By: Davies Hood, Induron President
As Induron Coatings entered our seventh decade of providing “Reliable Protection Through Innovative Coatings,” we knew that change and adaptation was necessary to continue with our mission. Don’t get me wrong, 2017 was a record year in terms of sales, team building and company culture at Induron. But, the real takeaway from our 70th Anniversary Celebration, was that in order to succeed in business, companies had to constantly adapt and continue to work to improve culture. At Induron, we have a proven track record of both. Here are a few examples:
However, a proven track record and consistent improvement are two entirely different things. Yes, we are proud of our history, BUT we want an even brighter future!
With this goal in mind, our third-generation family-held business charged into 2018 by:
- Introducing innovative new products, such as a single pack, moisture-cured, zinc-rich urethane, Indurazinc MC-67, and the newest addition to our line of revolutionary ceramic epoxies, CeramaPrime.
- Hiring sales experts including Mike Watson in Georgia, Jeff Rog in Ohio and Tom Wunderlin in Maryland.
- Experiencing healthy leadership turnover in our critical technical department with the retirement of long-term Technical Director, John Anspach, and the addition of chemist extraordinaire, Mike Kang.
- Promoting leadership from within by formally introducing Andy Odorzynski as Sales Manager at our 2018 Sales Meeting in November held in Stone Mtn., GA.
- Honoring natural attrition with the partial retirement of Dick Belliveau and departure of George Shannon from our Sales Team.
- Utilizing modern marketing tools including video production, content marketing efforts and participation in an innovative ‘Hosted Buyer’ conference.
- Traveling internationally, in terms of visiting the beautiful country of Ireland as a part of Guild CPO, a buyer’s co-op made up of several small and mid-sized paint manufacturers that work together. Cooperation and teamwork truly are important to Induron!
- Forming new partnerships, in the U.S. and with our new international partner in Guatamala. We are consistently looking to grow through true partnerships and relationships that are mutually beneficial, but more importantly, help our customers in terms of support and customer service!
Those were just some of the ‘highlights of change’ that our 71-year-old coatings manufacturing company experienced in 2018. I’m certain there will be many more in 2019. That’s part of what makes this all so much fun! We appreciate you being a part of it all!