Monthly Archives: June 2015
Meet McWane: Chet Johnson, Tyler Couplings
At McWane, we encourage our team members to constantly evaluate their jobs to determine if they can be done more efficiently or safer. At Tyler Couplings in Marshfield, Missouri, they also have an incentive program to reward team members that do just that. Chet Johnson in the Tool & Die Department was recently awarded a $50 gift card for inventing a way to more easily replace the eyeletter needles. Eyeletter needles would break and the Tool & Die guys would have to spend time removing them from the machine by torching the broken needles off and then silver soldering in new ones.
Chet created and built a threaded design that can be taken apart while in the machine and replaced with a new needle. The result is a 30 minute time savings with no hot work required!
Great job, Chet! We thank you so much for your innovative thinking!
M&H Valve Makes Changes for Safety and Efficiency
Team members at M&H Valve are happy to report that they finally received a new Box Car Special Forklift. It wasn’t that they couldn’t afford it or couldn’t get approval to purchase the equipment, but the main reason for the delay is that they didn’t know what would work best in their day-to-day operations and special functions such as set-ups.
After several conversations, surfing the internet, and trying out different things, they came up with a Box Car Special Forklift with an 8,000 pound capacity, a short wheel base for maneuvering and extended forks to complete set ups. Most importantly, this forklift eliminates some safety concerns they had.
Not all things purchased cost an arm and a leg, but they can very well save those critical limbs. The safety stands were purchased and put in place to be used as blocks with lock-out/tag-out procedures to ensure the mold can’t come down while the operator is cleaning the machine. The forklifts are very easy to use by simply screwing out the jack to the desired length and are lightweight for easy handling. They also eliminate the need to use several 4” x 4” pieces of wood for different size molds.
Another change that was recently made in the Wedge Coat area at M&H was the addition of a vending machine. It’s not the normal vending machine you may be thinking about, either. This vending machinedispenses operating supplies and safety equipment such as gloves, knives, batteries, markers, and tape – just to name a few of the 23 items it holds. The machine eliminates the need to buy cards and inventory these items in bulk. Fastenal monitors it via the Internet and automatically fills the machine back up when levels reach the minimum. Operators have a four digit code that they can enter and can get basically anything they need without having to wait for someone it issue it out.
Weekly and monthly reports are automatically generated so they know exactly who, when, where, and how many of each item they are using. This makes for a much more efficient and productive operation.
AB&I Foundry’s Team has an Iron Will to Survive
The American Cancer Society’s “Making Strides Against Breast Cancer” walk is a powerful event that raises awareness and funds to find a cure for breast cancer. We are proud to report that on Saturday, June 20, 2015, AB&I’s team, Iron Will to Survive, was the second largest team at the walk with 40 participants!
The generous support of AB&I and their team members helped make Iron Will to Survive the first place team for the total amount of donations raised – over $10,000! Knowing that there were a total of 38 teams, 300 participants, and $57,689 total dollars raised, it is humbling to realize the impact our participation can have on the life of a cancer patient.
Thank you to the following AB&I team members and their families for joining Iron Will to Survive at the walk:
- Amalia Beltran and her daughter, Margarita
- Isaac Beltran, his wife, Guillermina, and son, Carlos
- Gilbert Bolanos, his wife, Arisvel, and daughters Alexa, Cristal, and Stephanie
- Nick Darling
- Kevin Doran and his four-legged family, Gigi
- Cris Forde, her four-legged family, Jack, and her friend, Laya, and her four-legged family, Nala
- Isidro Gonzalez, his sister, Maria, and nephew, Saul
- Jennifer Grundell and her husband, Greg
- Zeydi Gutierrez, her son, Oliver, daughter, Chelsea, and four-legged family, Rex
- Anthony Hernandez-Deanda
- Harrison Lambert
- Jenny Landon and her friend, Jessi
- Dana Sherry and her friend, Assi
- Nancy Tavares, her husband, Carlos, daughter, Natalie, son, Nathan, four-legged family, Darla, and extended family Josh, Bev, Rene, Danielle, Marla, Rhonda, Jeremy, Tony, and four-legged family, Bruno.
Sincere thanks and gratitude to AB&I for matching the donations that were made to Iron Will to Survive and to each and every team member that made a donation. Their support and generosity is a perfect example of what being a team truly means.
Manchester Tank Elkhart Team Celebrates VPP Star Re-certification!
On Wednesday, June 17, the Manchester Tank & Equipment team in Elkhart, Indiana, celebrated the 5-year renewal of their VPP Star status. The Elkhart facility has been a Star site since 2008 and this latest renewal extends Elkhart’s Star designation to 2020.
Team members were congratulated by Jill Drajer (MTE-Elkhart General Manager), Robert Graumann (MTE President), and Tim Maley (Deputy Commissioner, Indiana Department of Labor – IOSHA).
Everyone enjoyed a hog roast, signed banners, and posed for a team photo to celebrate the re-certification!
Knowledge is Power at Tyler Pipe
If you happened to drive by Tyler Pipe on Wednesday, May 27, you may have noticed a very unnerving scene. No worries! Tyler Pipe’s EST Team Member, Troy Johnson, hosted a training day with the East Texas area local firefighters. Troy, one of the Engineering Specification Team (EST) members, invited the firefighters to come out to Tyler Pipe so they could be educated on the positives for installing cast iron pipe in our local and city buildings versus installing PVC.
There were a total of 15 firefighters from Lindale, Tyler, and Longview. The goal was to give them a voice whenever our local city officials are making decisions on the construction of our local schools and public facilities. By educating the firefighters on the positives for installing cast iron versus PVC, they will be able to make better choices.
The day included a demonstration from the Tyler Pipe Rope Rescue Team, a plant tour, and a catered lunch. All in all, the meeting was fantastic and very enlightening!
Feel Like a Million Kick-Off + Broccoli & Feta Pasta Salad Recipe!
Today marks the beginning of the McWane Feel Like a Million challenge! Feel Like a Million is designed to help improve overall health by learning healthy habits to sustain energy for work and play and reduce stress. We are super excited to begin this challenge and wish all of our team members the best of luck! To kick-off this challenge, we want to provide our team members and our social media friends with the recipe for a delicious, yet healthy and power-packed meal, courtesy of Feel Like a Million!
Broccoli & Feta Pasta Salad (By EatingWell.com) – Yield: 6 servings | Active time: 30 minutes | Total time: 30 minutes
This vegetarian pasta salad recipe is perfect for your next potluck or as an easy side dish. The broccoli keeps it nice and crunchy and the chickpeas add protein. For the best flavor, combine the pasta salad with the dressing about 1 hour before serving.
Ingredients:
- 1 clove of garlic , minced
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- 1/2 cup of buttermilk
- 1/4 cup of low-fat mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons of chopped fresh oregano or 1 tablespoon dried
- 1 tablespoon of distilled white vinegar
- 8 ounces (about 3 cups) of whole-wheat fusilli
- 2 cups of chopped broccoli
- 1 3/4 cups of halved grape or cherry tomatoes
- 1 15-ounce can of chickpeas , rinsed
- 1/2 cup of crumbled feta cheese
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
Directions:
- To prepare dressing: Mash garlic and salt in a medium bowl with the back of a spoon into a chunky paste. Add buttermilk, mayonnaise, oregano and vinegar; whisk until combined.
- To prepare pasta salad: Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling water according to package directions. Drain, transfer to a large bowl and let cool. Add broccoli, tomatoes, chickpeas, feta, pepper and the dressing; toss to coat.
*Make Ahead Tip:
Cover and refrigerate, without dressing, for up to 1 day. Toss with the dressing about 1 hour before serving.
Nutrition Information
Per serving: 264 calories; 44 g carbohydrates; 6 g fat (2 g sat, 1 g mono); 11 g protein; 14 mg cholesterol; 6 g dietary fiber; 367 mg potassium; 457 mg sodium. Nutrition bonus: Vitamin C (42% daily value), Folate (20% dv), Vitamin A (19% dv), Magnesium (15% dv)
McWane Ductile Team Members Receive ENVISION Sustainability Accreditation
Mike Dodge, VP of Sales & Marketing for McWane Ductile, is pleased to announce that McWane Ductile Marketing and Specifications team members Mark Niewodowski (LEED AP and National Manager of MASD), John Johnson (Western Regional Sales Engineer), Roy Mundy, P.E. (Eastern Regional Sales Engineer), and Ken Rickvalsky (North American Product Engineer) have received ENVISION Sustainability Accreditation from the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI).
Envision is an Environmental Sustainability Rating System for Infrastructure Planning, Design, Construction and Operation. It was developed by the Institute for Sustainable infrastructure (ISI) and the Zofnass Program for Sustainable Infrastructure at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. The Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure was founded by the American Public Works Association (APWA), the Association of Civil Engineering Companies (ACEC), and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). It is often referred to as the LEED for Infrastructure as ENVISION. The Envision Rating System is used to evaluate, grade and give recognition to infrastructure projects that provide progress and contributions to a sustainable future.
“The purpose of Envision is to initiate a systemic change… to transform the way infrastructure is designed, built and operated” – William Bertera, Executive Director, ISI.
If you are interested in learning more about ISI and Envision go to: http://sustainableinfrastructure.org
At McWane Ductile, we are proud to know that ductile iron pipe provides a positive contribution to creating sustainable infrastructure and is a vital part of Building Iron Strong Utilities for Generations.
