Not Just Another Day at the Office
A visit from the President of the United States is definitely not just another day at the office. That’s what Connie Horner, president of NuAir Manufacturing, learned after she told an NAM representative that she’d be willing to host a visit by President Bush.
Tampa-based NuAir is a window and door manufacturer with 350 employees, 100 of whose positions were added in the last three years. That made her company a perfect backdrop for the President, who wanted to publicize his economic program.
Connie got more than just President Bush. Scores of White House advance planning staff, Secret Service security, local elected and business officials, journalists and even the First Lady visited the company.
The event planning was hush-hush until just before the President’s visit, when NuAir closed its factory floor for nearly two days. The company gave its workers the choice to attend the event or take a day off.
“When the President and First Lady walked through the door, they were so nice, so down to earth,” Horner said. “I think we were chosen because the President is trying to impress upon everyone that the entrepreneurial spirit made this country great.”
NAM members hold events with public officials on a regular basis — but it’s not everyday that the President comes to visit.
A Secret to Long-Term Success
What’s the secret to long-term success in manufacturing? At The Oatey Company in Cleveland, Ohio, it’s a longstanding commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility — along with product quality and customer support.
Oatey manufactures products for the plumbing industry. When it needed to expand several years ago, Oatey could have taken an easier route and built a new facility in the suburbs.
Instead, the firm worked with government officials and local neighbors to remediate an environmentally damaged site — right in the heart of the city’s west side.
Care for sustainability extended right down to the selection of environmentally friendly building materials.
With 600 employees, Oatey is pleased to have stayed in the city, according to William Oatey, executive vice president. “We’ve been headquartered here for 88 years. Cleveland is our home. We have a great workforce, a great infrastructure and the community meets our needs.”
Oatey’s customers must be pleased, too, since the firm has been in business since 1916.
Electrical Distributors: Say No to Drugs
Got an important message? Enlist a major league baseball star to say it, and more ears will listen.
It worked for the National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED). To call attention to the dangers of drug abuse — which can be a particularly lethal threat to health, safety and productivity in the workplace — the NAED called on baseball legends such as Tommy Davis, Ernie Banks, Tommy John, Jamie Moyer, Fernando Valenzuela and Jim "Mudcat" Grant to appear at its annual conference in May in San Francisco.
Through their affiliation with Baseballers Against Drugs (BAD), these current and former major leaguers donate their time and energy to the fight against drug abuse.
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