Like many of its 33 employees, for more than 27 years Employ+Ability Inc. has been defying the odds.
As with many American manufacturers, this small original equipment maker in Braintree, Mass., faced the brink when competition from China began prying away business in 2004. The company, which primarily makes hot and cold packs for companies like Covidien (NYSE:COV), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) and Inverness Medical Innovations (NYSE:IMA), lost a $10 million contract to the Far East and the future looked a little grim.