Membership Memo - Improve Or Fall Behind
Posted on Monday, December 10, 2018
Some of the best professional advice I’ve ever received
was to find a mentor. I was told to look for someone
who is successful in your field of choice and ask them
for help in learning. Then, strive to understand how
they think, not as much what they do.
PCI is made up of some of the best professionals
in the powder coating field, creating an immense
opportunity for mentors and mentees to interact. As a
PCI member you should actively make connections with
the goal of teaching and learning from one another.
It’s been said if you aren’t improving, then you are
falling behind your competitors. No matter which
discipline of the powder coating industry you work
in, like most, the powder coating industry has a lot of
competitors. No one is an expert on everything, but
within the association you can make connections to
experts in almost any area. These connections build a
network of resources that can assist you in that goal of
continuous improvement.
Whether you’re running a powder coating job shop,
a coating line at an OEM, or you’re a supplier within the
powder industry, many areas of skill overlap. Some that
come to mind are:
- Training your employees.
- Maintaining employee safety.
- Producing high quality products.
- Troubleshooting problems.
- Production efficiency.
- Managing the costs for the best profitability.
- Performance testing.
- Evaluating capital investment projects.
All of these require skills that you may not have, but
there are professionals in PCI who can help you. Being
a part of the PCI community is an honor. Having access
to this body of experts that I know are ready to help is
invaluable in my quest for continuous improvement.
Mike Withers is the Architectural Segment Leader &
E-Coat Segment Leader (Powder Group), Powder Coatings
North America, at Axalta Coating Systems.