ITT Goulds Pumps receives Grand Award

Top Plant, Engineering Leaders Under 40 honored at gala dinner.

By Plant Engineering April 14, 2015

Plant Engineering honored the future of manufacturing on Monday, April 23 when it presented the 2014 Product of the Year Grand award to ITT Goulds Pumps Inc. for its Pump Smart MV integrated pump monitoring and control management system.

Also honored at the annual Awards in Engineering event at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Chicago were the 2014 Plant Engineering Top Plant winners: Victaulic, of Easton, Pa., and Mother Parkers Coffee and Tea of Mississauga, Ontario.

Plant Engineering and Control Engineering recognized the 2014 Engineering Leaders Under 40 recipients at the dinner as part of the magazines’ continuing effort to call attention to the issue of workforce development in manufacturing and to recognize young engineers for their professional achievement. Control Engineering also presented its 2014 Engineer’s Choice awards at the winner, with more than 125 manufacturing professionals in attendance.

More than 1,000 Plant Engineering readers cast votes in the 27th annual Product of the Year awards program, which begins with nominations from industry suppliers. Plant Engineering readers vote on the products in 14 categories, with Gold, Silver and Bronze awards presented in each category. The single product with the highest vote total receives the Grand Award.

Now in its 11th year, the Top Plant Awards recognizes manufacturing excellence, highlighting safety, maintenance and operational achievement. Mother Parkers Tea and Coffee is the first Canadian manufacturer to receive the Top Plant award, and was recognized for maintaining its productivity levels during a time when the manufacturer of the popular K-cups was experiencing rapid growth.

Victaulic’s Forks Township factory made a dramatic effort to improve the plant’s safety record over the past several years. An area of operations that was once considered a weakness last year received OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program Merit distinction. They achieved an 87% reduction in recordable injury rates over the last seven years.

This award is a testament to their diligence and continued commitment toward safety and excellence." Mark Danial, executive vice president of manufacturing and operations at Victaulic.

“Continuous improvement is a priority for our operations team,” added Christopher Misiak, Victaulic’s director of manufacturing. “We compare ourselves to the best industries in the world. We set aggressive targets and goals to ensure we can exceed our customer’s expectations.”

Plant Engineering and Control Engineering jointly honor the Engineering Leaders Under 40 each September, and 11 of this year’s 21 recipients attended the awards dinner for formal recognition. Nominations for the Engineering Leaders Under 40 are made by plant management to honor the outstanding young engineers in manufacturing. In the 2014 Plant Engineering Salary Survey, published in the Forecast Issue in February, a lack of skilled workers was again cited as the top issue facing manufacturing plants.

Before the awards event CFE Media presented its fourth annual Marketing to Engineers event. The afternoon session provided insights from industry experts on the best ways for suppliers and marketers to effectively reach manufacturing professionals. The use of social media, traditional marketing channels and some innovative ideas all were part of the panel’s discussions and presentations.

Among the points raised at the Marketing to Engineers event was that while marketing fundamentals have remained the same, the delivery of the marketing message has changed.  One significant change is the importance of providing content that engineers can use easily on whatever platform they choose to consume it on. As one presenter noted, “Content is creating a conversation—if you have something to talk about.”

Nomination forms for the 2015 Product of the Year, 2015 Top Plant and 2015 Engineering Leaders Under 40 all are now available at www.plantengineering.com. The nomination deadline for the Engineering Leaders Under 40 is June 24; the deadline for the Product of the Year and Top Plant awards is August 28.

2014 Engineering Leaders Under 40

 

2014 Product of the Year winners