Plex Systems 2020 Impact Awards Recognize Outstanding Manufacturers

Hatch Stamping, Irwin Seating, and Hausbeck Pickles and Peppers named for manufacturing excellence

TROY, Mich., May 21, 2020 – Plex Systems, which delivers the first smart manufacturing platform, today announced that Hatch Stamping, Irwin Seating, and Hausbeck Pickles and Peppers are the 2020 Impact Award winners. The three Impact Award winners were recognized during PowerPlex, the company’s annual conference, for their ability to use the Plex Smart Manufacturing Platform to dramatically change how they do business, drive innovation, and emerge as a leader in manufacturing respectively.

“We are thrilled to receive this year’s Innovator Impact Award,” said John Perna, director of technology, Irwin Seating Company. “By using the Plex Smart Manufacturing Platform, we have been able to significantly improve several business processes and impact our bottom line. Plex technology allows us to focus on what we do best: delivering on our promise of quality to our customers.”

The following manufacturers were honored as 2020 Impact Award recipients for their ability to transform, innovate, and lead the industry in significant ways.

• Hatch Stamping for Transformation: Hatch Stamping, a global manufacturer of highly engineered metal stampings and assemblies for the automotive industry, received this year’s Business Operations Transformer Impact Award. The company has used Plex to drive significant operational improvements across its 13 facilities located in the U.S., Mexico and China, including a 15% reduction in machine downtime, a 1% drop in scrap as a percentage of sales, and a 50% increase in waste elimination submissions from employees – completely transforming the business. Hatch Stamping’s push to transform also applies to the communities in which it operates. Hatch supports school robotics programs, job fairs, apprenticeship programs, and a variety of charitable initiatives.
• Irwin Seating for Innovation: As a manufacturer that specializes in audience seating for stadiums, arenas, movie theaters, auditoriums, and many other venues, Irwin Seating produces highly customizable components in combinations that are rarely the same twice. The company has used Plex to solve complex challenges across their business value streams in innovative ways, resulting in a 60% reduction in cost of quality. Its holistic efforts earned Irwin Seating this year’s Product/Technology Innovator Impact Award.
• Hausbeck Pickles & Peppers for Industry Leadership: Manufacturer Hausbeck Pickles and Peppers processes and packs flavorful acidified foods including pickles, banana peppers and jalapeno peppers, primarily for the quick service restaurant industry. It has used Plex to propel its business forward, achieving 99% inventory accuracy, eliminating $500,000 in inventory write-offs of aged, expired product, and cutting mock recall completion time in half. The company, founded in 1923, is a respected leader in its industry and is known as a consistent, quality supply partner, earning it this year’s Industry Leader Impact Award.

“Smart manufacturers are defined by their ability to reach new levels of success not only for their own businesses, but also to set the pace for the entire industry,” said Bill Berutti, CEO of Plex Systems. “The companies that we recognized with Impact Awards this year are leaders who are challenging the status quo, disrupting their industries, and forging a new path forward.”

PowerPlex brought together more than 2,300 manufacturing professionals, Plex partners, and industry experts May 12-14 to share innovations and best practices to enable smart manufacturing enterprises of the future. Recordings of the keynotes and other PowerPlex sessions are currently available at PowerPlex.com.