does Marian work with NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements)?

We help our customers with the design of their parts which we hope to eventually manufacture for them.

Marian understands that parts and designs belong to the customer. These agreements are mutual when necessary for us to share our process expertise and proprietary data or information.

Your sales engineer will guide the agreement through our internal process. We may be able to use your company’s NDA document, or we can recommend an industry accepted form.

Please contact us to get in touch about your custom application.

Is Marian a publicly traded company?

Marian is a privately owned company and is primarily owned by members of the Witchger family in combination with other non-family executives at each location.

This article expands on our decision to remain privately owned.

Does Marian have a CAGE Code?

All US Marian locations have a CAGE Code. Please let your sales representative know if you have any questions.

Marian Supply Chain, Lead Times, and Prototyping

Can I buy Marian parts online? Do you have a web store?

Marian does not have a catalogue of parts for purchase online.

In general, we make custom parts to fit our customers’ applications. If you’re interested in speaking with someone about a custom solution, contact us here and we’ll put you in touch with a Marian Sales Engineer near you.

What is lead time/turnaround speed for custom parts from Marian?

Speed, predictability, and reliability are paramount to Marian.

Lead times for prototypes, production releases, new tooling, and first articles will vary based on the materials and type of manufacturing required.

We keep millions of dollars in raw material on hand which significantly reduces lead times. We respond individually and quickly to customer requests for speed, so please reach out and let us know about your needs and circumstances.

For a good example, read this story about a rapid response for a customer.

Can you expedite my order? Is there an expedite fee?

Speed, predictability, and reliability are highly valued by Marian. We are able to honor requests for expediting your order, but it is crucial to communicate this need to your Marian sales representative as soon as possible. Each request for expedite is handled individually as received and your representative can communicate any information related to additional expenses that may come from expediting.

Are you able to send me material samples?

We are able to send material samples to customers as necessary. Material samples will not be cut to the specifications needed for your applications. Please contact your sales representative to learn more or contact us here.

Do you make prototypes?

Marian often uses CAD cutting technology to quickly and efficiently produce prototype parts without the cost and time required for hard tooling.

Creating prototypes with lasers, blade-cutting-plotters, and water-jet cutting makes it easier and less expensive for you to make adjustments to your design.

Learn more about Marian’s prototyping capabilities.

Request a prototype here.

How long does it take to receive prototypes from Marian?

The amount of time required to manufacture and ship a prototype will be dependent on:
– The complexity of the part’s geometry
– The availability of a CAD file. (We prefer .dxf format)
– The availability of the material(s) that make up the part.

When we talk about prototypes, we generally mean making one or a few parts. If the customer can supply the CAD file, materials are in stock, and the geometry is a complete cut of one layer, we can often ship the prototype within 2 business days.

Learn more about Marian’s prototyping capabilities.

Request a prototype here.

Marian Suppliers, Materials, and Partnerships

Does Marian make material?

Marian does not make material. We purchase thin, flexible materials from our supplier partners and convert based on the application and customer need. We often combine materials by laminating with an adhesive or coating to create a unique combined material with select properties.

Does Marian sell material?

We do occasionally sell material in bulk (as they come from the manufacturer), or we can supply material slit down to smaller rolls depending on your need. Contact us with details.

Does Marian have preferred partnerships with material suppliers?

Marian maintains strong relationships with many of the top suppliers of tapes and adhesives, films, mesh, foams, etc.

Marian is a:

We also are a preferred partner with Saint-Gobain, Polymer Science, Avery Dennison, Shihua, Mactac, and more.

Do you have material data sheets available on your website?

Many material data sheets for the thin, flexible material that Marian converts can be found here.

If you don’t see a material you’re looking for, please contact us. This is just a small list of the materials we commonly convert.

Marian Value FAQ

How can Marian help us reduce costs?

We love the opportunity to help customers reduce costs and ultimately improve their processes.

Marian does not reduce costs by simply “going cheaper”. We work with our customers to analyze each component of cost and identify opportunities to gain efficiency, reduce redundancy, eliminate overkill, and maintain high quality and service.

Why Should I work with Marian over another converter partner?

At Marian, we’re dedicated to manufacturing the highest quality custom die cut parts for our customers, and while that’s important, that’s not all we do for our customers.

At our core, we are problem solvers and take pride in the people behind the machines, computers, and phones who work together to bring you a well thought out custom solution. We’re not only focused on the final custom solutions we deliver though. We’re also your strategic partner throughout the entire process from proof-of-concept and material selection through production-scale manufacturing, packaging, and delivery.

We think ahead and take part customization to the next level with our focus on design for manufacturing to ensure finished components are designed for easy handling and integration into your assembly processes.

We talk with you and your team to learn about the application, how and where it will be used, how our parts will be assembled into your final application, and any other important details. Once we have the necessary information, our teams work together with you to suggest materials, discuss cost-savings options, and any other value-added services that might simplify part handling and assembly.

Marian also is a Preferred Converter for many of the top suppliers of thin, flexible materials all over the world including 3M, Rogers Corporation®, tesa®, Solventum, Brightview, and more. Through these preferred partnerships, we’re able to offer our customers additional benefits like direct access to the technical material experts, rapid lead times for popular materials, preferred pricing, and more.

Marian Culture

Why is the second A underlined in Marian’s logo?

Marian’s founder, Hugh Knoll Sr., was a devout Catholic. Knoll Sr. opened his company (then named Marian Rubber Products) in 1954 in what was declared by the Catholic Church as ‘The Marian Year’. Headquartered in Indianapolis from the beginning, the company is situated in the heart of Marion County.

Eugene Witchger, who later became CEO of the company in 1971, decided to underline the second A in the logo name to distinguish our company name from our county of residence.

You can learn more about our company history here.

How does Marian give back to the community?

A big part of Marian’s corporate culture revolves around improving the communities where our employees live and work. Each Marian location and Marian headquarters participate in a number of charitable events throughout the year.

Marian also hosts a yearly 5K where all US locations are encouraged to raise money for a local charity of their choosing. Marian headquarters matches their donation efforts dollar-for-dollar up to $10,000 per location.

Learn more about Marian’s philanthropy efforts here.

Marian Employment

How can I apply to work at Marian?

Check out the available job openings at Marian on our Careers page.

Marian Capabilities FAQ

Do you make and sell your machines?

Marian does make machines, but we do not sell our machines.

Marian has a fully staffed machine shop in Indianapolis where we make and maintain hundreds of converting machines that are used at all Marian locations around the world. Each Marian location has a smaller machine shop with staff to perform maintenance and augmentation of equipment.

Building custom machinery is a core-differentiator for Marian. We can quickly build or augment die-cutting equipment to perform functions that allow us to tackle the most challenging applications for our customers.

Learn more about our die cutting and converting capabilities.

Can you make a single part for me?

Single part production is not Marian’s core competency.

With the exception of our CAD-cutting equipment, our systems and equipment are focused on manufacturing production quantities of any given part. Marian production quantities are typically thousands if not many thousand parts.

We like to reserve our CAD-cutting efforts for prototyping opportunities that will, if successful, become production products with requirements in the thousands or many thousands.

Will Marian convert materials that I supply?

Marian’s primary business is manufacturing components from materials we supply through our partner-material-suppliers.

We may consider toll cutting under special circumstances. Contact us or your engineering-sales rep for more discussion.

Can Marian manufacture parts in cleanrooms / clean rooms?

Nearly every Marian location has the capability to manufacture our custom components in some level of cleanroom environment.

Check out our blog on cleanroom converting or contact us to talk more about the needs of your application.