We read with interest a recent article about GR Spring and Stamping, a privately-held mid-sized (250 employees) precision metal forming company in Grand Rapids, MI. The article noted that GRS&S had been chosen as the sole North American supplier for the 2.3 million parts needed to fix Toyota’s accelerator defect that led to its large recall. Toyota praised GRS&S, saying: "They are a very valued partner to us, and they've got a proven track record in supply and quality and on-time delivery. We needed it done very expeditiously, and GRSS was able to say, 'Yes, we can do that,' and they have been."
The fact that Toyota, in its moment of crisis, turned to a small, privately held domestic manufacturing company to solve its recall problem led us to thinking about the state of manufacturing in the U.S. – how important it is, and what it takes to be successful in it.
We got to know Jim Zawacki, the CEO and founder of GR Spring and Stamping in the early 1990’s when we were living and working in West Michigan. Jim helped lead the creation of the West Michigan Manufacturing Council and was one of the early pioneers in continuous improvement and lean manufacturing. We worked with Jim and other Council members on the development of a model of world class manufacturing. What made GRS&S different from thousands of other U.S. manufacturing companies was that he not only understood the concepts of world class manufacturing, but he had the focus and commitment to actually live them and make sure they got implemented over multiple decades. If you go on their web site, you will still see those principles repeated there – Workforce Culture; Continuous Improvement; Innovation; and Responsiveness.
When you walk through the plant, you can “feel” the culture in the day to day metabolics of the company. Visual displays are everywhere; the plant floor is impeccably clean, not anything like your vision of the typical “dirty, dark and dangerous” factory; team spaces are sprinkled throughout the plant; people and their accomplishments are praised effusively; and everywhere you see measures, measures, measures.
We think the characteristics of serious and successful entrepreneurs are the same – whether in the private sector or the social sector – and Jim Zawacki exemplifies those characteristics: powerful vision; strong personal values; boundless curiosity; obsession with continuous improvement and disciplined operating systems; a deep commitment to unleashing the potential of the human talent in the organization; and a willingness to take risks to be on the leading edge of innovation.
We applaud Jim and the multi-decade work he has done to show it is possible to succeed as a manufacturer in America. | 
