TRW Receives IndustryWeek's 'America's Best Plants' Award
15 October 1998
TRW Receives IndustryWeek's 'America's Best Plants'(C) Award for the Third Time
CLEVELAND, Oct. 14 -- In recognition of its world-class
achievements in manufacturing, quality, productivity and customer
satisfaction, TRW has won IndustryWeek's "America's Best Plants"(C) award for
the third time in four years. This year, TRW's Tillsonburg, Ontario, plant --
which is part of TRW's global Chassis Systems business -- has been named one
of "America's Best Plants" by the magazine.
TRW's Tillsonburg plant was one of 10 manufacturing plants chosen -- and
the first selected in Canada -- by a panel of IndustryWeek editors from among
some 170 nominations.
"TRW's Tillsonburg facility is a prime example of the progress we're
making in converting TRW into a stellar, lean manufacturing company," said
Peter S. Hellman, president and chief operating officer of TRW. "We are proud
that our TRW team in Tillsonburg has earned this recognition for world-class
quality."
TRW is the only company to have had plants honored in the U.S., Mexico and
Canada. Its facilities in Cookeville, Tenn. and Chihuahua, Mexico won
"America's Best Plants" recognition in 1995 and 1996, respectively.
"Receiving the title of one of 'America's Best Plants' is a great honor
for TRW and our empowered employee teams," said Lawrence Degiorgio, TRW's
Tillsonburg plant manager. "This award symbolizes the dedication of TRW's 429
Tillsonburg employees, whose intense focus on continuous improvement provides
world-class products for our customers."
The plant, its operating system and its performance will be profiled in
the Oct. 19 issue of IndustryWeek magazine.
Some of the facility's stellar achievements include:
* A customer rejection rate of just 3.21 ppm;
* Total cost of quality as a percent of sales equaling 0.9 percent;
* 2,561 employee cost improvement suggestions in 1997;
* Scrap as a percent of sales reduced by 46 percent since 1993; and
* 100 percent of the workforce is part of a self-directed work team.
TRW's Tillsonburg operations consist of two plant locations -- including
the 96,000-square-foot Bell Mill Road Plant and the 34,000-square-foot Spruce
Street Plant. The facilities manufacture upper and lower control arms, ball
joints, stabilizer links, steering linkage and suspension products for
Chrysler Corp., Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp., Nissan and Honda.
"Our annual 'America's Best Plants' issue and the features on the award
winners serve as a valuable reference for plant managers and team leaders
across the country," said IndustryWeek Editor-in-Chief John R. Brandt.
"Through stories on 'America's Best Plants,' readers gain insights into how to
better run their facilities. IndustryWeek is proud not only to congratulate
the 10 very deserving winners, but also to help nurture continuous improvement
across North American industry."
IndustryWeek, which is the flagship publication of Penton Media, is a
management magazine that helps senior executives in manufacturing and its
supporting industries build, safeguard and expand the wealth of their
companies. Now in its 28th year, IndustryWeek has an audience of more than
800,000 readers. It initiated the "America's Best Plants" awards in 1990.
A full-service supplier with total suspension systems engineering
capability, TRW's Chassis Systems business is a leading producer of steering
linkages, control arms, stabilizer links, radius rods and suspension ball
joints. TRW annually produces more than 40 million ball joints and is the
leading supplier of fiber-reinforced plastic stabilizer links (producing more
than 3 million a year).
TRW Inc. is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, and has sales of
nearly $12 billion. The company is one of the largest independent automotive
components suppliers in the world with $7 billion in worldwide automotive
sales. The company also provides advanced technology products and services
for the space, defense and information technology markets worldwide.