Freudenberg-NOK President & CEO Inducted Into Shingo Prize Academy
22 June 1999
Freudenberg-NOK President & CEO Inducted Into Shingo Prize Academy
PLYMOUTH, Mich., June 22 -- Joseph C. Day, president and
chief executive officer of Freudenberg-NOK, has been inducted into the Shingo
Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing Academy in recognition of his efforts to
drive excellence in lean manufacturing throughout the automotive industry.
Day's induction came in a ceremony conducted by Dr. Ross E. Robson,
executive director of the Shingo Prize, and G. Jay Gogue, provost of Utah
State University, during the 11th Anniversary Shingo Prize Conference held
recently in Columbus, Ohio. The Shingo Prize Academy consists of individuals
who have distinguished themselves in the area of manufacturing excellence.
"It's a great honor to be inducted into the Shingo Prize Academy, since
the Shingo Prize itself is a hallmark for excellence, teamwork and continuous
improvement," Day said. "I accept this recognition on behalf of all my
Freudenberg and NOK Group associates, who have made excellence, teamwork and
continuous improvement the foundation of our company's culture."
Other 1999 inductees into the Shingo Prize Academy were: James J. Padilla,
group vice president of manufacturing at Ford Motor Co.; J.T. Battenberg, III,
chairman, CEO and president of Delphi Automotive Systems; Masaaki Imai,
chairman of the KAIZEN Institute of Japan; and George Koenigsaecker, president
of the HON Co.
Day has been a leading proponent of lean systems in the automotive
industry and actively assists other companies in their application and
practice. He has made more than 75 industry speeches on lean systems,
including keynote remarks at Harvard University's Manufacturing Leadership
Summit, MIT Graduate School and DaimlerChrysler Corp. events. Day also has
served as a launch leader in lean operating programs for Ford Motor Co. and
Delphi Automotive Systems.
The Freudenberg and NOK Group Companies recently passed a record milestone
last month as they completed their 12,000th kaizen (continuous improvement)
project.
Through Freudenberg-NOK's company-wide lean systems program -- GROWTTH(R)
(Get Rid Of Waste Through Team Harmony) -- such kaizens have created
significant improvements in productivity, product quality, delivery, waste
reduction, customer satisfaction and global competitiveness for the company.
Day said the program has helped to create a manufacturing environment in which
Freudenberg-NOK's reject rates have dropped more than 96 percent -- from 1,300
to 50 parts per million (PPM) -- since 1992.
As the company's cultural cornerstone, the GROWTTH principles result in
best practice methods and enable Freudenberg-NOK to be more responsive to its
global customers, by helping cut product development time, simplify production
and standardize products, processes and materials that are interchangeable
anywhere in the world.
Day said Freudenberg-NOK's program, which also has reduced the company's
cost of quality by more than 60 percent since 1992, can help North American
vehicle manufacturers and tier-one systems suppliers dramatically reduce their
warranty costs as part of the total cost-down efforts.
The Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing, which is administered by
Utah State University in partnership with the National Association of
Manufacturers, recognizes companies throughout the United States, Canada and
Mexico that have demonstrated outstanding achievements in manufacturing
processes leading to quality enhancement, productivity improvement and
customer satisfaction.
The annual award, named after Japanese industrialist Shigeo Shingo, was
established in 1988. Freudenberg-NOK received this prestigious award in 1998.
Plymouth, Mich.-based Freudenberg-NOK is part of the Freudenberg and NOK
Group Companies, which have total annual sales of more than $6 billion. With
global automotive sales of approximately $3.5 billion, the Freudenberg and NOK
Group ranks among the world's top 25 independent automotive suppliers.
Through a global network of facilities spanning 24 countries with some
23,000 automotive employees worldwide, the supplier group offers its
automotive customers globally integrated products, including sealing packages
for transmissions, engines, brakes, axles and steering, NVH (noise, vibration
and harshness) components and packages, and all rubber, plastic and PTFE
components for suspension, electrical and fuel systems.
The Freudenberg and NOK Group also offers an extensive portfolio of
precision-molded products for the aerospace, appliance, business machine,
fluid power, marine, medical, off-highway equipment and recreational vehicle
markets. For more information, visit the Freudenberg-NOK web site at
http://www.freudenberg-nok.com.