“There’s been so much pull from the other regions to learn about the processes,” said Jay Blanchard, continuous improvement manager. “Before the week was done, I had leaders from other regions asking when I could come to their facilities to teach more of their team members.” Eager to start learning and applying the Toyota Production System learnings, associates from our India, Japan and China facilities along with members from TS-Shape jumped into a week of SPS for Leaders training. But the preparation started well before Jay set foot in China. As a strategic approach to the goals of the company, he’s been bringing in associates from different regions to the […]

2015 was our safest years to date, and even MIOSHA took notice. Safety is our top priority here, and we have many resources to make sure everyone goes home in the same condition that they came into work. One of the resources we have available are GroPros, compact video cameras, used to look at issues within a piece of equipment. Just a few years ago we introduced GoPros onto the manufacturing floor to help associates solve problems, safely. MIOSHA was so intrigued by this that they selected us to share our best practice with others. “It allows you to be “inside the equipment”, without actually being physically inside the machines […]

When Gary and Midge Verplank started their companies, they made a promise to give back to the community where they were founded. Over the years, Gary and Midge have helped give back to different causes in the West Michigan area, including United Way. “We are not the singular reason for the success of our companies,” said Midge. “We owe something to the community and those associates. One way we can do that is making sure that our companies and ourselves participate in the well-being of the community that we live and work in.” On Thursday, March 24, the Verplank family received the G.W. Haworth Strength of the Community Award for […]