Mold builders ‘fuel the fire to create careers in manufacturing'

Grand Rapids, Mich. — Westminster Tool Inc. founder Ray Coombs came back from a $1 million budget shortfall and emotional collapse in 2013 to turn his company into an employee-centric role model where continuous learning goes hand in hand with continuous improvement.

The average age of the 35 employees at the Plainfield, Conn.-based business has decreased from 50 to 33 and numerous programs are in place to address the labor shortage by investing in people.

The achievements are just some of the reasons Coombs was named 2021 Mold Builder of the Year by the Indianapolis-based American Mold Builders Association, a national nonprofit trade group with more than 200 member companies and 50 partner suppliers.

Coombs was recognized during AMBA's June 22-24 conference in Grand Rapids, Mich., where about 145 attendees gathered for the plastics industry's first in-person event since the pandemic.

Wepco Plastics Inc. in Middlefield, Conn., also was named the Tooling Trailblazer of the Year for workforce development initiatives, including some that introduce grade-school students to manufacturing and related engineering careers.

Both companies received $5,000 to be presented to the educational institution of their choice from sponsor Wauconda, Ill.-based Progressive Components.

The mood of the conference was upbeat after an unprecedented 15 months of lockdowns, illness, deaths, travel restrictions, and wild dips and peaks of demand for plastic products and the machines and tools used to manufacture them.

Rick Finnie, president of M.R. Mold & Engineering Corp., alluded to the challenges faced by the industry when he announced Coombs as the successor to the award he received in 2019.

"This year's winner has kind of a tough act to follow because I held the award for two years in a row. I don't think anybody has ever done that before," Finnie said. "Quite frankly I hope no one does again, at least not for the reasons it happened this time."

Despite all the uncertainty of the pandemic, Westminster Tool carried on with its plan to develop new talent. In 2020, the company invested 10 percent of its revenue in updating, replacing and expanding equipment across the shop, which not only increased capacity but freed up more machines to allow for training and cross-training.

"To say he is passionate about mold building is an understatement. In fact, his commitment to growing the industry is second to none," Finnie said.

Like many of his colleagues, Coombs discovered a love for working with his hands and an appreciation for machinery just before entering high school and later started his business out of his house.

"Unlike some, he didn't learn from his father, who wanted him to pursue another field, but with persistence and stubbornness he followed his instinct and never looked back," Finnie said.

Founded in 1997, Westminster Tool had a humble start with Coombs producing mold components at night and on weekends in the basement of his house. He built a small customer base and a small team of employees that grew the client base in the automotive, packaging, medical and aerospace markets.

Within two years, Coombs was moving into a full-scale facility and taking his business from building tool components to complete plastic injection mold systems. Seven years after that, he was up to 16 employees and relocated Westminster Tool to its current facility, where he added capabilities, such as tool sampling and low-volume part production, which provided a complete mold building experience for customers.

It wasn't easy to do financially or emotionally, Coombs confessed.

"Eight or nine years ago, I had a nervous breakdown," he said. "I was in the bathroom curled up shaking. I was going to lose my house and lose everything. It's amazing how we don't change until we freaking have to. … I realized at that time — with a little bit of help — the biggest problem with my company was me and I had to do better."

In 2013, the company entered what Finnie called a "cultural transformation," putting 100 percent of the capital investment into people, training and personal development.

Coombs put his focus on being present, listening, leading by example and addressing the skills gap.

"We lost over $1 million the first two years we started our transformation. The bank was giggling at me. I mortgaged everything I had," Coombs said.

Westminster Tool plowed ahead, adopting lean principles, creating a digital internal training academy, setting new company metrics and placing an emphasis on emotional intelligence.

The company offers Westminster Academy, an apprenticeshiplike program with emphasis on being dynamic and accepting change when needed, which helps with cross-training; internal personal development training to enhance both technical skills and emotional intelligence; and external training options in advanced manufacturing and molder certificate programs.

Westminster also provides job-shadowing opportunities and a learn-while-you-earn program that gives students part-time work while they attend the local community college's advanced manufacturing program. Upon graduation, the sponsorship recipient qualifies for full tuition reimbursement and a potential full-time position at Westminster Tool.

Coombs also is a founding member who is still active with the Eastern Advanced Manufacturing Alliance. Finnie describes him as someone who knows how to "fuel the fire to create careers in manufacturing."

"For Ray, people come first," Finnie said. "This has never been more evident than through his commitment to creating an empowered company culture, improving the quality of life for each Westminster employee, and helping them to identify and reach their greatest potential as lifelong learners. Now that's leadership and that's Ray Coombs."

Coombs credited a good friend with helping him see a bigger picture and better direction.

"It took a while. My ego was bigger than this room," he admitted at an awards dinner in a banquet hall of the Amway Grand Plaza.

Coombs said he started asking himself a lot of questions: What if there was a waiting list for new hires? What if everyone contributed every day?

"What if I could take a person with character, heart and passion like I had in eighth grade and give them what I starved for, which is an opportunity?" Coombs asked. "I wanted my company to no longer be about me."

Wepco Plastics also was recognized as a company making a notable impact in the area of education with online Zoom events, apprenticeships and exposing children in grade school to manufacturing- and engineering-related career paths.

In addition, Wepco employees volunteer on local manufacturing boards and the company funds pre-apprenticeship programs in local schools.

"Opening its doors to students from the next generation of inventors and becoming a spokesperson for manufacturing and quality jobs has become a part of this award recipient's daily culture," said Glenn Starkey, president of Progressive Components.

Amanda Wiriya, Wepco manufacturing support manager, accepted the award for the company and encouraged others to get involved.

"If you want to come up here and accept this, I'm going to give you a challenge," Wiriya said. "Open your shops up. Start at kindergarten age. Start at elementary school. Start at middle school. Show them what we love and what we do. Get your team on board. Let them show their passion."