One Company, Many Industries, Countless Products

On this podcast episode, host Madi Dixon talked with colleague Derran Smith and Advisory Board Co-Chairs for the Chicago Chapter of Blessings In A Backpack Kristine Prugh and Colleen Bohn. Blessings in a Backpack mobilizes communities, individuals, and resources to provide food on the weekends for school-aged children across America who might otherwise go hungry. The group talked about Blessings in a Backpack's upcoming "Do It Yourself" 5K event. The Heico Companies and Blessings in a Backpack are longtime partners. Heico Helping Hands is the charitable outreach program for The Heico Companies, and it started several years ago as a way for employees to help give back to the community. "Heico had been contributing to a number of charities and fundraisers, raising money for the United Way, some other funds, and causes through the Heico Foundation," Smith said. "People may not know Heico has a separate arm devoted just for that, but really the most notable was building and donating a multi-story apartment building. downtown at St. Jude's Hospital." The building allows families a free place to stay if their children have an extended stay at the hospital. Through Heico Helping Hands, Heico employees can also spend time with the children. The partnership with Blessings in a Backpack helps benefit food-insecure children throughout Chicago. The "Do It Yourself" 5k is a race to be run on your own time between Nov. 6 and Nov. 14. Proceeds will benefit the Chicago Chapter of Blessings in a Backpack, which feeds 6,000 kids each weekend. However, there are over 150,000 food-insecure kids throughout Chicagoland. Register Here for the "Do It Yourself" 5

VPP is a federal OSHA program that promotes collaboration between OSHA and a business. With Bartell Machinery Systems, President Patrick Morocco and Head of EHS and Maintenance Michael Stoots spoke to Courtney Echerd on how this program can lead to an Environment, Health & Safety (EHS) culture within an organization. Bartell, a manufacturer of machinery systems, places safety top of mind. “The basis is the need and emphasis on safety,” Morocco said. “And that is safety for our employees, our customers, our businesses, and ultimately our families. When you look at a business-like Bartell and the inherent risks that we’ve had within our operations -we have a full fabrication facility, welding operations, CNC machinery, and assembly of large machines. So, when you look at the complexity of overall operations, it’s really the right thing to promote a safe environment. Safety is part of our culture.” It’s no small feat to achieve a VPP star certification. According to Stoots, it’s a three-year process. “There’s an application process you have to follow with four different key elements,” Stoots said. “It’s management leadership and employee involvement, worksite analysis, hazard identification control, and safety and health training.” To be successful in this process, commitment from leadership is paramount. Then after an EHS policy statement gets created, policies and procedures are set in place to address the 4 key elements, then the workforce needs to learn it, practice it for at least a year, and only then can OSHA come and do a systematic on-site analysis of how a particular company operates. There is a lot of effort and work involved, but it's a worthwhile endeavor in the quest for safety.

Integrated software solutions drive efficiency for many industries. Realizing this need, Stenograph introduced APEX, an intelligent ecosystem connecting agencies to reporters through the CATalyst software. A panel of experts from Stenograph joined host Kelly Sieracki to discuss the product. Participants included Pratul Patel, Sr. Product Manager, Lucy Smith, Sr. Product Manager, Jeff Cobb, Sr. Director Enterprise Sales, Jim Kuta, QA and Documentation Manager, and Cathy Carpenter, Direct Sales Manager, RPF, FPR-C. “We created this product for the benefit of agencies, reporters, and law firms. It’s an ecosystem just like the one Apple created to integrate and deliver value for users. That’s what we’re doing here with everything together on a single platform.” Patel explained. Cobb, a former manager of an agency, noted, “People are making a living through the solution we’re creating so that everyone can work in an enjoyable, reliable, and secure environment.” Smith, the product manager for CATalyst offered how it benefits reporters. “There’s often limited information going in, but as more is known, it feeds into the CATalyst workflow. One of the ‘wow’ moments is that it can take information and customize the appearance or title page, saving lots of time.” Carpenter, a former court reporter, also discussed the efficiency. “One thing is job notifications popping up, so reporters can respond in the system. The platform also allows you to do everything you need from the platform.” One of the big motivations behind creating APEX was the company’s acquisition of YesLaw. “It was a driver and understanding that we could extend the production tools to agencies,” Cobb said. In discussing other features, Kuta described, “The job assignments page in CATalyst is a central place where information comes together. You have the data in one place. The business center and ability to invoice is great, too.” Streamlining and simplifying the process from the perspective of all parties is the goal of APEX, empowering reporters and agencies to be more effective and increase revenue.

At The Heico Companies, the health and safety of its employees are its most important responsibility. That’s why safety is a preeminent core value for the company – and why the second episode of The Heico Companies podcast centered around this commitment. Host Madi Dixon, Manager, Strategic Partner Development & CSR for The Heico Companies, was joined by the organization’s number one expert on Safety, Dave Roberts, Vice President, Environmental Health & Safety. To begin, Dixon shares a story of visiting the jobsite of a company under The Heico Companies’ umbrella. Roberts was there, as well, and went above and beyond to ensure safety by literally getting on the ground to inspect a connection for a key piece of equipment. That attention to detail is critical to a lasting culture of safety, which goes well beyond a simple following of safety rules. In this podcast Roberts discusses safety at The Heico Companies, what it takes to successfully build a culture of safety, how technology and lean manufacturing align with safety, and how an organization can go about putting a commitment to safety into practice.

The Heico Companies is excited to launch its new podcast, One Company, Many Industries, Countless Products. The show will offer insights, conversations and ideas across the multitude of industries and unique subject matters that drive who they are as an organization.