Process excellence, product innovation, and a culture that supports continuous improvement were among the criteria for the prestigious award.

Structus Receives Manufacturing Excellence Award

October 31, 2007 (Bend, OR) Structus Building Technologies, Inc. was recently recognized for its leadership, innovation and manufacturing accomplishments at the Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO) annual awards. President Bill Scannell and Chief Operating Officer Dave Slavensky accepted the award on behalf of the company.

“Structus embraces the three key criteria for the Manufacturing Excellence Award – process excellence, product innovation, and a culture that supports continuous improvement,” asserts EDCO Executive Director Roger Lee. “The company has really been a process improvement evangelist in the region, encouraging companies in other sectors to adopt the principles of lean manufacturing. This kind of leadership has a real impact on Central Oregon’s economic success.”

For the last three years, Slavensky and his manufacturing team have been instrumental in moving Structus towards greater efficiencies and product quality. In addition, Slavensky helped to establish the High Desert Enterprise Consortium (HiDEC), a community of independent manufacturing businesses committed to helping each other continually strengthen their competitive position against the world's best companies.

“HiDEC is a natural extension of the work we do here at Structus everyday,” explains Slavensky. “We see the dramatic results in our own operations, and feel that local manufacturers can reap the same benefits if they implement lean principles. Companies need to constantly challenge their thought processes and old ways of doing things in order to improve.”

Dave Slavensky joined Structus as Vice President of Operations in 2004. Since that time, he has transformed the company’s manufacturing division into a highly efficient operation capable of handling the complexities of a growing product line. He has also been instrumental in developing the strategic focus of the company. Prior to Structus, he was a Manufacturing Consultant for the Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership (OMEP). He also served as VP of Operations at KVP (Sacramento, California) and was a consultant with California Manufacturing Technology Consulting (CMTC). He began his career as a manufacturing engineer in the aerospace industry and spent over five years in various management positions with 3M.

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Structus™ Building Technologies designs and manufactures innovative building products for the drywall industry. Products include the NO-COAT® Structural Laminate Corner System (ULTRAFLEX™, ULTRATRIM™, ULTRA ARCH™), ULTRATOOL™ Drywall Finishing Tools and Accessories) and LEVELLINE™ Drywall Corner Trim. For more information, please visit www.structus.com. 

Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO) is a private non-profit corporation dedicated to building a vibrant and thriving regional economy by attracting new investment and traded-sector jobs (manufacturing, professional, headquarters and high technology businesses) through marketing, recruitment and substantive assistance to existing companies.  Learn more about EDCO at www.edcoinfo.com.

Contact
Jennifer Houston   
Structus Building Technologies 
541.330.0668
jhouston@structus.com