Recently Mack retiree Marty Oakland stopped by to give current employees a fly fishing casting lesson. Besides an impressive 36-year tenure with us, today Marty a fishing guide and proprietor of Arlington Vermont’s Quill Gordon Bed & Breakfast along with his wife, Valerie. So on a sunny Tuesday afternoon, today’s Mack team learned how to shoot the line from a Mack legend, catching some grass and even our camera man in the process!
Mack Invests in Growing Orthopedic Business
Company Adds Lasers for Marking and Sheet Metal Fabrication, Along with Machining Center
ARLINGTON, Vt. (June 13, 2017) – Mack Molding’s medical business continues to grow, driven by orthopedic customers in need of specialized services related to cases and trays, as well as instrument trials and surgical handles.
To meet the increasing demands of the market, and maintain its position as a leading custom plastics molder and supplier of contract manufacturing services, the Company has invested more than $1 million in new equipment to increase its capabilities in the areas of sheet-metal fabrication, machining and laser marking.
Mack team members program a new laser marking machining at the Company’s Headquarters in Arlington, Vt., for use in helping orthopedic customers meet new Unique Device Identification (UDI) requirements from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration.
“As the manufacturing arm of our customers, Mack is uniquely in tune with their needs,” Mack President Jeff Somple said. “We frequently review our business to ensure we have the capacity and capabilities to keep our services relevant in an ever changing market. Our orthopedic clients are no exception, and face some of the most stringent requirements out there, including the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s Unique Device Identification (UDI) requirements.”
To assist customers in meeting their UDI obligations, Mack recently augmented its four existing markers by installing a new Foba M2000 laser marker in the finishing department at its headquarters in Arlington, Vt. Today, medical represents 35 percent of Mack’s business, driven in part by growth in parts that require specialized engraving on curved metal and plastic surfaces.
“The new laser marker features advanced visual capabilities that can orient parts, ensuring barcodes and UDIs are properly marked on articulated surfaces,” Somple said. “While this machine enhances our orthopedic capabilities, it has interesting prospects for other markets that need the repeatability and accuracy of an advanced laser marker.”
Additionally, Mack’s Headquarters has welcomed a new, fully automated Trumpf 2030 4,000 watt fiber laser for sheet metal fabrication. The new laser increases Mack’s offering by bringing specialty materials such as copper and brass into the Company’s portfolio. It complements Mack’s existing laser, punch and punch-laser combination machines by increasing the thickness of gauges that can be handled.
Mack’s new laser for sheet metal fabrication increases the Company’s portfolio of vertically-integrated services by introducing the ability to cut new materials such as copper and brass, as well as thicker gauges of existing metals.
“Our metals department is key to our strategy of bringing value to our customers through the vertical integration of services – allowing our customers to pick and choose which of Mack’s expert capabilities are needed to augment their particular manufacturing model,” Somple said. “As a soft tool, this new laser does not require tooling, representing a quick turnaround for everything from prototypes to manufacturing. It truly presents our customers with infinite possibilities.”
Additionally, a Mazak Integrex i100S CNC is on its way to the Headquarters’ machining department. The new, state-of-the-art, computerized machining center increases Mack’s capacity to meet customers’ milling and turning demands.
“We are breaking new ground for Mack in terms of capabilities and capacity,” Somple said. “It is exciting, and the time has never been better to see how Mack can help meet your medical device manufacturing needs.”
About Mack Molding
Mack Molding is a leading custom plastics molder and supplier of contract manufacturing services. Mack specializes in plastics design, prototyping, molding, sheet metal fabrication, full-service machining and medical device manufacturing. Founded in 1920, Mack is a privately owned business that operates 11 facilities throughout the world. Don Kendall is CEO and chairman. For more information, go to www.mack.com.
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Mack Invests in New Press
2,360-Ton, 268-Ounce Haitian Press Expands Northern Division’s Molding Capabilities
CAVENDISH, VT. (June 13, 2017) – Mack Molding, a leading custom plastics molder and supplier of contract manufacturing services, is growing and so is the molding department at the Company’s Cavendish, Vt., plant with the addition of a new injection molding press that is breaking records in its norther division and in New England.
The first of six tractor trailers arrives with the foundation and parts for new injection molding press being installed at Mack Molding’s Cavendish facility.
Six heavy-load tractor trailers rolled into town in May carrying the 2,360-ton Haitian injection molding press. With a shot size of 268 ounces it can handle 40,000-lb. molds – the largest ever for Mack North. The machine is currently being assembled on-site and is expected to be up and running in June 2017.
“While our southern division has long been lauded for its capabilities in large-part molding, our new Cavendish press represents expanded ground for the northern team,” said Mack President Jeff Somple. “Approximately 15 percent larger than any we have had in the Company’s northern operations, we believe it is largest press in New England.”
Mack’s new press is currently being assembled in the plant.
In addition to the press – due to the significant increase in the mold sizes – Mack has also upgraded to the crane system at the Cavendish plant along with a robot to handle part removal. With more than $1 million invested in the project, Somple said it is not just a testament to Mack’s customers, but the quality of the Company’s workforce.
“Mack has entered a renewed period of growth,” he said. “The Company’s focus on quality and total customer satisfaction has lead our customers to reward us by entrusting their products to our team’s capable hands. We are meeting that challenge by ensuring we have the capacity to meet their needs today and well into the future.”
About Mack Molding
Mack Molding is a leading custom plastics molder and supplier of contract manufacturing services. Mack specializes in plastics design, prototyping, molding, sheet metal fabrication, full-service machining and medical device manufacturing. Founded in 1920, Mack is a privately owned business that operates 11 facilities throughout the world. Don Kendall is CEO and chairman. For more information, go to www.mack.com.
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Mack Announces Additions to Team
Growing Molder & Contract Manufacturer Recruiting at a Steady Pace
ARLINGTON, Vt. (June 13, 2017) – Spring has sprung in the Green Mountains of Southern Vermont, bringing with it hues of the state’s namesake and a new crop of employees to Mack Molding’s headquarters ready to deliver on the Company’s mission of total customer satisfaction.
The addition of new talent coincides with investments in capital equipment, bolstering a period of growth that promises to position Mack to ensure the Company, and its customers’, success well into the future. The Company’s newest recruits include five former interns who have chosen to officially begin their careers with Mack. The internship program is the keystone of the Company’s workforce development efforts, and a testament to its success as 11 students have now returned to the Company full time in the last two years.
“Welcoming interns back to us full-time after the commencement season is starting to become a tradition,” said Mack Molding President Jeff Somple. “It is a rewarding and valuable experience as they bring a unique combination of fresh insights and familiarity with our organization. While we often focus on the success of Mack’s mobilization of the industry’s next generation, it is important to note we are filling positions at all levels of experience and across the organization. The business has seen four consecutive years of excellent growth, and recruiting high-quality, skilled professionals and engineers is key to maintaining that momentum. It is an exciting time here, and with dozens of positions being filled from the shop floor to engineering to the front office, the time is right start your career with Mack.”
Former intern Tracy Weinstein is no stranger to the Mack, bringing a deep familiarity with the Company and its processes to her new position as a manufacturing engineer. Tracy earned a bachelor of science degree in biomedical engineering from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, N.Y., with minors in general psychology and marketing. The manufacturing experience and medical product insight she garnered during her tenure as an intern, coupled with the knowledge she gained as a student at RPI, will serve her well in this new position.
Mack has welcomed Casey Magrath as a business development manager. A recent graduate of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), Casey has a bachelor of science degree in management engineering with a concentration in chemistry. She is currently working on her master of science degree in management at WPI. Prior to joining the Company full time, she was a Mack intern, developing valuable product development and validation experience while working with orthopedic customers. Casey also developed her sales and relationship development skills as an athenahealth intern in Watertown, Mass.
Trevor Pollock joined Mack as a supplier quality technician in March 2017 and was recently promoted to supplier engineer, ensuring Mack suppliers meet customers’ quality expectations. Prior to Mack, Trevor designed an energy system for a landfill gas power plant and assembled a grant proposal for research on the effect of a gene on bone loss during space flight at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he received his master of science in mechanical engineering. Trevor also has a bachelor of arts in mathematics with minors in physics and economics from Vermont’s Middlebury College.
Kyle Pilote has been appointed as a supplier engineer within the purchasing organization. Prior to Mack, Kyle served as maintenance and facilities manager at NSK in Bennington, Vt., where he was previously a manufacturing engineer. He also was a manufacturing engineer for Allred Associates and Val-Tech Holdings. Kyle has a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology. As a supplier engineer, he will ensure Mack customers receive the highest quality parts.
Colin Derby, who spent two years in Mack’s internship program, has joined the Company full-time as an associate manufacturing engineer. A graduate of Randolph-based Vermont Technical College, he earned his associate’s degree in mechanical engineering technology and bachelor’s degree in manufacturing engineering technology. In addition to his Mack internship, Colin gained manufacturing and machining experience during internships at Plasan Carbon Composites, Kaman Aero Space and Abacus Automation.
Cody LaFlamme has joined Mack’s purchasing team as a cost estimator; however, he first entered the doors as an intern in 2014. During his tenure as an intern, Cody became familiar with Mack’s supplier base while gaining experience in ERP navigation, as well as quality and risk assessments. A graduate of the State University of New York at Oswego, he has a bachelor’s degree in technology management with minors in business administration and athletic coaching.
Castleton University graduate Alex Hawley has accepted a position as a manufacturing clerk. Alex, who received a bachelor of business administration with a dual concentration in marketing and management, is already a familiar face around the office having spent four summers interning for Mack. As an intern, he worked on bills of materials, inventoried products and assisted the metal fabrication team while building keen insights into Mack’s operations.
About Mack Molding
Mack Molding is a leading custom plastics molder and supplier of contract manufacturing services. Mack specializes in plastics design, prototyping, molding, sheet metal fabrication, full-service machining and medical device manufacturing. Founded in 1920, Mack is a privately owned business that operates 11 facilities throughout the world. Don Kendall is CEO and chairman. For more information, go to www.mack.com.
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Mack is Manhattan Bound for MD&M East
As sure as April showers bring May flowers, May brings a flurry of activity to Mack as the team prepares to pull out all the stops for MD&M East. This year is no exception, and we are all excited to be heading to New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center June 13-15, 2017, for the east coast’s biggest medtech event!As always, the most important part of the show is meeting friends, old and new, which is why we would like to extend you the invitation to use our promo code INVITE to claim a free expo badge, or get 20% off your conference pass, when registering. We hope this complimentary service helps you to have the most successful presence possible at the show by connecting with more clients and prospects while there.
If you would like to schedule a specific meeting time in our booth, please contact your business development manager, or Joan Magrath, Vice President of Sales & Engineering, at joan.magrath@mack.com or (802) 375-0312.
The MD&M East expo floor is your central hub to share ideas, challenges, and solutions with over 5,000 medtech professionals. For more than 30 years MD&M East has brought together the medical device industry, a perfect fit for Mack – a Company with nearly a century of history.
The Mack senior management and sales teams are putting the final touches on its preparations, including some of the latest products we are manufacturing that illustrate our full complement of abilities as a full-service contract manufacturer with specialties in plastics design, prototyping, molding, sheet metal fabrication, machining and turnkey system assembly. Whether you are interested in Mack Medical, Mack Molding, Mack Technologies, Mack Prototype or Synectic Engineering, our vertically integrated services have been organized to benefit your business throughout the product life cycle.
We look forward to seeing you in the Big Apple – you can find us at Booth No. 1709!
