News :: Company :: Saint Clair Systems | Fluid Process Control Solutions

08.21.09: SCS Lean Culture Impacts Sales Operations

Nothing is sacred at Saint Clair Systems when it comes to waste reduction and continuous improvement. Not even the sales team. Although the economy is presenting a serious hurdle, the Saint Clair Systems sales team managed to squeeze out a growth year in 2008. “It wasn’t big growth but it was growth,” said Greg Kremer Shareholder and Director of Sales.” Saint Clair Systems was quick to recognize that growing in 2008 was a significant accomplishment but they understood that 2009 was going to bring even more challenges. Understanding that their sales people operated independently and may resist a “process,” they started by reviewing a handful of successful orders and looking for common experiences. “Our sales people have different strengths and different personalities and as a result, they approach opportunities differently,” said Kremer. Even with their differences, there were some common actions that generated results. They used those actions as the foundation for their sales process. “We are fortunate to have solutions that kind of sell themselves,” said Chuck Hasse, Industrial Finishing Specialist. “If we can review customer processes and listen to the issues they are facing, we can typically generate a solution that pays for itself quickly. Generating immediate positive cash flow is key right now and we are able to guarantee that in most cases.” Ideas like guaranteeing immediate positive cash flow, documenting processes for customer’s quality systems and project managing customer installations have all come from continuous improvement discussions within the sales team. Talking about the customers, Kremer summarized, “if we minimize their risk, improve their cash flow and take pressure off their workload throughout the process, it becomes pretty compelling.” The sales process is still evolving but identifying steps, measuring progress and generating improvements appear as embedded in the sales culture as they are in the rest of the operation.

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06.17.09: Saint Clair Systems Targets China Market

Saint Clair Systems has entered into a strategic alliance with Midway Direct, Inc. of Novi Michigan. Midway will focus initially in China on the Coil Coating market and on Automotive Body Shops. Saint Clair currently dominates these two market segments in North America. “We are very excited about the opportunity to work with Midway,” said Robert Gladstone, Saint Clair’s President. “This is a very skilled group with experience in both the US and China markets. Their technical expertise, existing relationships and ability to navigate the business differences between the US and China made them a perfect fit for Saint Clair.” Gladstone was surprised to learn that the core management team at Midway was entirely comprised of degreed engineers. “During one of our early meetings, we invited them to tour our facility. After a short review of our shop floor and the equipment we were assembling, they immediately understood our equipment and its benefits. All but one has a PhD and he is only a few credits short. This is a smart ambitious team,” said Gladstone.

In addition to their technical expertise, Midway brings Saint Clair another unique advantage. Three of the four key members of Midway were born and raised in China but each has spent over 15 years in the US, operating in the US business environment and attaining US citizenship. “We have maintained relationships in China and have developed a good understanding of both cultures,” said Jason Zhu, President of Midway Direct. “We expect the China market for Saint Clair Systems to eventually become larger than the US market,” he added. Ted Ying, Chairman of Midway Direct agreed saying that “China seems like the US one hundred years ago; so much energy and activity. China, in many ways, is behaving more capitalist than the US.” We will have to wait and see whether Mr. Zhu’s prediction comes true but it is clear that this unique partnership should generate significant opportunities.

Learn more about what we do at www.stclairsystems.com

04.03.09: SCS Introduces Aerospace Solutions

Saint Clair Systems recently shipped a process temperature control system that will be used by Boeing in the production of its new 787 Dreamliner. Founded in 1990, Saint Clair Systems was built on the shoulders of the automotive industry but during the past five years they have proven that their knowledge is transferrable across industries. “Viscosity changing with temperature is universal. It is not a problem unique to a specific industry,” stated Mike Bonner, Shareholder and VP of Engineering and Technology. Saint Clair Systems is a knowledge based company and its technical staff feels comfortable shifting from industry to industry. “There are a lot of companies that manufacture temperature control equipment but it’s our ability to understand processes and apply knowledge that sets us apart,” added Bonner. For obvious reasons, the qualifications required to support the Aerospace industry are high. The solution Saint Clair was able to provide included a proprietary “Quad” system capable of supplying four different material paths with temperature control simultaneously. The solution also included its patented Copper Cover solution. The patented design will allow Boeing to control its material temperature without an expensive and time consuming installation and without disturbing the material path. “Being the only company able to supply an innovative solution like this was critical in being chosen for this program,” declared Chuck Hasse, Industrial Finishing Specialist.

Learn more about what we do at www.stclairsystems.com

02.19.09: SCS Opens Financing Division

Saint Clair Systems announced that they are starting a new division specifically to handle the lack of available capital in the area of equipment financing. Saint Clair Finance, LLC will be able to handle financing not available through traditional sources. Mike Bonner, Shareholder and VP of Engineering and Technology stated, “One of the issues associated with traditional lenders is that they perceive no secondary market for our equipment. If a customer defaults on a payment, a traditional leasing company would have a difficult time reselling the equipment. For us, finding another company that would benefit from our technology is what we do.” The idea of starting a finance company was originally generated by the sales team. “If our solutions can save customers more money every month than they would have to spend on a lease payment it really becomes a no-brainer,” said Chuck Hasse, Industrial Finishing Specialist. Starting a finance division was not a hasty decision. People might ask why a company focused on providing technical solutions to manufacturing processes thinks it can run an equipment financing company. “I suppose it doesn’t hurt that our company President is a CPA,” quipped Bonner.

Learn more about what we do at www.stclairsystems.com

01.15.09: SCS’ Lean Journey Achieving Extraordinary Results

The first week back from holiday for Saint Clair Systems was like the first week of any of other month since they began work transforming the organization in January of 2008. The entire company sat together and reviewed the key operating numbers. “When you look at what we were able to accomplish in just one year it makes the entire team proud,” said Jeff Makarewicz, Manufacturing Manager. Saint Clair Systems started benchmarking their performance against the best in the industry and has already surpassed the best in some key categories. “The highlight for me had to be the overall operating efficiency of the entire team,” said President, Robert Gladstone. “We moved to the 90th percentile in throughput per employee and in throughput per square foot of building space. You can’t do that without an entire team effort.” Losing no time to injury for the entire year and reducing Manufacturing Cycle Time by over 30% were also highlights discussed in the meeting. “I am most proud of our first time yield number for December,” said Makarewicz. “Everything that made it to test was already perfect. Not one piece of equipment required any adjustment. Not one. Our team has really embraced the lean concepts.”

Learn more about what we do at www.stclairsystems.com

11.03.08: SCS Renews ISO 9001:2000 Registration

Saint Clair Systems recently announced that their Quality Management System has been recertified as compliant with the International Standard ISO 9001:2000. This achievement was a direct result of the entire organization working together in effectively developing and maintaining the Quality Management System. “We were able to complete the audit with no nonconformities. We didn’t even have a minor,” said Fay Tanner, Senior Designer and ISO Management Representative. Meeting the ever-growing customer demand for the highest level of quality is vital to the future success of companies in any kind of business. Saint Clair Systems has demonstrated their commitment to the continuous improvement of their management system by successfully completing the recertification audit. Saint Clair Systems has been continuously certified as compliant with the International Standard ISO 9001:2000 since October, 2002.

Learn more about what we do at www.stclairsystems.com