On Tuesday December 8th, 2015, the Parmatech-Proform team hosted a Lean Tour in collaboration with Polaris, giving over 60 local manufacturing leaders the inside view into the ATW approach to Lean and “Genius” (the ATW brand of Leadership). Stefan Pryor, RI Secretary of Commerce, gave opening remarks along with Peter Frost, Chairman and CEO of ATW (Parmatech-Proform’s parent company). Both leaders noted the importance of leadership, innovation, and a team spirit to continue building America’s manufacturing base, as shown in Proform’s Lean Tour.
The Lean Tour at Proform included “stations” at many of the plant’s departments, with talks given by the employees who led the innovation and implementation of such projects as 5S, kanbans, FIFO lanes, and visual scheduling boards. “I think the Lean tools are all very interesting, but the most exciting and impressive parts of the tour were the ownership, engagement, and enthusiasm given by the employees themselves.” said Deb Polaris MEP’s marketing executive.
Many tour participants asked how Proform created the leadership culture that was so obvious in the presentations by employees. “We are creating a self-sustaining Learning and Leading culture through our Learning Academy [ATW’s leadership program] and with much support from our Lean Core Team. I am truly excited about where we are going from here.” said Tom Trumbour, Senior Manufacturing Engineer at Proform.
ATW and Parmatech-Proform look forward to continued partnerships to build US manufacturing, alongside our partners at Polaris, URI, and the RI government. Thanks to everyone who planned and participated in the event!
