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Conference
Foundation

Plant Tours – Fall 2023

Event Details
Sep 27, 2023   – 
Greenville, SC
Hyatt Regency Greenville, 220 N Main St, Greenville, SC 29601
Event Contact
Events Team

Agenda: Plant Tours

Wednesday, September 27

7:30 – 8:15 am ET
Breakfast

Before we depart for an exciting tour day, grab a bite to eat. 

 

8:15 – 8:30 am ET
Meet in Lobby 

 

8:30 am ET
Depart for Our First Tour 

 

9:15 – 11:15 am ET
First Tour Visit 

Our first visit is to Milliken & Company, a leader in specialized chemicals, textiles, and innovative materials, Milliken is renowned for its dedication to quality, innovation, and environmental responsibility. Our tour through the Innovation Gallery with Nigel West will give attendees a peek inside the evolution of Milliken from a general store in Maine in 1865 to the global, diversified industrial manufacturer of today. We’ll review how we couple our strengths in science, design, and manufacturing with unique insights from our customers and the world around us to deliver innovations that add value to our direct customer and ultimately, the end consumer.

Part two of the visit will include the Chemicals Plastics Lab that is a prototyping group connected to Research that puts new additives in customer applications, but also offers support to current products and customers. We will also tour the Textile Rapid Prototyping Center (RPC), which performs a similar customer support function but also serves as the pilot equipment for Textile facilities with Cliff Bynum.

Nigel West

Senior IT Director, Milliken & Company

Nigel West is the Senior IT Director with global responsibility for Infrastructure and Cyber Security. West has held many IT leadership positions within Milliken and other organizations, spending his entire 37 year career in Manufacturing environments. West has a Business Information Systems degree from North Staffordshire University, UK.  

Cliff Bynum

Research Chemist, Milliken & Company

Cliff Bynum is the R&D Manager and Global TS&D for Plastic Additives, Chemical Division of Milliken based in Spartanburg SC and is responsible for core R&D, new product launches, and global coordination of our technical service organization. Bynum started his career with Milliken in textile manufacturing and spent a few years in chemical manufacturing, before transitioning to customer support for the Plastics Additive business. Bynum has a degree in Chemical Engineering from North Carolina State University.

11:30 am – 12:00 pm ET
Depart for Our Second Tour  

 

12:00 – 2:15 pm ET
Lunch Followed by Second Tour Visit 

We’ll be stopping at Advanced Technology Services, Inc. (ATS), an industrial maintenance and MRO services company. This stop includes lunch and a tour of the ATS Reliability 360® Technology Center guided by Micah Statler, where attendees will see sensor technology, remote monitoring, and machine health data analysis support in action.

ATS relies on decades of experience and expertise in reliability to help fulfill their customers’ industrial maintenance needs, while improving productivity and cutting costs. Their core customers span ten key industries – aerospace, automotive, building products, consumer packaged goods, heavy equipment, paper and pulp, power distribution, metal products, pharmaceutical/medical devices, and tire and rubber manufacturers – but their expertise can be adapted to serve a wide range of markets and equipment.

Micah Statler

Micah Statler

Director of Industrial Technologies, Advanced Technology Services (ATS)

Micah Statler is the Director of Industrial Technologies at Advanced Technology Services and is responsible for the strategy, execution and delivery of technology-driven maintenance solutions. Micah is a graduate of Bradley University where he received his Bachelor of Science in Management and Leadership.

2:30 – 3:00 pm ET
Depart for Our Third Tour 

 

3:00 – 4:45 pm ET
Third Tour Visit 

Marc Dickison, the Executive Director of Sales, Aftermarket & NSOE for JTEKT in North America, will discuss the company's Piedmont automotive plant's products, procedures, successes, and challenges. Followed by a tour of the facility demonstrating the automation solutions and technologies lead by Kevin Gill. 

JTEKT North America is a subsidiary of JTEKT Corporation, a leading global manufacturer of automotive steering systems, driveline components, bearings, and machine tools. JTKET North America oversees a network of manufacturing facilities, research and development centers, and sales offices throughout the region.

Marc Dickison, JTEKT

Marc Dickison

Executive Director of Sales, Aftermarket & NSOE, JTEKT

Kevin Gill, JTEKT

Kevin Gill

Plant Manager, Piedmont Facility, JTEKT

Kevin Gill is the Plant Manager for the Piedmont Facility of JTEKT North America.  In his role, Kevin oversees a facility with approximately 125 associates working a 24-hour/ 5-day schedule manufacturing OEM products for Toyota, Ford, GM, and Mazda.

Kevin assumed his current role 3 years ago with 30 years of experience in a variety of manufacturing environments including, Bosch / Denso Joint venture, and JTEKT corporation. Prior to moving into Manufacturing Management, Kevin spent the first portion of his career focused on Production Planning and Inventory Control. 

5:00 pm ET
Depart to Hotel 

6:00 pm ET*
Return to Hotel 

*Return time is approximate due to traffic