The Mail-Journal, Volume 19, Number 5, Milford, Kosciusko County, 17 February 1982 — Page 30

Today And Tomorrow — Wed., Feb. 17,1982

Sprague Devices, Inc., new Milford business

(Continued from page 11) employees, sent out its first shipments on Monday. Jan. 18., and production is continually picking up since it opened in December. One thing that's going to make the Milford plant unique is the fact there is much more variety involved in the work, according to Vardaman. He says that very little boredom can set in when there are around 100 different jobs involved in’ the assembly of the products. Vardaman, who is a certified manufacturing engineer, has attended over 20 different collegiate courses on management, inventory, accounting, sales, and many business related subjects He believes variety is very im portant and also manager-employee communication. “I want to be able to talk to people.” says Vardaman, adding. “If they have a problem. I want to know it." He estimated it would take about two and one-half months before one employee would have done one job more than once at the Milford plant This is one definate plus for the future of local production. The products made by Sprague are now on some of the new Articulated Buses coming into the US from' Germany. Hungary and Sweden Also all the new South Shore trains being manufactured for the railroad in Japan wilt be delivered with Sprague wiping systems Among its latest products is the new Interwipe System which gives heavy duty bus and truck air wipers the same pause control that automobiles have.

At Syracuse Rubber...

Make It Happen!

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Products to be introduced sometime in 1982 by Sprague include new truck and bus air filters and air line oilers along with sun visors for locomotives and other heavy duty vehicles. Management. Plant Manager Don Hart and his wife. Wilma, of Michigan City hope to be moving to the area in the near future. Hart began working at the Michigan City plant in 1947 after serving in the US Army during World War 11. He left plant for eight years returning in 1965 working his way up to a set-up man. In 1975 he was made general foreman and assistant plant manager at Michigan City. He is currently the plant manager at Milford The Harts have two sons living in Michigan City, Dennis and Steven Production should be up sometime in the spring for the Milford plant and sometime in the future there is talk of plans to expand into the second building on North Main. [pwJHL ■fc: j FINAL FINISHING — Jack Trammel is a local man employed at Syracuse Rubber. The company feels that each employee is important to the success of the business.

Our People

From Molding

1457-31411 Syracuse

* . .—_ _ t r SSSnMHg, qWBBw/ If - -iMaidP I * ’ tEar»£~ r --- "•""*** 1 'WH Ml K ‘ •'."' ■■J!? KEEPING COMPANY GOING — Ed Price is just one of the valued employees at Syracuse Rubber who keeps things going by being a part of the progress that makes the firm what it is.

Syracuse Rubber looks to future

The down swing in the economy had not hurt Syracuse Rubber too much until last month Dean Pittman, corporation president and general manager, said. He stated that if conditions were good they should employ 200 people, but at present they have only 160 working, with 29 laid off.' The company makes casket gaskets, as well as various items for autos, home, toys and anything using rubber parts. Pittman feels that the cause of the recent drop in business is that many casket companies have closed their doors. He looks for things to pick up by the end of February or the first of March. The local manufacturing firm became legally incorporated in May of 1946 for manufacturing. Previous to that they were located uptown Syracuse in an old building where they punched rubber parts during the war. Their present building was completed in December of 1978. The south part of the building being new. and the remainder previously being used as a mold shop. Previous to moving the entire operation to the Sycamore Street location the main plant was located on South Huntington Street.

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A big adjustment was called for with the move to the present building, but Pittman remarked "it is certainly a change for the better” and he said he can't really imagine how they got along as well as they did in the old facility. Macy of the company's employees have been with the company since it began. Pittman has been there for 35 years Another employee. Barbara Carwile, has been there two years longer than Pittman and there are 26 employees with 25 or more years of employment with Syracuse Rubber. After molding and finishing, final inspection is carefully done in the plant by highly qualified, well trained employees before the product is sent to the customer. Pittman said he cannot give enough credit to the employees at the plant. He wants them to feel part of the company, stating “if they don't go. the company won t go either. ” Syracuse Rubber is looking forward to the future They have begun work on a major computer system. When completed, in a year or a year and a half, the system will handle time check, inventory and payroll.

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