Page 8 - MetalForming June 2009

Serving those who create precision metal products using stamping, fabricating and other value-added processes.
© 2009 by PMA Services Inc. 6363 Oak Tree Blvd. Independence, OH 44131 216/901-8800
fax: 216/901-9669 E-mail: metalforming@pma.org
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NewsFronts
PMA President
Vice President/ Publisher
Editor
Senior Editor
Editorial Manager
Art Director
Production Manager
Circulation Manager
Sherry Theien, Sales Manager
North Central, International 8392 Leesburg Ct., Rockford, IL 61114 Ph: 815/282-6000 • Fax 815/282-8002 E-mail: stheien@earthlink.net
John Moore
New England, Mid-Atlantic, Pacific, Canada 17809 Canterbury Rd., Cleveland, OH 44119 Ph: 216/531-4044 • Fax: 216/721-2525 E-mail: jmoore@lpcpub.com
Vivien Tomsik
South Atlantic, South Central, Mountain 6363 Oak Tree Blvd., Independence, OH 44131 Ph: 216/901-8800 • Fax: 216/901-9669 E-mail: vtomsik@pma.org
Letter to the Editor
Dear Brad,
I enjoyed your editorial on General Motors (May 2009) discussing its storied history, and I understand your thinking that “it is eas- ier to gain on, and eventual- ly pass the leader then it is to continue to extend or even maintain the lead.” But, I don’t think it has to be so. In my opinion, the reason most leaders fail to stay in front is simply that the will to “prevail” has diminished. This can be attributed to a change of culture or philosophy, or some other influence that puts the organization “sec- ond in thought” to some other concern.
For many years I
believed that having some- one in any position that isn’t “passionate” about their work is the biggest mistake we can make in having them join our organi- zations. A case in point: the styling studios of GM (as you noted) were very well known and regarded for their excellent designs, but alotofthatwasdueto Harley Earl. His “passion” for elegantly styled cars set a standard that set GM apart from all of its compe- tition. GM allowed this area to deteriorate over the ensu- ing years after Mr. Earl’s departure and recognized only lately what a mistake it was assuming the consumers would buy anything they put forth. GM regained some of its former glamour when Bob Lutz was hired back to take control of “styling” and
building “gotta have” cars. The Cadillac CTS, Pontiac Solstice and Chevy Camaro are just a few of the con- cepts he pushed for in his position and that is what “passion” will do.
Many years back when I was engaged in sprint-car racing there was an owner who had a message embla- zoned on his wing that read, “Swallow the leader!” That message will ring true forev- er; everyone wants to “swal- low the leader” but the leader who maintains the integrity and passion for what they do will continual- ly thwart those efforts!
Bernie Rosselli Stewart EFI
Facilities
New Phygen Facility Slated for Ohio
Phygen Coatings, Inc., Minneapolis, MN, will open a new facility in Springfield, OH, within the next six to nine months to expand capacity to provide its patented PVD technology for depositing UltraEn- durance coatings. The coat- ings provide abrasive wear resistance to dies, molds and tooling used in metal- forming and plastic injec- tion molding.
Phygen acquired an existing building in Spring- field that it will rehabilitate and remodel to house the new plant, and expects to employ 20 or so employees there within three years. The Ohio Department of Development awarded Phy- gen a job-creation tax cred- it, and the city of Spring-
field offered an employ- ment-incentive grant.
Oregon to Welcome
Pallet-Manufacturing
Facility
GreenLight Pallet Co. LLC, Portland, OR, announced plans to move its pallet-manufacturing equipment from production facilities in Korea and Spain to a manufacturing plant in Oregon. The move is expected to pour as much as $250 million into Ore- gon’s economy.
GreenLight markets the Unipal corrugated pallet that it says weighs one- fourth that of a wood pallet, repels water, can be made from 100 percent recycled cardboard and is 100 per- cent recyclable.
Agreements
Stamtec Adds Hydraulic-
Press Business
Dees Hydraulic Industrial Co., Ltd., a Taiwanese builder of hydraulic presses for deep drawing, die spot- ting and other applications, named Stamtec, Inc., Man- chester, TN, its exclusive sales and service outlet for North and Central America and parts of South America. Dees manufactures presses from small C-frame models to huge tandem lines.
Robot Manufacturer
Opens Canadian
Subsidiary
German robot manufac- turer Kuka Roboter GmbH has formed a wholly owned subsidiary in Canada, Kuka Robotics Canada, Ltd., to
William E. Gaskin, CAE
wgaskin@pma.org
Kathy DeLollis
kdelollis@pma.org
Brad F. Kuvin
bkuvin@pma.org
Louis A. Kren
lkren@pma.org
Marlene F. O’Brien
mobrien@pma.org
Donna D’Amico
ddamico@pma.org
Susan Cubranich
scubranich@pma.org
Barbara Tillett
btillett@pma.org
Sales Staff
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METALFORMING / JUNE 2009
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