2017 Manufacturing Leadership Awards Winners Announced

Merck, Dow, GE, Ford, Johnson & Johnson and others on the Manufacturing 4.0 vanguard to be honored at the Manufacturing Leadership Summit

SANTA CLARA, California, March 1, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Frost & Sullivan's Manufacturing Leadership (ML) Council announced world-class manufacturing companies and individual leaders today as winners of the 2017 Manufacturing Leadership Awards. ML Awards winners and their partners will be honored on June 14, 2017, at a gala celebration that concludes the 13^th annual Manufacturing Leadership Summit in Huntington Beach, Calif. In addition, the ML High Achiever Awards, ML Manufacturers of the Year, the Manufacturing Leader of the Year, and the Lifetime Achievement Award winner will be announced at the gala.

Now in its 13^th year, the ML Awards program honors organizations and individuals that are shaping the future of global manufacturing. Nominations are entered into 13 categories and evaluated and scored by a panel of expert judges. Twelve of the ML Awards categories are for outstanding projects by a manufacturing company. One category recognizes the achievements of individual manufacturing leaders.

The 91 projects and individuals on the list of ML Awards winners represent small and large enterprises in a wide range of manufacturing markets. They all leverage best-in-class processes, technologies and engaged teams to distinguish themselves from the competition. Among the winners were Merck & Co., Inc. for Big Data and Analytics Leadership, Lexmark International, Inc., for IoT in Manufacturing Leadership, and Johnson & Johnson for Operational Excellence Leadership.

"Winners of the 2017 ML Awards have proven vision and innovation are alive and well in the manufacturing industry," said Global Vice President and Editorial Director and co-founder of the Manufacturing Leadership Council David R. Brousell. "By embracing the technology-driven transformation that we call Manufacturing 4.0, innovating new business models, and leveraging engaged workforces, these leaders are laying the groundwork for a new era of greater productivity in manufacturing."

The ML Summit is a unique, interactive gathering of manufacturing leaders from around the world. The theme for the 2017 Summit is "Manufacturing 4.0 in Action." Featured speakers include Alicia Boler Davis, executive vice president, Global Manufacturing, General Motors; Bart Talloen, vice president, Product Supply Strategy & Deployment, Johnson & Johnson; Michele D'Alessandro, vice president and CIO, Manufacturing IT, Merck & Co., Inc.; and Maciej Kranz, vice president, Corporate Strategic Innovation Group, Cisco Systems.

Expert judges for the 2017 ML Awards were:

Dean L. Bartles
CEO
Cloud Based Manufacturing, LLC

David R. Brousell
Global Vice President, Research, and Editorial Director
Manufacturing Leadership Council

Ron Castro
Vice President, Operations and Supply Chain Execution
IBM

Lloyd Colegrove
Director, Data Services and Fundamental Problem Solving, Analytical Technology Center
The Dow Chemical Company

John Fleming
Executive Vice President, Global Manufacturing and Labor Affairs
Ford Motor Company (retired)

John Gagel 
Global Senior Manager, Corporate Sustainability
Lexmark International

Jeff Gallinat
Senior Vice President, Global Manufacturing Operations
Cisco Systems

John M. Gercak
Vice President IT, Manufacturing Center of Excellence
Eaton

Brad Heath
CEO
VirTex Enterprises

Dennis Hoeg 
Vice President, Global Manufacturing, Manufacturing Engineering and Enterprise Systems
Nexteer Automotive

Brad Martin
Chief Operating Officer
Senet

Michael Packer
Director, Advanced Manufacturing Programs
Lockheed Martin Skunk Works

Joseph Parambo
Director, Product Programs, Test, and Development Services
General Motors

Joseph J. Salvo
Executive Director, Digital Industrial Ecosystems
GE Global Research

Val Zanchuk
President
Graphicast Inc.

The ML Council is pleased to announce the winners of the 2017 ML Awards. (The list of winners may also be found at: http://mlawards.gilcommunity.com/)

Big Data and Advanced Analytics Leadership

• Bristol-Myers Squibb
• Cisco Systems, Inc. (Polaris Analytics Platform)
• Merck & Co., Inc. (Turnaround Advanced Logic Planning Support)
• Micron Technology, Inc.
• VirTex Enterprises LP

Collaborative Innovation Leadership

• IBM Corp. (Resolution Rooms)
• Lexmark International, Inc. (Visual Process Management)
• Raytheon Missile Systems

Customer Value Leadership

• American Emergency Vehicles
• LAI International, Inc. (Advanced Product Development Model)
• Peterbilt Motors Company (Dynamic Truck Test)

Engineering and Production Technology Leadership

• Cisco Systems, Inc. (Digital Design and Manufacturing Platform)
• Daikin Applied
• LAI International, Inc. (BA/30K Sheath Program)
• Lockheed Martin (Mold-In-Place Inlet Coatings Project)
• Lockheed Martin (Forced Mechanical Oscillation Drilling)
• Lockheed Martin (Ultrasonic Hole Cutting)
• Peterbilt Motors Company (Power Distribution and Fuse Box Error-Proofing Vision System)
• Pixelligent Technologies, LLC (PixClearProcess™ for the development and advanced manufacturing of 10nm high RI ZrO2 nanocomposites)
• Rauland, a division of AMETEK, Inc.
• Roche Tissue Diagnostics
• Saudi Aramco (Long Term Planning Optimization Model for a network of Gas Oil Separation Plants)
• Saudi Aramco (Oil Production Specification Prediction Innovative Tool)
• The Dow Chemical Company (Propylene Dehydrogenation Project)
• Under Armour, Inc.
• uniQure, Inc.

Enterprise Technology Leadership

• Atrium Windows and Doors
• Ball Aerospace and Technologies, Inc.
• Clif Bar & Company
• Cirrus Aircraft
• Embraer SA
• Flowserve, Inc.
• Ford Motor Company
• GK Machine, Inc.
• Herbalife International of America, Inc.
• JEALSA Rianxeira S.A.U.
• Merck &  Co., Inc. (Guided Method Execution for Global Quality Laboratories)
• Nexteer Automotive
• Saudi Aramco (Application Whitelisting at the Process Control System's Layer)
• Solaire Medical
• Solenis LLC
• Swedish Armed Forces
• West Liberty Foods LLC

IoT in Manufacturing Leadership

• Lexmark International, Inc. (Predictive Service)

Mobility in Manufacturing Leadership

• Adient
• Commscope, Inc.
• Merck & Co., Inc. (Problem Solving System)

Operational Excellence Leadership

• Agilent Technologies, Inc.
• BASF
• Bridge Publications, Inc.
• Daktronics
• Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
• Hologic, Inc.
• Honeywell Transportation Systems
• IBM Corp. (CSC Appliances Excellence through Automation)
• Johnson Controls
• Johnson & Johnson
• Keysight Technologies
• LAI International, Inc. (ZAK, Inc. Integration)
• Peterbilt Motors Company (Self and Successive Inspection Project)
• Plantronics Mexico
• The Boeing Company (BCA & TCS) (Organizational Efficiency Lean Process & Tools)
• The Dow Chemical Company (Dow Operation Excellence System (DOES)
• USG Corp. (Improving Operational Excellence with Lean Six Sigma)

Smart Product Leadership

• Adcraft Labels, a division of Adcraft Products Co. Inc.
• ARCA
• Asius Technologies LLC
• Hernon Manufacturing, Inc.
• SimpliVity, Inc.
• The Raymond Corporation

Supply Chain Leadership

• Firstronics, LLC
• General Electric Company
• Hostess Brands
• IBM Corp. (5 Pillars of Supply Chain Operational Excellence)
• Lexmark International, Inc. (Finished Goods Pull Replenishment-Mid-Range Mono Products)
• Siemens Healthineers
• USG Mexico (New Logistic Project for Imported Products)

Sustainability Leadership

• Airbus Operations GmbH
• Cisco Systems, Inc. (Supply Chain Emissions Reduction Program)
• People Against Dirty Manufacturing

Talent Management Leadership

• Allegion Americas
• Northeast Wisconsin (NEW) Manufacturing Alliance
• Oracle Corp. (Supply Chain Experiential Apprentice Initiative)
• Proto Labs
• The Dow Chemical Company (Talent Development)

Visionary Leadership

• Prof. Detlef Zuehlke, Technologie-Initiative SmartFactory KL e.V.
• Rick Luepke, Lockheed Martin
• Joseph  DeSimone, PhD, Carbon, Inc.
• Julian SK Tan, IBM Corp.
• P.J. Gruetzmacher, LAI International, Inc.
• Paul Dean II, The Dow Chemical Company

ML Awards Partners facilitated successful nominations and played significant roles in enabling award-winning projects. ML Awards Partners for 2017 are:

• Autodesk, Inc.
• Demand Management, Inc.
• iBaset, Inc.
• Exact Macola Division
• Leading2Lean
• Logility, Inc.
• NextLabs, Inc.
• Paper-Less LLC
• Parsec Automation Corp.
• Smartware Group, Inc.
• Tata Consultancy Services
• Tech Mahindra
• Teradata Corp.

About the Manufacturing Leadership Council

The Manufacturing Leadership Council's mission is to enable manufacturing executives to achieve transformational growth for themselves, their companies, and the industry at large through enlightened leadership. In support of this, the Council focuses on the intersection of advanced technologies and the business, identifying growth and improvement opportunities in the operation, organization and leadership of manufacturing enterprises along their journey to Manufacturing 4.0. The Council delivers thought leadership, networking, and services around a member-defined set of Critical Issues that are shaping the future of manufacturing, including an invitation-only executive organization of over 800 members; the annual Manufacturing Leadership Summit; the Manufacturing Leadership Awards; and the thought-leading Manufacturing Leadership Journal. For more information, visit www.gilcommunity.com

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