SANTA CLARA, Calif. – March 1, 2017 — Frost & Sullivan’s Manufacturing Leadership (ML) Council announced world-class manufacturing companies and individual leaders today as winners of the 2017 Manufacturing Leadership Awards. ML Awards winners and their partners will be honored on June 14, 2017, at a gala celebration that concludes the 13th annual Manufacturing Leadership Summit in Huntington Beach, Calif.

In addition, the ML High Achiever Awards, ML Manufacturers of the Year, the Manufacturing Leader of the Year, and the Lifetime Achievement Award winner will be announced at the gala.

Now in its 13th year, the ML Awards program honors organizations and individuals that are shaping the future of global manufacturing. Nominations are entered into 13 categories and evaluated and scored by a panel of expert judges. Twelve of the ML Awards categories are for outstanding projects by a manufacturing company. One category recognizes the achievements of individual manufacturing leaders.

The 91 projects and individuals on the list of ML Awards winners represent small and large enterprises in a wide range of manufacturing markets. They all leverage best-in-class processes, technologies and engaged teams to distinguish themselves from the competition. Among the winners were Merck & Co., Inc. for Big Data and Analytics Leadership, Lexmark International, Inc., for IoT in Manufacturing Leadership, and Johnson & Johnson for Operational Excellence Leadership.

“Winners of the 2017 ML Awards have proven vision and innovation are alive and well in the manufacturing industry,” said Global Vice President and Editorial Director and co-founder of the Manufacturing Leadership Council David R. Brousell. “By embracing the technology-driven transformation that we call Manufacturing 4.0, innovating new business models, and leveraging engaged workforces, these leaders are laying the groundwork for a new era of greater productivity in manufacturing.”

The ML Summit is a unique, interactive gathering of manufacturing leaders from around the world. The theme for the 2017 Summit is “Manufacturing 4.0 in Action.” Featured speakers include Alicia Boler Davis, executive vice president, Global Manufacturing, General Motors; Bart Talloen, vice president, Product Supply Strategy & Deployment, Johnson & Johnson; Michele D'Alessandro, vice president and CIO, Manufacturing IT, Merck & Co., Inc.; and Maciej Kranz, vice president, Corporate Strategic Innovation Group, Cisco Systems.

Mr. Eric Wichmann, General Manager, VirTex Austin, commented; “The analytics of data that VirTex now provides is on another level. The data that is collected on the shop floor is analyzed instantly and in a number of different ways. In the high mix, low/medium volume environment in which VirTex operates, we can see trends over time that would be missed by just looking through a standard manufacturing process.

This enables VirTex to identify the right responses and provide the right feedback to customers in a faster, more comprehensive manner and allows the customer to utilize the data fully for their business processes and continuous improvement procedures.”

Mr. Wichmann continued; “Delivering greater visibility into their supply chains and greater agility in assessing what might happen when change or disruption occurs. Markets are fickle and dynamic, and as a result, supply chains need to be more transparent, more flexible, more agile.”

Mr. Brad Heath, CEO & Owner, VirTex, concluded “We have developed a number of custom applications and dashboards, all in-house collaborations, for the purpose of not only improving operations via visibility and transparency, but also to provide predictive and performance analysis, plus supply chain planning and manufacturing optimization.

We understand that manufacturing and operational excellence is a journey and one that is never completed. As a result, we have a substantial and flexible investment plan that allows the individual empowered site managers to make decisions quickly and efficiently. Behind this investment strategy is a strong capital base and an approach that promises, if a customer needs a solution and it makes sense, let’s get it done, and get it done quickly.

It is our belief that ‘Big Data’ and Analytics are the future for creating value for our customers, which is why we will continue to invest in this area.

For VirTex to be considered amongst the great brands of Cisco, Merck, Micron and Bristol-Myers Squibb is truly a great honor indeed.”

About VirTex

VirTex is a trusted technology partner that provides strategic Electronic Manufacturing Services (EMS) to Original Equipment Makers (OEMs). VirTex increases the competitive position of customers’ products with a smart and simplified regional supply chain solution across the production lifecycle, by focusing on and reflecting their customer's vision.

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