Coolest Thing Made in NJ: Final Four Products Revealed

Nearly 70,000 New Jerseyans have cast ballots in the second annual Coolest Thing Made in New Jersey competition, with voting closing at 11:59 p.m. Monday, April 20.

Four products remain. They couldn’t be more different from each other.

The competition, put on by Withum and the New Jersey Business & Industry Association, launched with 72 entries and chewed through three rounds of public voting to get here. The winner gets announced at the State of Manufacturing event at the Statehouse on May 21. Votes from April 15 onward count one ballot per person per day, per device.

Last year’s contest pulled in nearly 40,000 votes total. This year’s already topped that, with 70,000 ballots cast and counting.

Here’s what’s actually in the running.

Northvale-based ADM Tronics manufactures the Vet-Sonotron, a non-invasive therapy device for musculoskeletal pain in dogs and horses. No drugs, no side effects. The company runs its operation out of Bergen County, and it’s the kind of product that doesn’t get a lot of press but clearly has an audience, given the vote totals it’s racked up.

Down in Trenton, Switlik Survival Products makes the Anti-G Suit. It connects directly to an aircraft’s systems and inflates under extreme G-forces, pushing against a pilot’s lower body to keep blood moving and prevent blackout. Fighter pilots don’t pass out while wearing one. That’s the entire point.

Out in Manchester, Ocean County, Orgo-Thermit Inc. produces Thermit Welding Kits that fuse separate rail sections into continuously welded track. Anyone who’s sat on a delayed NJ Transit train while a conductor mumbles something about track conditions can connect the dots on why that matters.

Then there’s BrukerEST out of Middlesex County, which manufactures superconducting materials. Cooled to 4.2 Kelvin, or minus 452 degrees Fahrenheit, the materials carry electricity with zero loss. They generate the magnetic fields that run MRI scanners, particle accelerators, and fusion machines. It’s not a consumer product. You’ve probably never heard of it. But it’s sitting inside hospital diagnostic equipment across the country right now.

“It has been very rewarding to see not only the breadth of New Jersey creations over the past month, but also to see nearly 70,000 votes generated so far reflecting that enthusiasm for manufacturing in the state,” said NJBIA President and CEO Michele Siekerka and NJMEP CEO Peter Connolly.

The competition is run by Manufacturing Counts, a partnership between NJBIA and NJMEP, and it’s specifically designed to counter the reflex that Jersey’s manufacturing base has hollowed out. It hasn’t. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks the state’s industrial workforce, and the numbers don’t support the “nothing gets made here anymore” take.

New Jersey’s got an anti-G suit keeping military pilots conscious at 16,000 feet. It’s got a superconductor running at minus 452 degrees inside a hospital near you. It’s got a Bergen County device treating injured horses without a single pill. Don’t let anyone tell you this state doesn’t make anything.

For 2026, the final four voting details are available through ROI-NJ. Voting stays open through 11:59 p.m. on April 20, with the winner announced at the Statehouse on May 21.