Benson said that they have quite a few tours running through the factory because it is bright , clean and has high ceilings . He did say , tongue in cheek however , that he took the Society of Manufacturing Engineers ( SME ) through the factory before COVID started and , “ They were typical engineers ; they liked it , but were finding ways we could have improved or done things differently .”
He did add , “ It is a wonderful building ; it ’ s a nice space to work in .”
Now , the company produces one-third of their products in metal , and twothirds in plastics . Lee said “ Either product is fine with them ” to produce , but they built the new factory primarily for expansion in plastics . He said , “ Remember The Graduate movie ? ‘ One word - plastics ,’” which is where a family friend suggested that the new college graduate Dustin Hoffman ’ s character should go into plastics . Lee said he feels it is still relevant .
However , with a caveat . Being a good steward to the environment is a key tenet of Tool Gauge and they take waste seriously . Lee said , “ You can ’ t re-use products in aerospace ,” primarily due to safety regulations . He noted , “ We don ’ t want to throw this stuff in a landfill .” Lee added that ISO standards mandate your environmental capability as a company . “ It requires that you think of the environmental impact of your business ,” he said .
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