FACTORY OUTLET - Pridgeon and Clay Inc

FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
THE P&C VALUES
Integrity
People
Customer
Ownership
We Can If...
Do What It Takes... Safely
60 Years of Excellence
1948-2008

Fall 2008
FACTORY OUTLET
State of the Business ...................... 1
Showing the World Who We Are .... 3
Learning Center ................................ 5
In The Beginning Part 2 ................... 6
An Interview With Josh Siple .......... 7
Family Picnic ..................................... 9
Lean Steering Commitee ............... 11
Advanced Engineering Lab ........... 13
AE Lab Microscope ........................ 15
USDC Moving Forward .................. 16
Healthy Recipe Idea ....................... 17
Out & About .................................... 18
“The Current Best Way” ............... 19
Inventory Progress: Franklin ........ 20
The Weekenders ............................. 21
Global Engineering ......................... 22
Without a Customer ...................... 23
P&C Nava ......................................... 25
Reducing The Cost Of Quality ..... 26
Grand Rapids Maintenance .......... 27
Portable Parts Washer ................... 29
P&C Kft ............................................. 31
Retirees ............................................ 32
FACTORY OUTLET
Marian Cruttenden: Editor
Michelle Clay: Assistant Editor
Kelly O’Hara: Layout & Design
A special thank you to all the contributors
CELEBRATING 18 YEARS OF QUALITY
EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION
May 1990-November 2008
OPEN DOOR POLICY
The management of this company
desires to maintain an open door
policy with its employees.
Phone 616.241.5675
Fax 616.241.1799
Web pridgeonandclay.com
Politics and Our
American Auto Industry
Robert Earl Clay
Chief Executive Officer
In early October at the Employee Meetings, we presented business
projections for P&C that had been revised downward from earlier
estimates. The picture wasn’t rosy, but not disastrous either. Since
those meetings things have deteriorated rapidly. The housing market
continued it’s decline and the resultant collapse of our financial
institutions has made it very difficult for most people to get loans.
Consumer confidence has plummeted along with the value of our
401(k)’s and other investments.
As a result of these and other events, auto sales fell by as much
as 45%. The Big Three American automakers, already in critical
condition, have rapidly declined to a point where bankruptcy for at
least GM may only be a few months away. The Big Three automakers
have approached the US Government for financial assistance in
the form of loan guarantees to bridge the gap between now and
2010, when their huge healthcare and legacy (retiree pension and
healthcare) costs are taken over by the UAW as part of the latest
labor contract.
It’s essential that these loans be approved. Here are the consequences
researchers have estimated that the bankruptcy of GM
alone would have in the first year:
• A loss of 2.5 to 3 million jobs
• Bankruptcy for hundreds of suppliers
• Due to common supplier bankruptcies, a total shutdown of
the American auto industry including new domestic manufac
turers for up to a year
• The likely ensuing bankruptcy of Ford and Chrysler
• Huge resulting losses in government revenue at all levels
“I am sure that with everyone’s efforts,
we will find ways to successfully weather
these difficult times.”
Helping out seems like a “no-brainer,” but as usual,
our lame duck congress is dragging its feet citing
union dominance, mismanagement and incompetence
by the automakers as a reason to let
them go under.
There is no doubt that the Big Three have
made mistakes over the years, but in fact, government
actions dating back as far as thirty-five years
have contributed greatly to the current domestic
automotive crisis.
Here’s a brief history:
• Starting in the late 60’s, Japanese manu
facturers began importing small efficient
high quality cars designed for the US market
• In 1973, the Arab Oil Embargo against
the US and West Europe caused fuel prices
to skyrocket. The US congress passed ag
gressive exhaust emissions standards. To
complicate matters further, the US congress
passed aggressive exhaust emissions stan
dards. That made it necessary for the big
three to de-tune their larger engines and
hang on pollution gear, making the cars
underpowered and inefficient.
• In 1975, the US congress established CAFÉ
(Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards
that required each manufacturer to average
27 mpg across their car lines.
• As a result of the events in ’73-’75, American
automakers were forced to turn away from
their profitable big cars and spend billions
rushing to market with small poorly con
ceived and executed cars (e.g. Chevy
Chevette, Ford Tempo, Plymouth Reliant.)
Many consumers turned to the imports.
• In the mid 80’s, with their new US prosperity,
Japanese automakers began building plants
in the US. They were given huge tax breaks to
build efficient new factories in areas where
unions were not strong. They hired young
workers to delay any significant legacy costs
for decades. Our mature domestic automakers
had in place high cost union contracts along with
huge legacy costs. The cost difference per car was
over $2,000; a competitive disadvantage that re
stricted available funds for research in technology
and development of new models when it was
most needed.
People talk about how the unions have run the big
three, but this isn’t news, and in fact, the unions have
done much to make it possible for businesses like P&C
to pay our workers fair wages and good benefits. Honestly,
how did anyone expect our automakers to thrive
and survive under the circumstances noted above?
And can you imagine any other developed country
that would allow such easy access to its markets? I
believe our government has a responsibility to help
the Big Three get over this hump in the light of past
actions that increased the long term financial distress
they have experienced. We should all encourage our
lawmakers to act quickly.
Please note that this article is strictly a commentary
intended to show the connection between past US
Government actions and their responsibility to help in
the current crisis. It is not intended to be critical of the
actions of our new domestic car companies. They have
acted shrewdly and honorably to provide jobs and fine
cars built in the US. They are important customers. I’ve
owned their vehicles and P&C has them in our fleet.
The new domestics are a key part of our economy and
culture.
There is no doubt that regardless of Government
actions, the next year will be very tough for the US
auto industry, P&C included. We, at P&C, will need to
shed non-essential cost in every area of operation. I
expect it to be painful and the pain will be widespread.
It’s necessary to ensure our long term success. We will
count on every P&C person for their help. I am sure that
with everyone’s efforts, we will find ways to successfully
weather these difficult times.
As we enter the holiday season, we will have the
traditional time to spend with our families, friends,
and loved ones. Please make the most of that time and
have a very happy Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New
Year. And thanks to all P&C people for working hard
every day for the benefit of our company.
1 2
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008

Keith O’Brien
Plant Manager: Grand Rapids, MI
Without question, to stay ahead in today’s metalforming
industry requires a high level of product/market
sophistication and global diversity.
Expanding new product end-uses, developing
proprietary products and other strategic capabilities
are a must for a mid-sized company to stay
viable and competitive. In September, the PMA
(Precision Metalforming Association) hosted
the 16th International Council of Sheet Metal
Presswork Associations (ICOSPA) at DeVos Place,
in Grand Rapids, MI. The ICOSPA Congress was
held in the United States for the first time in 15
years and marked nearly 50 years of international
networking and relationship-building.
What is ICOSPA? It is the International Council
of Sheet Metal Presswork Associations which
represents metalforming industries in Europe,
Asia and North America. This includes the countries
of Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico,
Netherlands, United Kingdom and the United
States. ICOSPA holds its International Congress
every three years, and it is hosted and organized
on a rotating basis by one of its six member
organizations. This Congress helped connect
more than 400 executive managers and owners
of component parts, assemblies, and end-product
manufacturing companies from over 15 different
countries.
The main goals of each ICOSPA Congress are
to establish a greater understanding of business
3
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
showing the world
Who We Are
issues, as well as share ideas and best practices,
technology development, innovation,
safety, management practices, and personal
accords as attendees look to shape the world
of metal forming together.
“I have been in hundreds of plants
around the world and Pridgeon & Clay
is the best I have been in”
The attendees challenged their thinking with
insight from six of the industry’s brightest
minds, including John Snow, former U.S.
Treasury Secretary and chairman of Cerberus
Capital Management, L.P. and Jack Perkowski,
chairman of ASIMCO, the largest privately
held automotive-parts supplier in China, to
name a few.
Pridgeon & Clay was one of eight metalforming
companies in and around the West Michigan
area that were asked to host plant tours and
invite attendees to visit their facilities, offering
insights into their manufacturing expertise.
Pridgeon & Clay proved to be an excellent
host by planning and executing rewarding
and stimulating plant tours. The 162 attendees
who visited our facility were talking about the
experience long after they left.
Many of those who attended commented
that the plant looked great during the
tour. Ross Martin, along with Bob Clay,
received many compliments while at
the ICOSPA Congress held at the DeVos
Place. A specific compliment came from
the President of a stamping company
in Minnesota. He stated: “I have been in
hundreds of plants around the world and
Pridgeon & Clay is the best I have been in”.
Numerous comments were also made regarding
the friendliness of the employees
at Pridgeon & Clay.
“
An email from Bob Clay
regarding the ICOSPA Plant
Tour at Pridgeon & Clay:
Please extend my enthusiastic thanks to
your team for the ICOSPA tours. I received
many rave reviews about P&C from those
who toured. Most said the P&C tour was
hands down the best of all. Positive comments
were given about our organization,
cleanliness, equipment, technology, and
also the skill and knowledge of our tour
guides. Thanks to all for an event and a
company we can all be proud of.
I want to thank everyone for the efforts to get the
plant into “tour ready” shape. I also want to remind
our teams that the expectation is to keep the plant
in a “tour ready” state and continue to improve.
To all Pridgeon & Clay employees:
Thanks for showing the national leaders of
the metalforming industry what we’ve known
for years; some of the world’s most talented
employees and metalforming capabilities are
right here at Pridgeon & Clay!
”
4

Exciting things are happening at the Learning Center…
If you are looking for the silver lining in all the dark clouds, talk
to the Learning Center staff. Rather than growing dismal during
this economic downturn, we have been busy looking for ways to
provide opportunities for Pridgeon and Clay employees to increase
their skills. Highlighted below are the three latest projects:
Education Fair - September 30
The Education Fair brought 8 local
colleges on-site to discuss with
employees the ins and outs of going back
to school. Approximately 125 employees
attended. We provided fun, food, and
prizes but most importantly, the opportunity
to take the first step toward a college
education. Because Pridgeon and Clay
believes so strongly in education, we are
encouraging every employee to at least try
one class: “Each one, take one.”
Twiki … the New Intranet
The Learning Center, along with some of
the Information Systems staff, have been
spending hours designing an inviting,
user friendly and accessible Intranet to
promote employee involvement, growth,
and knowledge. If you haven’t visited Twiki
yet, please check it out at http://twiki.pnc.
pridgeonandclay.com. Training on the use
of Twiki will be provided in the coming
weeks. The team working on this
project consists of Andrew Jacoby, Kelly
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FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
O’Hara, Marian Cruttenden and Reyna
Dickensheets. Katie Jasperse has just
recently joined the team.
P&C Values
Can you name the Pridgeon and Clay
values? Check out the newest addition
to our basic curriculum, “P&C
Values.” The Values class has been
taught to most of our mangers and
team leaders and will be a requirement
for all employees. So sign up soon for
this fun, interactive class. Additional
information about all training can be
found on Twiki @ the Learning Center’s
homepage.
Reyna Dickensheets
Employee Education Manager
Other Notables
Our APO certification program kicked
off Groups Five and Six this Fall.
Bill Dee continues to work with the
press areas to make this a successful
program.
In response to the significant growth
R&D has experienced and continues to
experience, the Learning Center has
dedicated resources to develop onthe-job
training for the new positions.
Bill Dee, our technical trainer, is also in
the process of establishing a program
for positions requiring comprehensive
training. We are excited to partner
with department managers to ensure
our employees are highly qualified to
meet growing demands.
A team of internal experts has been
working on the Team Leader Learning
Path, identifying the competencies and
training needed to be successful in this
position.
Nel Cowham continues to update and
manage our On-the-Job Training (OJT)
program. She has worked closely with
the Focused Factory Managers over
the summer to ensure the accuracy of
each learning path. Watch for future
Train-the-Trainer opportunities for
those involved in OJT.
In The Beginning...
Part 2 of 3
“It took a lot of hard work to build Pridgeon & Clay
from the job shop it used to be, into the number one
rated automotive supplier it is today; that and the innovation
and ‘guts to gamble’ of John & Don.
A certain customer used to send their serration
dies for repair. The serrations on these dies were
segmented and would only last for a 300,000 hit run
before the segments needed to be replaced. Don and
John were sure they could build a better die and so
they did. A solid block of steel was sent to Chicago
to be heat treated. Don then designed and built the
die; John used a form grinder and from the block of
hardened steel, ground every single tooth.
When their customer got the die back, they also
got a big surprise. After one million hits, the die didn’t
need resharpening or replacing. Needless to say their
customer was quite shocked. One million hits without
fail! That had never happened before. What John and
Don had done was this; While they had that die heat
treated to make it hard, they also had it frozen to –105
degrees Fahrenheit until all the stresses in the steel
were relieved.
A few notable things came out of this job. One
was the fact that now John and Donald were able to
guarantee one million hits on the serration dies without
resharpening the die; a thing unheard of at that
time. Don came up with the design that, basically, we
are still using today.
That serration die was a token of things to come.
Dies much like that one are used all over the world
today. Japan being a big customer. These serration
dies make the sharp edges on your Aluminum foil and
plastic wrap cartons.
It's Pridgeon and Clay!
Donald V. Clay (left) and John Pridgeon (right)
Taken from the July/August 1990 Issue of the
Factory Outlet. (The “Don Clay” talked about in this
article is the late father of Robert Earl, Donald C.,
Patrick & Sean Clay and the late brother of Robert
Edwin Clay. Don assisted in the writing of this article)
Innovation and a no-nonsense approach to the problem
were the guns John and Donald brought to the
business field and it was this that brought P&C their
first flange customers.
A major auto manufacturing’s engineering department
called Donald and showed him one of their
flange dies. They wanted to know why it would not
work. Don told them that it would make a great boat
anchor.
John and Don had already built flange dies by
this time and were selling parts to the Canadians who
were pleased with the product they were receiving.
Reluctantly, the major auto maker agreed to buy
parts off P&C dies. P&C flanges were so successful
that, coincidentally, the factory making them, stopped
making flanges altogether.
The automotive industry at this time was much
like an actor who not only wants to star in the show,
he wants to direct, cast, edit and produce it also. The
similarities lay in the fact that the Big 3 wanted to
make their own flanges and hanger assemblies, not
buy them from someone else.
Case in point: When a large auto company’s engineers
inspected the flanges Don and John made, they
just couldn’t find anything right with it. This and that
was wrong and they nitpicked the parts to pieces.
Don then informed them that under no circumstances
would he or John produce any parts that they
wouldn’t be happy with and to make sure of this, he
was going to drive back to Grand Rapids and consign
that die to the bottom of the Grand River. The
engineers liked that idea even less and when John
and Don did drive back to Grand Rapids, they not only
could keep the die, they had an order for parts as well.”
Innovation and a no-nonsense
approach to the problem were
the guns John and Donald
brought to the business field
6

An Interview With
Josh Siple
His Journey from Co-op Student
to Focused Factory Manager
NC
JS
7
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
Nel Cowham
Learning Center Coordinator
Josh Siple is one of our most recent focused factory managers, working in Departments 45/40.
As with all new positions, new challenges and responsibilities abound. I wanted to know how he
prepared for his new role, what inspired and motivated him, and how he arrived at where he is
now. As we started to talk, I discovered that Josh made decisions along the way that brought him
to his current destination. Through some personal choices that he made at a relatively young age,
he prepared himself for success.
How old were you when you started working
at Pridgeon & Clay?
I was 17 years old and attending Tri-County High School
when I started as a co-op student through the Central
Montcalm Co-op Program. This would be the northern version
of the Kent Career Technical Center (KCTC).
I was enrolled in a machine shop class at the time.
What made you want to work at Pridgeon & Clay?
My dad was a Tool & Die Maker at Steelcase so I was familiar
with the career. I also knew Bill Baker, who was in charge
of the Tool Room at that time. Plus, my sister, Tammy Ball
was working here as a Press Operator in the Transfer Dept.
(Tammy earned her Bachelor Degree in Human Resources
and is currently the H.R. Director at Lowes in Big Rapids)
What was your first job when you started here?
I started out as a Utility worker in the Tool Room,
working on the compound straightside dies. I did this for
approximately two years. While I was still in high school, I
was only able to work half days. When I graduated, I started
working full time and went right into the Apprenticeship
program. This is a four year program that requires a certain
amount of hours and classes. Once completed, it gives you
most of your credits towards an Associates Degree.
What motivated you to continue your education?
About two years into the apprenticeship program, I went
to Bill Baker and asked him to move me around
so I could gain more experience with different types
of dies and applications here at P&C. Bill was supportive
and he, along with other leaders and Die Techs,
encouraged me along the way.
Personal Info
Married: To Katie since 2000
Children: Mary Elizabeth (M.E.): 5 years, Braylan: 3years & Addison: 21 months
Hobbies: Camping, snowmobiling & hunting
About six months into my Feinblank role, I decided
to go back to school to work toward my Bachelor’s
degree in Business Administration. While pursuing
my degree, I was offered and took the Team Leader
position in the Transfer & Prog area. I believe that
taking the steps to further my education provided
me with the opportunity for this position. My college
education has also helped me learn more about
business financials, which has been beneficial in my
new role as Focused Factory Manager.
Where there any other factors that influenced
your decision to go back to school?
Yes! Outside of work, I was competing in Motocross
– ATV Racing on the National Circuit and I knew I
needed to make a decision on whether to continue
with racing. I had to take a good look at what I wanted
for my future. This is when I made the decision to
stop racing and focus on my career. It was also about
the same time that I decided to get married and
focus on a family life. Once I had made the decisions
to focus on career and family, I knew the next step
for me was to achieve some kind of leadership role. I
applied for the leadership position in the compound
area first – which I did not get. I then applied for the
Feinblank position – this started my journey.
Do you think you will continue your education
and get your master degree?
Yes! But, I am going to take a little break and enjoy
my family life for a while. I want to spend time and
play with my kids, and I’m not sure what I will get my
masters in yet. I may try to take some classes that I
would enjoy, like some leadership training classes.
What words of advice would you give to
someone wanting to further advance their
career?
To just do it! If you are waiting for the perfect opportunity
or the right time to go back to school, it may
not come. Really look at your future, what do you
want, and then decide if taking two to four years out
of your life right now versus two to four years down
the road will benefit you and your family.
What have you learned along the way that you could
share with others?
To have integrity and internal values and to stick with them.
Create a mission statement to live by and try to become a
person of influence. I personally need that edge of needing
to do better. It’s what makes me strive to be a better person.
If there is something that you want to do or to try, don’t be
afraid to ask for the challenge.
What has been your biggest challenge here at P&C so
far?
Everyday is a challenge. The expectation with every new role
has increased; just knowing I’m responsible for more and
more people is a challenge.
What has been the best job you have had at P&C so
far?
It’s not really any one particular job, but more the
opportunity to move from a position or area to a different
position. Having the opportunity to be challenged is always
a good thing.
Who has been a role model for you along the way?
Dan Swiger and I started out in our leadership roles about
the same time. So Dan has been a good source of influence
and encouragement to me. Now that I’m in a new
position as Focused Factory Manager, Keith O’Brien has been
a good mentor for me. Keith wants to make sure I get what I
need, providing support and encouragement. I feel that I do
have a good support system here at P&C.
Where do you see yourself in a few years?
Still working here at Pridgeon & Clay. I would like to retire
from here so doing whatever I can to keep P&C growing
strong would be an important thing for me to do.
While interviewing Josh, I found that he exemplified the concept
of ‘if you want to get ahead or stay current and competitive,
you have to make the commitment to gain knowledge
and take charge of your own life.’ You can do that a number
of ways. The Learning Center would be happy to discuss options
with you.
If you, like Josh, see the benefit in challenging yourself
and are willing to make the commitment, it can open the
door to many opportunities.
8

P&C Family Picnic
A little bit of rain didn’t put a damper on the Grand Rapids picnic this year.
Employees managed to coax out the sun and it ended up being a beautiful day
filled with fun games, great food and some lucky prize winners!
9
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
Picnic Commitee
Thank You!
Franklin, IN
The Franklin Company Picnic was held at Ceraland Park in Columbus, Indiana on
June 21st. P&C Employees enjoyed a beautiful sunny day with their families and
co-workers at our Company picnic! This year we had an 83% employee turnout
for our picnic this year, which was terrific! Besides the wonderful and delicious
catered picnic lunch, employees partook in a wide variety of fun-filled activities
on the 345 acres of beautiful parkland and lakes at Ceraland; from canoeing to
paddle boat, mini-golf to the aquatic center! Ceraland Park is a corporate recreation
facility owned and operated by Cummins Employees Recreation Association.
Employees in attendance were treated to a P&C water bottle.
10

An Update From The
Lean Steering Commitee
Joe Fraam
Lean Manufacturing Specialist
11
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
You many not have heard of Florence Chadwick,
but she is someone to admire. The first person to
swim the English Channel both directions. She
broke records each time. After the English Channel
swims, Florence attempted to be the first
woman to swim 26 miles between Catalina Island
and the California coastline. Boats stayed with
her during the journey to provide help and keep
away sharks. The water was cold and a thick fog
set in. About 15 hours into the swim she indicated
she could go no further; however, she swam
for another hour before asking to be pulled into
one of the surrounding boats. A short time later
the fog cleared and she realized she had stopped
only a mile from shore. When asked, she indicated
she did not quit because of the cold even
though she was terribly cold. She did not quit
because she was tired, even though she was exhausted.
Rather, she quit because she could not
see the shore. She was missing the vision of the
finish line and it caused her to give up hope.
Many Lean implementations falter for the
same reason. They lack a clear understanding
of the finish line. Companies become discouraged
because they can not see their progress.
The end is never in sight. Typically, a lot of work
is accomplished and many resources are used,
but the efforts are not tied to a common goal.
The Lean Steering Committee recognized this
deficiency at P&C and went to work on creating
a Lean Mission Statement that supports
our business initiatives and provides us with a
compass to steer our efforts.
It is important we stay focused on our
mission and refer to it often. In keeping with
the mission statement, the Lean Steering
Committee has also created the Lean Score
Card. The Lean Score Card has been described
as goals we can aspire to, enabling P&C to
become the global leader within our industry.
It is a way to measure ourselves and evaluate
our performance. The Lean Score Card encompasses
the most significant areas of manufacturing,
providing guidance through continuous
improvement goals that lead us to be and
or remain competitive in an ever increasing
competitive industry. Many of the criteria are
metrics we already track, such as Cost of Quality
and Productivity, but also included are new
metrics for P&C such as Inventory Accuracy
and Days on Hand inventory levels. There are
three different classes or levels of achievement.
The levels are First Class, World Class,
and Best in Class, with each subsequent level
becoming more difficult to achieve than the
last.
First Class goals will be similar to existing
metrics goals and will require sustaining these
goals for a period of time to be considered for
certification. Continuous improvement over
First Class goals will be required for World
Class certification and even higher for Best
P&C is committed to its customers and
shareholders to deliver value and increase
competitiveness through the elimination
of waste within every business aspect.
Successful implementation can only be
accomplished by investing in its most
important asset, its employees through
training of lean principles company wide
and employee involvement.
in Class. These changes will not happen over
night, it could be three to four years before a
department reaches Best in Class level which
represents the best in the industry. The goals
are designed to be meaningful and challenging
thus requiring all of us to think outside
the box on how we currently process, move,
store and conduct our every day business.
Some may say that we are lean now and that
we have done this for the past 20 years, we
can’t improve perfection. Indeed, there are
“It is important we stay focused on
our mission and refer to it often.”
many things that we do well today but take a
step back from your current process and ask
yourself, why am I working this way and is there
a better, easier way to work. Remember, the key
to success is to work smarter, not harder!
On the surface it may seem the Lean Score
Card is just another version of our monthly
measurable, but this is not the case. The Lean
Score Card is designed to be owned by the
people that work in the area. Lean takes the
traditional hierarchy pyramid and inverts it (Fig.
1) supporting the fact that people who work on
a particular press, welder, etc… know the ins
and outs of the process better than anyone. We
need to encourage, support and work together
as a team driving change towards leaning our
operations through elimination of waste to
continuously improve our competitive and
market advantage.
fig. 1
Florence Chadwick tried a second time to
swim from Catalina Island to California. Similar
to the first time, a thick fog developed, but
this time she maintained a mental image of
the shoreline. She pictured the finish line in
her mind and she made it to the end. The Lean
Score Card is our image of what it takes to be
a winner. Our finish line is obtaining metrics
that promote manufacturing excellence. Our
reward, like Florence Chadwick’s, is a sense of
accomplishment and a measure of pride; but
even more than this, it allows everyone at P&C
to contribute meaningfully to building up a
strong and healthy company which leads to
stability in our lives. Again, we must Continuously
Improve for Pridgeon and Clay to stay
competitive. Many companies who are not
improving are falling by the wayside. We will
not be one of them.
12

what’s going on in the
Advanced Engineering Lab
Greg Cowham
Team Leader: AE Testing Validation
13
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
One question we are often asked is “Why do you test vehicles?” The answer we often give is
“To better understand the new products and the demands on our business in this changing
industry.” Meeting with engineers at the OEM level is a crucial component to address these
changing requirements, new launch platforms,
and launch timing. Communication at this level
helps to ensure that we stay ahead of our competition
and anticipate the needs of our customers.
Just a few years ago, launch times for new
product lines could take up to four years to develop.
In today’s world, this time has been typically
reduced to two years. It is crucial for P&C to
respond to this compressed timing, continue to
support error free on-time delivery, and to challenge
ourselves to come up with solutions that
capture not just parts, but entire assemblies.
2008 PT Cruiser Thermal Evaluation
To support these goals, AE provides testing
data that can assist with evaluating the direction
that our company will move towards in the future.
Just a few years ago, launch
times for new product lines
could take up to four years
to develop. In today’s world,
this time has been typically
reduced to two years
Bench Test Profile
Current Product Testing:
With the raising cost of fuel, small engine
scooters are currently in high demand. As a
result, P&C has purchased a 50 cc scooter for
evaluation and testing to better understand our
potential supplier opportunities in this developing
market.
Part of this testing requires evaluating performance
of actual and simulated road conditions.
The data provides insight for developments in
sound dampening, speed and cyclic temperatures.
This, along with bench testing, allows us
Typical Sound Measurement
to better understand the full range of conditions
that are required for any product that we
may be able to manufacture in this expanding
market.
This, along with our current heat and vibration
testing of high temperature components,
allows us to explore future manufacturing opportunities
for P&C.
Future Product Testing:
As consumer driving habits change as a result
of energy costs, we too are evaluating how to
develop the support structure and services
that will be required in the future. The manufacturing
materials and the fuels of today are
constantly being reevaluated. The AE Department
is committed in providing the expertise
required to ensure that the limits of these new
products are understood.
14

AE Lab Microscope
Mary Ruth Kasper
Team Leader: AE Lab
The AE Lab purchased a new microscope to enhance our ability to investigate problems and
document our findings. The new microscope has a feature called “real time depth composition.”
Previously, the depth of field on the part image was blurry, but now we can view the whole part in-focus.
Image without depth
composition enhancement
15
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
Image with depth
composition enhancement
One of the major benefits of this
microscope is that it is portable. If the
area of concern is too large to bring to
the lab, we can take the microscope to
the die or to whatever large component
that needs to be examined. This
microscope also allows us to take realtime
on-screen measurements, which
has made the weekly weld evaluation
throughput much more efficient.
“ Previously, the depth of field on the
part image was blurry, but now we
can view the whole part in-focus.”
USDC
Moving Forward
Lou Kocsondy
Distribution Manager
5-S is moving forward at USDC. Our shipping
group has now joined the ranks of
areas to be 5-S audited. After a slow start,
the group got together and took the bull
by the horn and decided that improvements
needed to be made. They received
the most improved award for the month
of August and now have two months of
scores at 4.5. Good job shipping!!!!
Talking about good jobs, I need to
congratulate the Pack area. In June, Joe
Fraam brought out two awards for the
Pack line (Department 80). Joe stated
that it was unique that one area would
get two awards the first being the 5-S
champion for the month of June and also
getting an award for Most Improved in
June. I am happy to announce the Pack
line has maintained that high standard.
September’s score was 4.75.
We have some sad news to announce.
Mary Spoelman, who has been a P&C employee
for over 10 years, has been out on
FMLA since May, 2008. Mary was one of
our Pack Line Coordinators, who worked
on the weekend day shift. Mary has been
an asset to me and the USDC group. Mary
very much enjoys working at P&C. She
likes to do the little things to show her
group that she appreciates their efforts.
Please pray for her recovery.
With retirement, sometime comes
change. Linda Koehl, the supervisor
of the quality group, retired on
June 19. With her knowledge and
experience with USDC customers,
Linda is missed. Jon Beld came on
board in February and took over
our Sort area (Department 85). Jon
has made many positive improvements
with our Sort group. When
Linda retired, the natural inclination
was to combine the two groups.
These two areas had worked very
closely together to begin with. The
thinking behind this was it would
be a natural fit for them to be under
one department. We blended the
two departments into Department
85. Jon Beld is the Team Leader for
both groups. The combined group
seems to be doing a great job.
Wellness does have its advantages,
not just for the employees who
participate but also for the structure
of the offices. To provide the right
environment, we needed to make
some changes to USDC offices. We
decided to create an enclosure so
that privacy could be maintained
during the wellness check ups. This
allowed us to build a conference
room for meetings. This has been a
great addition.
We have started a Hilo project.
A team was formed with Keith
O’Brien, Jessey Lopez, and Lou
Kocsondy. The reason for this
project was to limit the number of
brands of Hilo’s we use. This will
let us carry fewer spare parts, but
have the right parts to fix the Hilo
when it breaks down. The feeling
was that any Hilo 6,000 pounds
or smaller should be electric. Any
Hilo above 6,000 pounds should be
LP Gas. We asked all the Focused
Factories to list what their needs
were. Not surprisingly, we found
out we had more Hilo’s than we
needed. We also learned that we
did not have all the right Hilo’s we
needed. We have started testing
Hilo’s of different capacities and
different makes. Please, if you are
asked to test a Hilo, take the time
to give your honest opinion of its
performance. Based on the evaluation
sheets, we will make our
decision on what to buy.
As a group, USDC continues
to move forward with
improvements throughout
the facility. Great job team
and keep up the good work!
16

A healthy recipe from the P&C kitchen
Rosemary & Sea Salt
Focaccia Bread
1. Stir the flour, salt and yeast in a large bowl.
2. Make a well in the center and add the water and 2 T of the oil.
Mix well.
3. Place dough on a lightly
floured surface and knead
about 10 minutes until smooth.
4. Place the dough in a lightly
oiled bowl. Cover and leave to
rise about 1 hour.
5. Preheat oven to 425° and
grease a baking sheet.
6. Roll out dough to form a large
round, ~½ inch thick and
transfer to baking sheet.
7. Brush on remaining
tablespoon olive oil. Sprinkle
onion over the dough with
rosemary and the sea salt press
lightly into the dough.
8. Make small indentations all
over the surface with finger tip.
17
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
What You Need:
3 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon Easy Blend Rapid Rise Yeast
1 cup warm water
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 small red onion, sliced thin
1 large fresh rosemary sprig, chopped
2 teaspoons course sea salt
9. Cover with plastic wrap and leave
to rise another 30 minutes.
10. Remove plastic wrap and bake
25-30 minutes until golden.
11. Serve in slices or chunks.
Delicious!
Shawn VanLare
Transfer FF Production Scheduler/Planner
Where did summer go?
It seems that it was just yesterday I was
making all kinds of plans to burn up
vacation days and long weekends lost
in a river or woods some place. Unfortunately,
I fell under a curse of Mother
Nature this summer. The general rule was
as follows; if I planned a day or weekend
of fishing, it either rained to the caliber
of a monsoon the night before or the
entire time that I planned to be out
fishing. Last issue, I mentioned a P&C
bass tournament in June on Thornapple
Lake. Five teams of two ventured out and
gave their best effort to fool some large
mouth bass. In the end, Russ Peacock
and his nephew persevered to out fish
us all.
Now that summer is over, what
do we have to look forward to? Are you
kidding me, Fall is the greatest season of
all for sportsmen, sports enthusiasts, and
general outdoor adventure appreciators.
Where do you start? Maybe color tour of
all of the changing leaves as they transition
from summer foliage to preparation
for the winter? How about a football
game? What about a cool fall night bon
Fall is the greatest season
of all for sportsmen, sports
enthusiasts, & general outdoor
adventure appreciators.
fire? All sound extremely enticing, but
fall is known for Michigan’s hunting opportunities.
Whitetail deer hunting season
will be open by the time this article is
published. Whether you participate
in the October archery season or the
November firearm season, many view it
as a Michigan holiday. Josh Knuth is going
to Minnesota to try to take a trophy
whitetail - wish him luck. Many feathered
creatures become fair game during the
Fall. I even tried my hand at some grouse
hunting in September. The end result
was mixed. I did not take any birds, but
my dog, Baxter, did a great job. Dennis
Myers and Luke Brinks are probably
ready to do their fair share of goose and
duck hunting. Hopefully Dennis’s aim is
better than his fishing displayed during
the tournament on Thornapple Lake.
Many great fishing opportunities are out
there during the Fall season. Salmon are
Out & About
making the return to their place of
birth now to help ensure survival. The
steel head are not too far behind them.
Walleye and Pike are feeding heavy
in lieu of winter coming. Fall fishing is
great as the weather tends to be very
moderate to mild.
On the Reduce/Reuse/Recycle
front, P&C has posted some interesting
information about waste reduction.
Some of you may have seen the
postings around the plant, but in case
you missed it here it is. Over the last
year through our shrink wrap recycling
efforts, P&C has saved 6,570 gallons
of oil, reduced air pollutants by 200
cubic yards, reduced landfill usage by
22 cubic yards, and saved 38,513 Kwh
of energy. May I be bold and say a little
effort goes a great distance.
happy fall to all!
Shawn
18

Department 40 Focused Factory
Department 40 was combined into the Prog Focus Factory.
This has been an extreme help due to combining
the scheduling assignments from the mass producing
presses to the hand feed/assembly presses and machines.
What this also did was set a great opportunity
to recognize types of waste in this area. Chris Bennett
(Process Engineer), Danny Verlin (Prog Scheduler) and
the complete Dept 40 staff have driven many steps on
improving this area.
May/June: set up Dept 40 warehouse (supermarket),
moved presses “current best”
June 10: Kicked off a water spider route (instant
productivity improvement)
June 12: Set up hold
area and overflow WIP
area (this is another area
to pull from between
the mass producing
presses and the assembly
machines)
June 23: Rotate Cell
1 (Addison Mckee and
Pick & Place machines)
at breaks
July: Implemented standard inspection of the machines
100% at the Addison Mckees
July: Removed a die rack behind line job to establish a
shipping area
July: Kaizen blitz – 5s and storage behind the die rack
August 11: Began using caution cones (men at work
for safety)
August 21: Kicked off QDC in Dept 40
August 29: Painted warehouse (supermarket) floors
and Cell 2
19
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
More Manufacturing Change
“The Current Best Way”
Josh Siple
Focused Factory Manager: Progs
Greetings from the Prog Focus Factory. It has been a
busy summer for the employees in Prog. Listed below
are several of the improvements that have occurred
that are helping the Prog Focus Factory continue to
rapidly change to “The Current Best Way”
Department 45 / Tooling / 1500 FF
Dennis Myers and Paul Gould are building five progressive
dies in the tool repair area for our facility in Hungry.
Dennis Myers drove with the help from John Goff, Web
Webster, Don Rose and the maintenance team on our
die storage in R&D 158 and consolidated 108 tools to
open up 4,785 sq. ft. This was a tremendous savings
due to the reduction in floor space.
The last three months, we have had ZERO missed shipments.
This has been accomplished through team work
between tooling, production, and maintenance.
The Prog group has launched over a 100 new parts
within the last five months with ZERO missed PPAP’s .
Our next step is to drive for continuous improvement,
team work, and change “The Current Best Way.” We need to
stay focused on the lean manufacturing systems and not be
afraid to take leaps of faith when dealing with change.
Franklin’s Inventory
Metamorphasis
Jason Rice
Lean Manufacturing Engineer - Franklin
When you go to the Emergency Room and have a
problem that needs immediate attention, you want
everything in its place. Everything should be where
the doctor can readily reach it. When it comes to
everyone’s health, seconds count.
Our inventory in Franklin is not so much a
matter of life and death, but being able to locate
product in the specified, designated area is important.
It also wastes time when Hilo drivers have to
walk the warehouse to find parts that are scattered
in many different places. Our inventory was the
epitome of the word RANDOM. If there was an
open spot in the racks, we put the next product
in that place instead of the designated product.
What this created was a random warehouse where
things were never together but spread throughout
the warehouse. This equaled CHAOS. Because
skids and knockdowns of like product were not
together, you never knew how many of a single
part you had on hand. This creates inventory errors
and we would scramble to fill an order causing
unnecessary changeovers because we didn’t know
exactly what we had.
One of the action items from a KAIZEN event
with the Hilo drivers in Franklin was to set the
inventory in designated places and limit each part
number to a predetermined number of days on
hand. We have embarked on a mission that is still
morphing into the finished product. The KAIZEN
group decided that finished goods from the weld
cells need to have a two day inventory. The Press
parts (manufactured components & finished
goods) will have a four day inventory. What this
is accomplishing is the elimination of the worst
MUDA of all - Overproduction. In turn, it eliminates
staff having to waste motion by walking the warehouse
aimlessly looking for a certain part. It also
lets us follow the second “S” in the 5S procedure,
“Straighten” or “A Place for Everything and Everything
in It’s Place”. If you want to see how many skids of the
PC70545 we have, you just have to walk to the warehouse
and look in locations FG1 through FG6. You don’t have to
walk to ten different spots in the warehouse to find out
how many you have.
There are many benefits to having an inventory that
has designated storage areas and a limit on production
such as:
Reducing inventory errors
Reducing the amount of inventory that we
carry on hand by setting limits on how much
we run of each part
Everything is visual in the racks
Hi-lo drivers seem to be calmer and more relaxed when
not worried about trying to find product in the racks. If
their sheet says PC70433 is in FD1, then that is where they
go. If there are no PC70433’s in FD1 then we need to run
these parts. This allows the Team Leader to manage his or
her department without worrying about product outages
or overproducing. Simply put, “If the rack spots are full, no
production is needed. If the rack spots are empty, production
of that part is needed to fill the system.”
As we all know, change is typically something we turn
away from and avoid; but some changes are beneficial!
Although our inventory modifications were a challenge
during the transformation process from random to
designated and were an inconvenience for a few days, we
persevered through teamwork and the Lean principles to
achieve Lean inventory.
20

The
Weekenders David Proctor
A Few Of The Faces From Shift 7
Director of Engineering
21
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
Global Engineering
The old saying that “the only consistency in life is change” is very much a fact today,
as automotive companies are transitioning away from large trucks and SUV’s due to
increased fuel costs. But not all change is bad. During this transitional period, we are
taking advantage of the reduction in customer requirements and making improvements
to our systems in order to gain competitive advantage and secure our future
when the automotive market rebounds with new fuel efficient vehicles.
So what changes have taken
place leading to improvement?
To start with, Brian Kegel has joined
our team as Engineering Manager. He
is responsible for Corporate Engineering,
focusing on assembly and tool
engineering. Brian brings a diverse
background of manufacturing experience,
including mig welding and
assembly, along with transfer and
progressive dies. He will lead the Engineering
groups toward standardizing
tooling, welding fixtures and assembly
processes throughout our global operations.
In addition, he will be working
with our customer engineering groups
on designs for manufacturability and
development of new technology to
keep P&C in front of our competition.
Dimensional Planner
The Engineering group is in the
process of implementing Dimensional
Planner software. This software will
provide tools for engineering to develop
a comprehensive dimensional plan
which will be distributed electronically
to external tooling sources. This will allow
us to identify critical dimensions as
defined by the customer and electronically
communicate to our tool sources,
eliminating opportunities for errors
associated with reentering data. In return,
tool sources will be able to report
on the same required measurement
point and compare to predetermined
targets, thus standardizing measurement
methods and eliminating costly
errors caused by miscommunication.
New technology for P&C
Hungary
Delphi Luxemburg has awarded our
Hungarian facility its first new business
for a welded cone assembly (Figure 1).
The design of the cone is a two piece
complex stamping that is welded on
both sides from end to end. Heat from
the weld relieves stress in the material
from forming, distorting the diameters.
In order to bring the part back
into dimensional tolerance, a sizing
or end forming machine is needed to
manipulate the material by increasing
and or decreasing the diameters to the
required dimensions. A new Eagle programmable,
double head sizing unit
was purchased to size the small and
large diameters of the end cone to the
customer’s specifications. To ensure a
successful launch for our customer, an
Engineering team, lead by Brian Kegel,
will support the implementation and
training of our Hungarian team.
Cost Estimating
The Cost Estimation team has been
overwhelmed with request for quotes
(RFQ’s) of new products both domestically
and internationally. In order
to handle the increase, the team
participated in a Lean Office Kaizen
event comprised of a cross functional
team including Pam Frost - Purchasing,
fig. 1
Ross Michaels and John Nolle - Sales,
Tim Reeb - Cost Estimation and Joe
Fraam - Continuous Improvement.
The team conducted a value stream of
the current processes and developed
opportunities for improvement by
eliminating elements identified as nonvalue
added in the system.
Some of the changes identified
and implemented were:
· Update to a high speed plotter for
prints,
· Eliminating the bottleneck of RFQ’s
sitting in a basket. A folder system is
now being used that prioritizes which
quotes are worked on first, based on
lead time & real opportunity for new
business,
· Tool Engineering is reviewing prints
and assisting with development of
process, tool design and blank size to
optimize cost
· Reviewing several different software
companies that would streamline the
through put by improving communication
to our suppliers and eliminate the
management of multiple spreadsheets.
Our goal is to improve our approach
towards quote development
by forming quoting teams
that are comprised of manufacturing
and quality representatives for
strategic business packages to
ensure that we develop the leanest
process at the lowest cost.
22

Cathy Winterhalter
Director of Quality
23
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
Without a Customer
In the Quality Basics class, employees go
through several exercises to establish a list
of customers and processes and we discuss
whether those customers are happy or not.
We also form focused factories and learn quickly that
we can go out of business by not following directions
or having late deliveries. We learn that sometimes it
is not always comfortable putting the customer first,
but there is no doubt our customers challenge us
and make us a better company. Customers are the
most important asset any company has, even though
they do not show up on the balance sheet. In the
past year, we have learned a lot and have been on a
constant journey of improvement.
The most significant change in 2008 was a focus
on effective corrective action for product and system
improvements. For all external customer concerns issued
since June, we implemented a checklist with the
minimum expectations for the closure of corrective
actions for all customer rejections. It has been a painful
and time consuming process but we are certainly
seeing great rewards.
Reformatted the nonconforming tag for ease of use and combining of
A Process Has No Purpose sort information. Created weekly and monthly reject reports which allow A poster for L.L. Bean
In August 2008, all customer scorecards show P&C
with green status. This status allows us to quote
and be awarded new business.
PPM significant changes:
Benteler
Aug/Sept 2007 = 1291
August 2008 = 0
Tenneco
Aug/Sept 2007 = 762
August 2008 = 2
Arvin Sango
Aug/Sept 2007 = 685
August 2008 = 13
The number of external customer concerns in
2008 is not quite at our goal, but we have seen a
significant decrease each month and at this point
have had 39 less customer concerns issued than
last year at this time.
Our external parts per million –
August 2007 = 197
August 2008 = 28
Customers are the most important asset
any company has, even though they do
not show up on the balance sheet.
During this learning process, we have made some significant internal
changes as well:
Each Focused Factory assigned specific areas to Process Engineers who
took the role of Quality Engineer and Manufacturing Engineer and own
their individual areas.
us to review nonconforming product issues much quicker.
Implemented electronic inspection check sheets on Press 337. We will be
evaluating the information and reviewing feasibility for implementation
plant-wide.
Implemented dock audit check sheets with product requirements. The
effectiveness of our 8Ds is reflected in zero product defects found at the
dock audit.
Implemented a Corporate Standard to Design, Quote and Plan for Quality
which lists actions necessary during the quote process, during product
launch, and after PPAP so we see continued success for P&C
A definite correlation has been
found between our internal scrap
and external problems. We typically
see a spike in our customer rejections
about two months after we
have a large spike in our internal
scrap. One item that we found when
we looked at the system causes for
product rejections is that we did
not follow our internal procedures;
specifically, containment at the press
and using box top covers.
This year has been a great year, so
let’s continue our positive trend
and show our internal and external
customers that their satisfaction is
all that matters. Think about the
next process as your customer and
check in with them to see if they
are happy! A customer’s assessment
of the quality of any organization
is based on the best that they
have seen – let’s all work together
to make sure Pridgeon and Clay is
always their first choice.
says the following
about customers:
A customer is the most important
person ever in this office –
in person or by mail.
A customer is not dependent on
us, we are dependent on him.
A customer is not an interruption
of our work, he is the
purpose of it.
We are not doing him a favor
by serving him, he is doing us a
favor by giving us the opportunity
to do so.
A customer is not someone
to argue or match wits with.
Nobody ever won an argument
with a customer.
A customer is a person who
brings us his wants. It is our job
to handle them profitably to him
and to ourselves.
24

CRH Awarded P&C
Business in Mexico
Ross Martin
VP of International Operations
25
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
Since I wrote you last about our Mexico Joint Venture
(JV) in the Spring 2007 issue, much has happened
with our developing Mexico JV.
In January 2008, we had a sales inquiry by CRH
asking if we could produce seating parts in Mexico
for a new program which was ramping up in March
2008. They indicated that they had been struggling
with one of their major stamping suppliers (Company
X) in Monterrey, Mexico.
We had the opportunity to quote this business,
and provide them with a plan where we would produce
parts in Grand Rapids until we could facilitate
a larger press in our JV facility in Monterrey. Prior
to awarding us the business, CRH toured our Grand
Rapids facility, gave us a Quality survey and reviewed
our plans and capabilities. They were very cautious
because they did not want to start another relationship
with a stamping company that could not serve
their needs. Because CRH was very happy with our
plan and the support we gave them, they awarded
us all six progressive dies and had them shipped to
Grand Rapids for initial production.
As we received the first dies in March, we acted
quickly and implemented some engineering changes,
built some off-line nutting dies to support production,
and submitted PPAP’s within days of receiving
the dies. All of this demonstrated that our capabilities
were more superior than Company X.
In August, we installed a brand-new 600 ton AIDA
prog press at P&C Nava. In September, we moved
our first die (PC70851) down to P&C Nava for initial
production. We performed our run at rate with CRH
on September 22 and passed with good scores. Later
in October, we will move our second die (PC70852)
down for initial production start-up.
Since these moves, I have had several questions
asked of me from our employees. Many allude to the
fact that we are moving to Mexico. I have to honestly
answer that we are NOT moving to Mexico, but rather
we took this business based on a commitment that
we would move these dies to Mexico after production
launch. Our customer wanted to have “Local Content.”
Let me provide more details. In February 2007, it
became clear that Company X could not serve CRH
adequately. They searched for stamping suppliers within
200 miles of their plant in Matamoros, Mexico. If we had
not established our Mexico JV in August 2007, we would
not have had the opportunity to run these parts in
Grand Rapids for an interim period.
During this spring and summer, we have hosted
many people from P&C Nava to learn our technology
and stamping methods in running these parts. It has
been a huge learning curve and everyone has welcomed
our visitors, which are an extension of P&C. I am very
proud of the hospitality you have shown them.
Going forward, we have sales commitments from
our Mexican customers of over $20 million for 2009 and
$50 million for 2010. Please remember these are for
sales of parts which will be consumed in Mexico for the
Mexico market, not sales that will be shipped within the
United States. Thanks again for all your support with our
Mexico business.
Beth Trendt, Mike Wohlfert, Dennis
Myers, Brent Sawdy & Brennan Jeffrey
traveled to Monterrey in September
Finding Ways to Reduce
The “Cost of Quality”
Jim Taylor
Team Leader, Error Proofing Lab
In the last issue of the newsletter, I wrote about how
error proofing can help to reduce the cost of quality.
The last comment I made in the article was that
it takes everyone working as a team to find ways to
reduce the cost of quality.
A perfect example of P&C co-workers working
together to help reduce the cost of quality can be
seen running in press 336. I am referring to the two
progressive dies that stamp the inner door panels
(16915938 / 40 & 16915139 / 41). These are two out
progressive dies, running a right and left door panel
that required a 100% off line sort. The cost associated
with sorting the door panels off line amounted to
$45,000 annually. Scott Visser saw this as a possible
opportunity to utilize error proofing sensor technology
to replace the off line sort. Scott presented his
idea to Dennis Myers, who then investigated the
feasibility of adding an additional station to the end
of the progressive die that would inspect the part for
hole and nut presence.
Between the efforts of Dennis Myers, Jason
Boersma, Ed Brown, and designs by Bruce Wollen, they
were able to design and build an in-line inspection
station, which is mounted on a separate die section
and clamps to the bolster on the end of the progressive
die. Another unique aspect of this inspection station
is that the part is transferred from the cutoff station of
the progressive die into the inspection station using the
presses transfer system and shortened transfer rails with
grippers.
The parts are now 100% inspected for pierce holes,
nut and thread presence. This is all done in the stamping
process, where if one of these quality features is missing,
the sensors will fault, stopping the process by preventing
the bad part from transferring to the part out conveyor.
This is just one of many opportunities where an offline
quality inspection can be incorporated into the stamping
or assembly process, thus removing the sort costs.
26

Grand Rapids
Maintenance/Facilities
Jessey Lopez
Maintenance/Facilities Manager
27
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
Over the past several months, contractors have been
working on our facility both inside and outside. Some
of the work inside our building includes painting
walls, putting new epoxy on the floors, restriping
aisles and painting the main office entrance. On the
buildings, we have also been repairing concrete, siding
and gutters. Along with this, we have also cleaned
out Crofton (building inside main parking lot) and
have implemented a procedure that allows us to manage
what is sent and then kept at Crofton. Lastly, we
have been doing work on our grounds.
All of these projects are done with the understanding
that continuous improvement applies to our
facilities and grounds. We all share in the responsibility
of keeping our facility and grounds looking good.
If we think of the facility as “ours,” then we will have an
easier time taking care of it.
I would like to share a true story that happened to
my family several years ago. It was February, and we
had just finished building our new house in Holland.
We had purchased new furniture and anxiously waited
for the company to deliver it. The day came when
the truck pulled into our drive. Though the weather
was bad and the sidewalk and drive were muddy from
the snow, it didn’t dampen our enthusiasm. We were
happy to see their truck.
Two gentlemen got off the truck. One opened the
back of the truck, while the other came to the door.
He wanted to know which rooms the furniture was
going to so that they could decide which pieces to
bring in first. After we finished discussing the placement
of the furniture, I proceeded to tell him to
make sure he and the other gentleman took off their
shoes at the door, so they wouldn’t dirty our carpets
and tile. Although this seemed to be a reasonable
request, he didn’t appreciate it!
He said that company policy did not allow them
to take their shoes off. I told him they could put the
blankets they use to protect the furniture on our
floors instead of taking off their shoes. This way,
they could keep their shoes on and our floors would
still be protected. He wouldn’t agree to this. So I told
him that he would have to take the furniture back
and I would call the Store Manager to cancel my
order.
As you can imagine... he was not happy! But
after thinking about it, he put blankets down and
moved the furniture into our home without further
incident. They did a great job and made sure that
our floors and walls were not damaged in any way.
We appreciated their effort and thanked them for
taking the time to cover our floors before moving
the furniture into our house.
We do our best to keep our homes looking
good. I realize we may not view our facility as our
home, but I would hope that we take pride in keeping
it looking good. I believe we would see a change
in how we view our facility, equipment and grounds
if we would ask ourselves, “Would I do this in my
home?”
Vision
To provide a safe work environment
and a facility that we can all be proud
to come to every day. We shall have
reliable equipment so that we can meet
our customers demand for quality, cost
and delivery while ensuring that P&C is
profitable and able to continue to invest
in our people, our equipment and
our facility.
I believe we would see a
change in how we view our
facility, equipment and grounds
if we would ask ourselves,
“Would I do this in my home?”
HILO’s
I would like to talk about Hilo’s because they are
quite expensive and are a piece of equipment with
a lot of power. We use them to pick up and move
raw steel and parts that are used throughout our
facility. Because they are very powerful, they can
cause damage to our floors, walls and to the facility
in general. Although none of us cause damage on
purpose, there may be things we can do to avoid
causing damage to our property.
· Pick up our product instead of pushing across the
floor - Avoid gouging our floors.
· Do not spin the tires with our gas Hilo’s - Prevent
burning into the epoxy on our floors.
· Drive them with care - Eliminate damage and
reduce the overall cost to our equipment, walls,
floors and to our Hilo’s. Those of us that have the
privilege of driving this equipment have the power
to make a change that will have a positive safety
and financial impact on our company.
Last year, we spent over $100,000 repairing
damage to Hilo’s. This does not include the cost to
repair the item that was damaged, the cost to rent
a replacement Hilo or the cost of lost productivity.
This is just the cost to repair the damaged Hilo. We
fully understand no one does these things on purpose,
but we must realize that we have a responsibility
to our team and to our company when we
drive a Hilo. It is the same kind of responsibility all
of us have when we drive our cars.
There may be times when the damage is
caused by poor infrastructure and it is my responsibility
to keep it maintained and in good condition.
We understand that the vast majority of us who
drive Hilo’s, drive them safely and with care, but
once in a while we need to be reminded of our
duties. At times, it is easy to point out certain areas,
like Hilo’s because they are so big and we have over
46 of them on our floor, but we all share in the responsibility
to provide a safe workplace and a clean
facility.
Although a lot has been said about Hilo’s, the
message rings true in other areas.
· When we open a package of gum or a candy bar,
we need to throw the wrapper in a trash container.
· When we see oil or paper on the floor, we need to
clean it up or let someone know, so that it can be
taken care of by the appropriate personnel.
· If we smoke, we need to put the cigarette butts in
the containers provided outside our building and
not on the ground, sidewalk or street.
· We don’t want to see the cigarette butts, earplugs
or wrappers on our sidewalk, street or lawn, so
please help us by disposing of them in the right
container.
In conclusion, we need each other to make
Pridgeon and Clay, Inc. better. If you have ideas
that can help us on our continuous improvement
journey, please feel free to share them with me,
your Team Leader, one of our managers or use the
suggestion program.
In order to accomplish our vision, we will need
to change our mindset and continue to raise our
standards so that our facility is always presentable.
Every one of us can make this a better place by
impacting your immediate area.
28

Portable Parts Washer
Six Sigma Project:
Steve Ramsey
Lean Manufacturing Specialist Six Sigma Champion
So you think that all our portable washers have
to be cleaned out every day or so - right…. and
there is no other way to keep those darn machines
clean?!! Well, think again… As we blend
the best elements of what we do with our speed
fam central recycling system, lube dilution,
delivery and injection systems, water purification
systems in Dept. 50 cooling water, auto industry
paint systems, etc. you will see some big changes
very soon with how we treat our Dept. 36 portable
parts washers. With success in Dept. 36, this
technology will definitely spread.
This continuous improvement project has its
roots in our multiple customer concerns for “dirty
parts” we have accumulated over the years, as
well as our need to make productivity improvements.
While improvements have been made
through increasing our maintenance staffing,
addition of communication boards on the parts
washers and increased discipline in cleaning out
the parts washers, concerns continue to be issued
and we only work harder to clean out parts washers
faster and faster. One fact to consider, in the
year 2007, Dept. 36 required 1,000 parts washer
cleanouts by our maintenance staff. That’s three
cleanouts per day!
In July, 2006, Kristin Adams, Dan Todaro,
Toncho Mata, Gerard Bogner Terry Schmuker and
myself embarked on an improvement project
using the Six Sigma DMAIC (Define, Measure,
Analyze, Improve, Control) method to find and
implement the best solutions to our parts washer
issues. First we defined the outcomes we desired…..clean
parts balanced by low machine
29
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
downtime. To accomplish this, we first had to find
out “how clean is clean” and develop a measurement
system (gage) to measure this output of our process.
Utilizing the PC71695G oil pan as a “marker part” given
its large surface area and difficulty in cleaning, the
gage R&R process took three measurement system
attempts. The team settled on the NVR (Non-Volatile
Residue) testing method, outsourced to Ransohoff,
maker of our 1072 parts washer. At the same time, the
team worked on developing an understanding of the
process inputs that effected part cleanliness.
With this work complete, the team used Multivari
and Correlation analysis to determine the critical
input(s) that effected cleanliness. A series of analysis
phase tools were utilized to better understand which
inputs had the most influence on part cleanliness.
Staying with the PC71695G, we can see that Soap had
a dramatic effect on increasing parts cleanliness (the
lower the NVR units(mg/square foot)).
Additionally, a very important fact to understand: part
cleanliness decreases over time in a washer bath. To
quantify this observation, PC71695G wash bath and
part samples were taken at 300 pcs increments, with
the comparison of the part cleanliness plotted below
against the total ppm of oil discovered in the bath
at the time of part sampling. A dramatic 96.3% R-Sq
value - or in everyday terms – a nearly 1 to 1 correlation
was discovered. That’s significant correlation!
Given this high correlation, the determination was
made by the team to pursue a “recycled and filtered
fluid” solution to our challenge. Working with Separation
Dynamics, maker of patented industrial Ultrafiltration
systems; a plan for a networked system of washers
tied to a central tank was developed. This ultrafilter
technology (but never marketed by Johnson & Johnson)
is the industrial application of the same materials
and methods used in medical kidney dialysis. Below is
a diagram that briefly lays out the plan.
This improvement plan will save us $110,000 per year in
hard cost savings with capital project costs of $200,000
to make this happen. Design expectations have machine
cleanouts reduced from 1000/year to 12/year (for
Preventative maintenance)!!! Now our technicians will
monitor and control system performance parameters (%
oil load, alkalinity, etc).
Current system upgrades have begun with full system
install by end of October and debugging of system
improvements during the month of November. It has
been a two-year long journey, but we now see the light
at the end of the tunnel and it looks nice and sunny! So
stay tuned. Next article will discuss process capability
improvements and general project outcomes.
30

ihály Kőhegyi, József Horváth, Attila Nagy
P&C Kft Advances To Design Level
Of Tooling For Faurecia, Germany
Ross Martin
VP of International Operations
In January 2008, our Sales group in
Europe brought P&C Kft an interesting
opportunity of making engine brackets,
not the traditional exhaust system
parts for Faurecia. The challenge was
that three dies needed to be built at
one time. After review and discussion
with the various teams in Hungary,
we decided to have all three dies
designed and built by our Hungary
plant. This was a new level of technical
advancement for our Engineering
group in Hungary which hadn’t been
tackled before. Traditionally, the designs
would be done in Solidworks by
our Grand Rapids Engineering group
then sent to P&C Kft for detail, build,
and try-out.
There is no question that this challenged
our capability and opportunity
to learn new things at P&C Kft. But this
was a very necessary thing to become
more self sufficient for the design and
31
FACTORY OUTLET
Fall 2008
build of progressive stamping dies.
The Designers in Hungary worked
very closely with our Engineering
group and tooling engineers in the
U.S. Introduced by our I.T. group,
“GoToMeeting” enhanced the teams
design review process by allowing
them to see the same screen interactively,
a very powerful feature for
doing technical reviews.
The team in Hungary designed
three sixteen-station progressive
dies, built them, and started try-out
of the tools in Hungary. After several
iterations of trial in the press, the
tools still needed some fine adjustment.
With the help and use of our
Origin Software called Fit & Analysis,
our Tooling and Metrology groups
were able to review layouts of the
parts in Hungary, verify dimensional
features (form, trims, datums) and
assist P&C Kft in getting all three
tools 100% to print in a very short
period of time.
As I watched this happen, I was
amazed at the commitment of our
people in Grand Rapids and Hungary,
working together to bring these
projects home. It demonstrated to
me, that if we pool our collective
knowledge, we can excel rapidly
and speed up what would traditionally
take longer to achieve. What
a beautiful thing to have people
from different cultures and different
countries all from P&C’s expanding
family working together to move to
a new technical level. While projects
like these aren’t always easy, and
often stretch our capabilities, I’m
proud to see the strength and commitment
of P&C’s family.
Retirees
Nick Nedry retired on August 29, 2008. He worked as a Transfer Automatic
Press Operator since January 3, 1999. He first started as an Automatic Press
Operator B and worked his way up to Automatic Press Operator A
Glenda Quinn retired on July 25, 2008. Since November 15, 1998, she
worked as a Machine Operator for Department 55 and a Hand Feed Press
Operator for Departments 40 & 55.
Linda Koehl retired on June 20, 2008. Since June 15, 1997, she worked for
the Quality Department performing various roles of Quality Audits. Her last
position was a Quality Audit Team Leader at USDC.
Don Dawson retired on August 22, 2008. For seventeen years, he worked as
an Advanced Tooling Engineer, making sure the difficult tooling needs were
met.
Jack Rabidue retired on August 1, 2008. During the twenty-six years of his
employment, Jack served P&C in various aspects of the Transfer Press Department.
This includes production Tech & APO for the 1500Ton Transfers, as
well as Supervisor for the Transfer area.
Mike Lenartz retired on August 1, 2008. During the twenty-nine years of his
employment, he worked as a Mig Welder and Robot Shuttle Operator.
32