Earlier this year, Mold Craft announced their involvement in the Plastics Technology Alliance. The Plastics Technology Alliance is an alliance between three of the industry’s top mold builders. The names of the companies involved are Mold Craft, Extreme Tool and Engineering, and Westminster Tool. The premise behind the partnership is simple; no one company can do everything.
The Plastics Technology Alliance is a convenience for customers because what one company may not have had the capability to do before, they do now.
Combining the resources of the 3 top mold design/build companies provides expanded capability and adds capacity for all of our customers. Co-owner’s Tim Bartz and Justin McPhee are very excited about the Plastics Technology Alliance and wanted to provide a quick background.
Westminster Tool is a company based out of Connecticut that specializes in High Performance Component Production, Injection Molds, and Composite Tools in the Medical, Aerospace/Defense, Automotive, Consumer, and Industrial Industries.
Westminster Tool was founded in 1997 by Ray Coombs Jr. and started in the basement of Ray’s home. Westminster Tool’s core values align almost perfectly with that of Mold Craft’s, save for a few differences in naming conventions. Westminster Tool’s 3 main core values are Continuous Learning, Continuous Improvement, and Accountability whereas Mold Craft’s core values are Pursuing Innovation in Technology, Collaborating with Clients, and Getting it Right the First Time. When asked about the partnership, Ray Coombs said, “… there is strength in collaboration and Westminster Tool is excited to partner with fellow world-class organizations, Mold Craft and Extreme. Partnering with these two companies provides us an opportunity to learn and improve our operations while providing expanded offerings to our clients. Together we offer a wide range of services that will enable us to better address our clients’ diverse challenges.”
Extreme Tool and Engineering is a company based in the UP of Michigan. Extreme Tool and Engineering specializes in Mold Manufacturing, Injection Molding and Engineering Automation in several industries including Medical, Automotive, and Consumer Goods.
Extreme Tool and Engineering was founded in 1998 by Mike Zacharias. Extreme Tool and Engineering’s team prides itself in providing excellent results and aims to build meaningful relationships with customers as opposed to transactional ones. For that reason, Extreme Tool and Engineering has many core values which also closely align with Mold Craft’s core values. Extreme Tool and Engineering’s core values are Results Versus Excuses, Thinking Outside the Box is a Matter of Routine and Reinvest. Based off their core values, it is clear that Extreme Tool and Engineering cares about their customers, their employees, and the quality of work they put out which is parallel to Mold Craft’s standards and beliefs.
When asked what drove this joint venture, Extreme Tool and Engineering Owner and President Mike Zacharias said, “The desire to continue providing world-class solutions, continuous improvement and increased capacity were drivers developing this joint venture. Many of our clients already work with one or more of us. Now, they have access to the best of each company through one, central, easy-to-use resource. We expect clients benefiting from different perspectives including capacity, capability, innovation, and total turnkey solutions.”
Together, the Plastics Technology Alliance stands to assist their fellow companions with filling orders that they otherwise would not have the means to fill. This speaks to a core value that they all share (although it is worded differently at each company) which is deliver value to the customer. As each company grows, changes, and innovates, they learn from each other and because of it are a step ahead of their competition in the industry.
VP of Engineering and Co-owner of Mold Craft, Justin McPhee said, “Not only does the creation of the joint venture help our clients, it allows the partners to share resources and best practices.” The Plastics Technology Alliance is more than just a few companies helping each other out with projects; it is an industry driver that is pushing the limits of innovation. Be on the watch for some big things coming out of this group.