Taking stock of remarkable-ness at Lawton
By C.A. Lawton | January 9, 2019

We’ve been using the tagline “Remarkable People. Remarkable Results for over 135 years.” for a while now. It feels like a good time to recount just a few of the ways we are living up to that tagline. Here are some amazing examples of remarkable-ness at The C.A. Lawton Co.:
- It has been over 974 days since our last LTA (lost time accident). In some industries that would seem foolishly low. In ours, it’s a notably long streak. The most remarkable part is that nobody is anywhere near satisfied.
- We are starting to do quite a bit of work with a customer we have pursued for almost 15 years. Now that they have taken the time to get to know Lawton and what we can do for them, they are treating us as one of their significant supplier-partners. That’s REMARKABLE patience and persistence, followed by top-notch execution.
- Our Lean (OpEx) program, especially certain elements like MDI, are gaining recognition from customers, local practitioners and others. It has taken a REMARKABLE amount of effort and resources during the last few years to nurture and grow these improvement programs. The achievements you’re starting to see are only the tip of the iceberg. There is much more to come!
- A major multi-national industrial company has made us the only gold-status preferred supplier of our type in their network. As a result, they have been awarding us more “transfer” business (moving existing castings to Lawton) and new product development (NPD) opportunities. This achievement is the result of excellent metrics (quality, on-time delivery, etc.) over time plus a REMARKABLE level of partnering. We have gone the extra mile to understand their business needs and goals more intimately than other suppliers, and we have crafted strategies to accommodate their needs. We have also taken turns embedding workers in each other’s continuous improvement activities.
- We are working with regulatory authorities on a new type of permitting for a business like ours. The ROP 79 ton, Registration Operating Permit will minimize the need for us to complete construction permitting going forward.
- We are supporting the AFS-UW Platteville partnership and are launching an intern/co-op program with UW-Platteville. This means we’re aiding in some REMARKABLE advancement opportunities for many including Lawton’s operations in the near future.
- We are initiating a program for direct labor from Puerto Rico The win-win here is people from that ravaged nation get an opportunity to earn a living and likely send much needed money home, while we get the opportunity to fill in some missing positions so that our existing REMARKABKLE people are better supported and can post even more REMARKABLE results than they have been.
- We set a goal for 300 Good Catches during 2018, and surpassed that in early December. While usually called a Near Miss (which carries a more negative connotation) we try to embrace them as a great “lead” measure to the above mentioned and very important “lag” measure of LTAs. The focus on Good Catches and other fundamental drivers of safety (such as the safety contacts program, etc.) is key to REMARKABLE outcomes over time.
Posted in Iron Foundry Industry and tagged remarkable culture, remarkable customers, remarkable examples, remarkable people, remarkable results