Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | April 1, 2019 | Worcester Business Journal 21 M A N U F A C T U R I N G A W A R D S F O C U S Building a brighter future for Worcester and Central Massachusetts. For your next project, make the bright choice... IBEW Local 96. Call Business Manager Thomas J. Maloney at 508-753-8635 Brilliantly powering the future of Worcester 242 Mill Street, Worcester, MA 01602 508.753.8635 www.ibewlocal96.org AbbVie, Worcester UMASS Medical Center, Worcester PHOTOGRAPHY: SEYMOUR LEVY or 10 in a single day." Faster timeline CPI Radant not only had to figure out a way to speed up production, Smith said, it had to come up with a plan for producing several pieces of equipment at once. So, when the company designed its new facility, located in Hudson, leader- ship made sure to employ lean manu- facturing principles to reduce waste and improve efficiency. "We had to expand our capabilities in order to handle the higher volume productions required by the commercial industry," said Smith. e fact is, he said, the defense sector moves at a much slower pace. e gov- ernment sometimes plans out orders up to 10 months in advance; the commer- cial industry oen needs orders to be completed within 60 days. Doubling output Paul Fortier, northeast regional man- ager for the Massachusetts Manufactur- ing Extension Partnership, helped CPI Radant plan out its expansion. e lean principles CPI Radant employed were integral to its growth, he said. "To take their technologies and be able to utilize them in a different applica- tion really contributed to their success," Product Design & Innovation Award CPI Radant Technologies Division, Inc. Locations: Stow, Hudson Industry subsector: Military & commercial aerospace Founded: 1984 Top executive: President Tim Smith Primary product: Radomes to cover communications systems in the air and on the sea. Long-tenured success: CPI's headcount has grown by 41 percent over the past two years. This is built onto a solid base including 26 people with more than 20 years of service with the company. Fortier said. And metrically speaking, CPI Radant appears to be doing quite well since it made the commitment to expansion. e company has added some 70 jobs and has effectively doubled its output. "It's a bold move when you're going to go that way," Fortier said, "and it certainly paid off." CPI's radomes can range in size from two inches to 15 feet. CPI's new Hudson facility officially opened on Oct. 23. W

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