West Virginia Executive Spring 2021 June 2021 | Page 49

Dave Harvey
Vice President of Operations , Eagle Manufacturing
Dave Harvey , vice president of operations for Eagle Manufacturing , says that as the company is entering year three after its acquisition by Justrite Safety Group ( JSG ), change is inevitable , but he and his team are adapting . Some changes to the company brought about by the merger include a new enterprise resource planning system and a warehouse management system for the Eagle distribution center . Additionally , Harvey is implementing the lean process journey .
“ The folks at Eagle are accustomed to change , as this company has been steadily changing over the years to compete in the changing competitive markets to meet customer demand ,” he says . “ The next biggest change here was the start of our lean process journey , which I am excited about . The old saying that you can ’ t manage it unless you measure it holds true . Eagle now has a full-time continuous improvement manager who has started us down the path of lean . The success of Eagle will be directly tied to the adaptation of the principles of lean .”
Harvey and his team focus on safety , quality , delivery and cost and how they fare in each area , which is part of the lean system . While 2020 put a halt to much of business and daily life , Harvey says Eagle performed well last year , and it is bouncing back and seeing growth pick up .
“ Despite the unusual turn of events in 2020 , Eagle had a solid year ,” he says . “ We certainly did not break any records , and the challenges of keeping people safe , staffing , scheduling and supply chain needed to be managed daily . Not knowing what the market was going to do , we did put a few projects on standby last year . As the markets are now opening , we will be looking to rehabilitate these projects for 2021 .”
Harvey says the future of Eagle lies in its growth , and he expects e-commerce to play a part in it . He also believes the willingness to change , a constant since the business was started 127 years ago , is what separates the company from most .
“ As one of the founding members of the WVMA , Eagle has always been active in the political climate of West Virginia ,” Harvey says . “ Eagle is a survivor . As the business , market or political climates have changed , Eagle has always adapted and found a way to be successful .”
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