The National Association of Manufacturers’ Manufacturing Leadership Council recognizes these world-class manufacturing companies and individual leaders as winners of the Manufacturing Leadership Awards.

2021 ML Awards Winners

Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Analytics Leadership

  • Cisco Systems – Cisco’s Data & Analytics Office Brings AI to Life All Across Cisco
  • Cisco Systems – Component Quality Early Sensing Platform
  • CNH Industrial
  • HELLA
  • IBM Corporation – Manufacturing Quality Inspection with AI and Edge Computing
  • MacLean-Fogg
  • Merck & Co., Inc. – Automated Vision Inspection Platform
  • NCDMM – Joint Additive Manufacturing Model Exchange – JAMMEX

Collaborative Innovation Leadership

  • Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) – COVID-19 Response: Infrastructure for Good
  • Flex – A Mask-Making Journey
  • IBM Corporation – IBM Customer Solution Center NYC Department of Education Remote Learning Enablement
  • Johnson & Johnson – Johnson & Johnson Supply Chain Wearables Smart Glasses
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals – COVID-19 Response Team
  • Merck & Co., Inc. – DigInnovate Community
  • Roche and Genentech – Rapid Technical Transfer
  • Roche and Genentech – Continuing Pharma Manufacturing When the World Stopped
  • VIRTEX

Engineering and Production Technology Leadership

  • Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) – Project Segue
  • Corteva Agriscience – Pyraxalt Active Product Manufacturing & Process Optimization
  • Dana
  • Ford Motor Company – In-Station Process Control for Gear Machining Processes
  • Ford Motor Company – 2D Laser Profiling for High-Speed CNC Compensation
  • General Motors
  • Johnson & Johnson – Ethicon Digital Surgery Molded Components
  • Kenworth Truck Company – Tension Control Tooling Improvement
  • Kenworth Truck Company – Sealed Beam Headlamp Aimer
  • Lexmark International
  • Lockheed Martin Aeronautics – F35 Seal Frame Accelerated Cure Project
  • NCDMM – Conformal Fan Duct Heat Exchangers for Engine Thermal Management Systems
  • Peterbilt Motors Company – Paint Air Ladder Calibration Project
  • PULS GmbH
  • SAUDI ARAMCO

Enterprise Integration Technology Leadership

  • Array Technologies
  • Cisco Systems – Hardware Failure Prediction
  • Dow Inc. – Dow Manufacturing 4.0
  • Flex – Utilizing Simulation in Manufacturing
  • Ford Motor Company – Ford Teams with Drishti for Process Improvements in Manual Assembly
  • IBM Corporation – Embracing Complexity, a Compass to Digital Transformation
  • Merck & Co., Inc.- Remote Assist
  • MxD – MxD Cyber Box
  • Nexteer Automotive
  • Rapid Turn Laser & Machine LLC
  • Xenith

Industrial Internet of Things Leadership

  • Dow Inc. – Accelerating Innovation in Instrumentation and Sensors at Dow Texas Operations
  • Intertape Polymer Group – Operational Excellence Through Digital Transformation
  • Maxion Wheels
  • MxD – MxD Cyber Platform

Operational Excellence Leadership

  • ADAC Automotive
  • Bridge Publications Inc.
  • Church & Dwight
  • Comez International s.r.l. – a Jakob Mueller company
  • Corteva Agriscience – Spinetoram Active Insecticide
  • Excel Connection
  • Flex – Ventilator Production
  • Geico Taikisha
  • General Mills
  • Iochpe-Maxion S.A.
  • Lockheed Martin Aeronautics – Aircraft Optical Network Diagnostic System
  • Lockheed Martin Aeronautics – Wireless Harness Automated Measurement System
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals – Packaging Process Improvement
  • NCDMM – Manufacturing Technology for Complex Missile Seekers (JAGM CMS)
  • Peterbilt Motors Company – Engine Trim Error Proofing
  • The Raymond Corporation

Supply Chain Leadership

  • ALOM
  • Central Garden & Pet
  • Corning Incorporated
  • Dow Inc. – E2E Business Planning Program
  • Hologic Inc. – Supply Chain: Impacting Lives, Every Day
  • Johnson & Johnson – Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Transformation
  • Roche and Genentech – Unlocking Manufacturing Network Capacity at Roche and Genentech

Sustainability Leadership

  • Corteva Agriscience – Advanced Technology for Successful Rinskor Active Ingredient Product Manufacture
  • FloraCraft
  • Intertape Polymer Group – Incorporating Sustainability into Lean Manufacturing Production System
  • Owens Corning
  • Peterbilt Motors Company – Paint Emissions Reduction
  • Protolabs
  • Pure & Gentle

Talent Management Leadership

  • Essentra
  • Hologic Inc. – Building a Talent Management System for a 4.0 Medical Device Company in Costa Rica
  • MxD – MxD’s Hiring Guide: Cybersecurity in Manufacturing

Individual Winners

Digital Transformation Leadership

  • Maria Martinez, Cisco Systems
  • Dave Evans, Fictiv
  • Billy B. Bardin, Dow Inc.
  • Veronica Gutierrez Magallanes, IBM Corporation
  • Raja Shembekar, Denso
  • Jayendran Sundararaman, Intertape Polymer Group
  • Jeff Gleeson, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics

Next-Generation Leadership

  • Kasia Karimee Garcia Bracho, IBM Corporation
  • Katherine Duggan, Dow Inc.
  • Jonathan Jones, Corteva Agriscience
  • Katia Valenzuela, MxD

Partner Winners

  • Ceridian
  • Dassault Systèmes
  • Drishti
  • ECI Software Solutions
  • EPSoft Technologies
  • Ernst & Young LLC
  • iBASEt
  • KBMax
  • Leading2Lean
  • Logility
  • Markforged
  • Paperless Parts
  • Predictronics

2020 ML Awards Winners

The National Association of Manufacturers’ Manufacturing Leadership Council recognizes these world-class manufacturing companies and individual leaders as winners of the 2020 Manufacturing Leadership Awards. Companies with project names listed were winners of multiple awards.

Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Analytics Leadership

  • BAE Systems
  • Cisco Systems (Adaptive Calibration)
  • Cisco Systems (Predicting Known Issues)
  • Clif Bar & Company (Visual Bakery: Transforming Manufacturing Data Into Action)
  • Ford Motor Company (AI Vision System to Detect Panel Defects)
  • General Motors Company (Transforming Automotive Stamping with Industrial AI)
  • Linde
  • Lockheed Martin Corporation (F-35 Augmented Reality Shop Floor Mobility)
  • Lockheed Martin Corporation (Sustainment Affordability & Innovation)
  • MxD (The Model-Based Feature Information Network (MFIN))

Collaborative Innovation Leadership

  • CNH Industrial (Mixed Reality Parametric Environment for Product Development (MR4PD))
  • Cooley Group (Cooley Group “Team of Teams” Collaboration Model)
  • IBM (Epic Collaborative Innovation)
  • Merck & Co., Inc. (Securing Our Products: Digital Fingerprinting)
  • Protolabs
  • Western Digital

Community Service Leadership

  • Jaime Gonzales Vallejo, Genentech, a Member of the Roche Group
  • Marjorie White, Dow Inc.

Digital Transformation Leadership

  • Miguel Danao, Bishop-Wisecarver Corporation
  • Priyanka Deva, IBM
  • Fernando Torres, Greene Tweed

Engineering and Production Technology Leadership

  • Allegion
  • The Boeing Company (Airplane Customer Passenger Layout Arrangements Optimization Visualization and Engineering (CLOVER))
  • Centerline (Windsor) Limited
  • Florim, USA, Inc.
  • Humtown Products (Commercialization of 3D Printing in the Metal Casting Industry)
  • Lockheed Martin Corporation (Mobile Robotic Drilling Solutions)
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals (Hobart Packaging Serialization Project)
  • Merck & Co., Inc. (Biotech Factory of the Future)
  • NCDMM (On Tool Inspection of Automated Composite Material Placement)
  • NCDMM (A5 – Advanced Automation for Agile Aerospace Applications)
  • PACCAR – Kenworth (PACCAR Axle Trim Efficiency Improvement)
  • Rauland, a Division of AMETEK
  • Saudi Aramco Oil Company (Smart Demulsifier Control & Optimization)
  • Siemens Energy Inc.
  • Webasto Roof Systems, Inc.

Enterprise Integration Technology Leadership

  • Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corporation
  • Flex LTD (Automated Global KPIs for Flex Manufacturing)
  • Ford Motor Company (Symbiotic Simulation in the Automotive Sector)
  • Hausbeck Pickles & Peppers
  • IBM (Migrating Supply Chain Quality Management Workload to Cloud)
  • Logan Aluminum
  • Tuff Shed
  • VIRTEX

Industrial Internet of Things Leadership

  • CAMSO LOADSTAR – MTD
  • Cooley Group (Cooley Group Transforms Legacy Machinery into Smart Tech)
  • Grace Technologies (GraceSense™ Configurable IIoT Solution)
  • PADNOS
  • Titan International

Next-Generation Leadership

  • Drew Allen, Grace Technologies
  • Juan Banales, Corteva Agriscience
  • Katie Fayman, MxD
  • Arsenio L. Foster, Dow Inc.
  • Vienna Polanco, IBM
  • Burlan A. Sizemore, Saint-Gobain Corporation

Operational Excellence Leadership

  • BASF Corporation (Transformation of Prill Unit Through Continuous Improvement)
  • BASF Corporation (2EHA Production Rate Increase)
  • Bridge Publications Inc.
  • CNH Industrial (Forklift Simulator Using Virtual Reality Technology)
  • Corteva Agriscience (Arylex Active Production via Direct Coupling – Innovation for Manufacturing)
  • Dow Inc. (Experts Closer to the Machine)
  • Greene Tweed
  • Hologic Inc. (Building a Culture of Operational Excellence)
  • Johnson Controls
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals (Hobart Packaging Changeover Improvements)
  • MSA – The Safety Company
  • PACCAR – Kenworth (SMART Tool Error Proofing System)
  • PACCAR – Kenworth (2.1M Finish Line)
  • Peterbilt Motors Company (Peterbilt Capacity Expansion)
  • Purple Innovations
  • The Raymond Corporation
  • Saint-Gobain Corporation (Saint-Gobain World-Class Manufacturing)
  • WCCO Belting, Inc.

Supply Chain Leadership

  • Amkor
  • Cisco Systems (Factory Quality Automation)
  • Corteva Agriscience (Corteva Agriscience Formulations & Packaging Asset Footprint Optimization)
  • Haggar Clothing Co.
  • Merck & Co., Inc. (Ask Julia)
  • MxD (Supply Chain Risk Alert)
  • NCDMM (AMNOW)
  • Oracle
  • Starkey Hearing Technologies
  • Tillamook County Creamery Association

Sustainability Leadership

  • The Boeing Company (Diverting Waste to Landfill While Upcycling Excess Airplane Carbon Fiber)
  • Clif Bar & Company (Setting a New Green Energy Standard with a Pollinator-Friendly Solar Farm)
  • Cooley Group (Cooley Group Converts Landfill Waste to Energy)
  • Corteva Agriscience (Advanced Technology for Successful Inatreq Active Product Manufacture)
  • Dow Inc. (Plastics Recycling into Pavement)
  • Flex Ltd. (Smartbin: Curbing Reverse Logistics Costs, Energy Consumption and Carbon Emissions Through IoT)
  • Genentech, a Member of the Roche Group (Northern California Sustainability Impact (Oceanside VV, SSF))
  • Lexmark International, Inc.
  • Saint-Gobain Corporation (Saint-Gobain Sustainability WWE)
  • Saudi Aramco Oil Company (Conserving Scarce Resources through Vapor Compression Crystallization Water Treatment)
  • Smithfield Foods, Inc.
  • Trane Technologies (Achieving Operations Climate Commitment)

Talent Management Leadership

  • American Crane & Equipment Corporation
  • Amway Corporation
  • Genentech, a Member of the Roche Group (Manufacturing University, VV Production Services)
  • General Motors Company (General Motors Next-Generation Manufacturing System Support)
  • Grace Technologies (Grace’s Cultural Transformation)
  • Hologic Inc. (Building Manufacturing 4.0’s Workforce of the Future)
  • Humtown Products (Unleashing Human Potential)
  • IBM (IBM Supply Chain Mind-Facturing the Future)
  • Nexteer Automotive
  • Peterbilt Motors Company (Peterbilt Women’s Initiative (PBWIN))
  • RoyOMartin (RoyOMartin “I Believe”)
  • RoyOMartin (RoyOMartin Woodworks)
  • Trane Technologies (ReLaunch Your Engineering Career)

Editor’s Choice Awards

  • Arconic (Howmet Aerospace)
  • Richards Industrials

Manufacturing Leadership Partner Award Winners

  • BDO USA, LLP
  • Birlasoft
  • Dassault Systèmes
  • FORCAM
  • Hitachi Vantara
  • Infosys
  • Leading2Lean
  • Logility
  • Oracle
  • Plex Systems
  • PTC
  • SAS Institute
  • Uptake

2019 ML Awards Winners

National Association of Manufacturers’ Manufacturing Leadership (ML) Council recognizes these world-class manufacturing companies and individual leaders as winners of the 2019 Manufacturing Leadership Awards.

Lifetime Achievement Award

  • Jim Davis

Manufacturing Leader of the Year

  • Ron Castro

Manufacturer of the Year (Small-Medium Enterprise)

  • LION-Vallen Industries

Manufacturer of the Year (Large Enterprise)

  • Merck

Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Analytics Leadership

  • Cisco Systems, Inc. (The Fully-Connected Customer Experience)
  • Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute
  • General Mills
  • IBM (Augmented Intelligence for IBM Supply Chain)
  • Maxion Wheels
  • Northrop Grumman (Assembly Metadata Integration)

Collaborative Innovation Leadership

  • AGCO Corp.
  • BAE Systems
  • HP, Inc. (The Next Chapter in the Digital Industrial Revolution)
  • Samtec, Inc.
  • The Dow Chemical Company (Digital Centers)

Engineering and Production Technology Leadership

  • IBM Systems Hardware Design for Excellence Process)
  • Corteva Agriscience (Spinetoram Strain Improvement)
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals (St. Louis Project Pinnacle – Chemistry & Facility Modernization)
  • Merck & Co., Inc. (3D Technologies: Where Physical meets Digital)
  • Northrop Grumman (Leveraging Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality and 3D Data Analytics to Improve Airframe Manufacturing Processes)
  • Northrop Grumman (​Analytics-Enabled Complex Assemblies)
  • Protolabs
  • Saint-Gobain North America (Saint-Gobain North America Stellar Factory Initiative)
  • The Dow Chemical Company (Dow Energy Systems Optimization for Improved Profitability)

Enterprise Integration Technology Leadership

  • Cisco Systems, Inc. (Footprint Blockchain)
  • Dynomax, Inc.
  • El Dorado Packaging
  • Flex (XR Stream Remote Assistance Augmented Reality Application)
  • Jabil
  • Lockheed Martin (Shop Floor Management at Lockheed Martin’s Smart Digital Factory)
  • Nexteer Automotive
  • Smithfield Foods, Inc. (Integrating and Streamlining Business Functions through Smithfield’s OneSAP Project)

Industrial Internet of Things Leadership

  • Jergens Industrial Supply
  • Kamco Industries, a Subsidiary of Kumi Kasei
  • Lockheed Martin (IIoT Shop Floor Dashboard Analytics Project)
  • Noble Plastics

Next-Generation Leadership

  • Callie Sher, Evanger’s Dog and Cat Food Company / NutriPack, LLC
  • Kristi Dunham, The Dow Chemical Company
  • Zohair Mehkri, Flex

Operational Excellence Leadership

  • Ambrell Corp.
  • Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp.
  • Bridge Publications, Inc.
  • Cisco Systems, Inc. (Cloud Maturity Model)
  • Gibbs Die Casting
  • Hologic, Inc. (Dimensions Test Transformation)
  • Latécoère
  • Lockheed Martin (C-130J Trim Fabrication Transformation)
  • Merck & Co., Inc. (Gardasil Vaccine – OpEx for Cancer Prevention)
  • Peterbilt Motors Co. (Safety Model Line)
  • Kenworth Division / PACCAR Inc. (Damage Reduction Initiative)
  • Rauland – Division of AMETEK
  • Starkey Hearing Technologies
  • The Boeing Company
  • Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited (Synchron – Sell 1 Make 1 Procure)
  • Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited (Six Weeks Delivery of Tractors to Export Market)
  • Vermeer Corp.

Supply Chain Leadership

  • Flex (Pulse – Intelligent Supply Chain Platform)
  • Flex (Integrated Product Development Model)
  • Ford Motor Company
  • General Electric
  • HP, Inc. (Reinventing HP with Multi Jet Fusion)
  • IBM (Infusing Blockchain in IBM Supply Chain)
  • Juniper Networks
  • Lexmark International, Inc.
  • LION, Inc.
  • Merck & Co., Inc. (Project Ivan)
  • Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited (Collaborative Cost Re-Engineering Using Advanced Tools – PROSPERO)

Sustainability Leadership

  • Allegion
  • Cooley Group
  • Hologic, Inc.( Fostering Innovation for Sustainability)
  • Johnson Controls, Inc.
  • Oracle
  • Sinctronics
  • Smithfield Foods, Inc. (Leveraging Zero Waste to Landfill to Support Sustainability Goals)

Talent Management Leadership

  • Genentech, a Member of the Roche Group
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals (Hobart Training Startegy Deployment)
  • Miller Fabrication Systems
  • Saint-Gobain North America (Essentials of Manufacturing)
  • The Dow Chemical Company (M&E Technical Talent Academy)
  • The Raymond Corp.

Visionary Leadership

  • James Knott, Jr., Riverdale Mills
  • Johnny Chavez, The Dow Chemical Company
  • Robb Misso, Dynamic Manufacturing Solutions
  • Ronald Castro, IBM

2018 ML Awards Winners

The Manufacturing Leadership Council recognizes these world-class manufacturing companies and individual leaders as winners of the 2018 Manufacturing Leadership Award.

Lifetime Achievement Award

  • Richard E. Morley

Manufacturing Leader of the Year

  • Peter Holicki

Manufacturer of the Year (Small-Medium Enterprise)

  • Universal Robots

Manufacturer of the Year (Large Enterprise)

  • IBM

Collaborative Innovation Leadership

  • Cisco Systems, Inc. (Customer Heat Map)
  • Dotson Iron Castings> HP Inc.
  • LAI International (BA Stator Segment Program)
  • MBX Systems
  • Universal Robots (UR+ Project)

Data & Analytics Leadership

  • Cisco Systems, Inc. (Software Failure Analysis)
  • IBM Corp. (Watson Approach to Optical Quality)
  • Lexmark International, Inc. (Overall Equipment Effectiveness Automation)
  • Merck & Company (Model Area – Zero Loss Project)
  • Micron Technology, Inc.
  • NXP Semiconductors N.V.

Engineering and Production Technology Leadership

  • Ford Motor Company (Scalable Powertrain Assembly Lines Enabled by Flexible Robotic Technology)
  • Herbalife Ltd.
  • IBM Corp. (Singapore Advanced Manufacturing (Industrie 4.0) Initiative)
  • Ichor Systems, Inc.
  • Kenworth Truck Company
  • Johnson Controls (AGM Capacity Expansion Project)
  • LAI International (IHI Sheath Expansion Project)
  • Lockheed Martin (AutoDrill Integration & Enhancement)
  • Lockheed Martin (Fastener Measurement Tool Project)
  • Merck & Company (Design, Evaluation, and Implementation of Single-Use Components for Ebola Zaire Vaccine Drug Substance Manufacturing)
  • Mercury Systems
  • Nexteer Automotive
  • RAMLAB
  • Rauland
  • Saudi Aramco (Demulsifier Dosing Automation Design Enhancement (Simplified Logic Injection Control (SLIC)
  • Saudi Aramco (Online Direct Conductivity and Online Single Solvent Salt-in-Crude Analyzers)
  • The Dow Chemical Company (Gulfstream Project)
  • Unity Scientific
  • University of New Hampshire – John Olson Advanced Manufacturing Center
  • Virgin Orbit

Enterprise Integration Technology Leadership

  • AGM Container Controls, Inc.
  • AutolivAmbrell Corp.
  • Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp.
  • Commscope, Inc. (BeehiveNet)
  • CorvalentJBS USA
  • Johnson Controls (Enterprise IT Tools Supporting JCMS)
  • LAI International (Factory of the Future)
  • PACCAR Engine Company (Data Handling System)
  • Roche Tissue Diagnostics
  • Tractors and Farm Equipment Ltd. (Digital Quality Management System)
  • Toshiba International Corp.
  • VirTex Enterprises

Industrial Internet of Things Leadership

  • Ford Motor Company (Traceability-Enabled Quality Data Tracking and Analysis Systems)
  • Bosch Mondeville, a Robert Bosch (France) factory
  • Senet, Inc.

Operational Excellence Leadership

  • BASF
  • Card-Monroe Corp.
  • Cisco Systems, Inc. (Universal Order Visibility & Delivery Excellence)
  • Fiat Chrysler Automobiles S.p.a.
  • Hologic, Inc. (Affirm Prone Biopsy Product Line Re-Layout)
  • Hologic, Inc. (Dimensions AWS Flex Line Kaizens)
  • Hologic, Inc. (Stepping Stones Towards Hologic Operational Excellence)
  • Johnson Controls (JCMS Deployment and Tyco Integration)
  • Lexmark International, Inc. (Technical Support Center (TSC) Lean Transformation)
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals (True North Operational Excellence)
  • Protolabs> Saudi Aramco (Oilfield APC in a Conventional Oilfield)
  • Schlage de Mexico S. A de C. V.
  • Segway, Inc.
  • The Dow Chemical Company (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and Robotic Platform Initiative)
  • The Raymond Corp.
  • Triumph International

Smart Products and Services Leadership

  • KPIT Technologies Ltd. (Integrated Intelligent Transport System)
  • Lexmark International, Inc. (Auto Configuration & Debrief Tool)
  • Lockheed Martin (Fiber Optic Quality System)
  • OmniVision Technologies, Inc.
  • Puls GmbH
  • Universal Robots (UR3, the UR5 and the UR10 Project)

Supply Chain Leadership

  • Baker Hughes, a GE Company
  • Commscope, Inc. (Mobile Logistics Transformation)
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals (True North Supply Chain)
  • Merck & Company (Product/SKU Optimization)
  • Monsanto
  • Peterbilt Motors Company/PACCAR Inc. (One Piece Material Flow Kitting)
  • Seagate Technology PLC
  • TenCate Protective Fabrics
  • Tractors and Farm Equipment Ltd. (Differential Engagement with Suppliers)
  • Tractors and Farm Equipment Ltd. (Supplier Risk Mitigation and Disruption Management)

Sustainability Leadership

  • Flex
  • KPIT Technologies Ltd. (REVOLO Project)
  • Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals (True North Sustainability)
  • The Dow Chemical Company (Sustainability – Leading the Industry)

Talent Management Leadership

  • Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute
  • IBM Corp. (Competency & Talent Acceleration for Advanced Manufacturing in IBM Systems Supply Chain)

Visionary Leadership

  • Raul Ayuso, IVECO ESPAÑA SL
  • Christopher Hillman, Starkey Hearing Technologies
  • Peter Holicki, The Dow Chemical Company
  • Gregory Marks, Markforged
  • Abdallah Massaad, RAK Ceramics, PJSC
  • Esben Østergaard, Universal Robots
  • Denise Ramos, ITT, Inc.
  • Dr. B. Kim Lee Sim, PhD, Sanaria, Inc.

Partner Award Winners

  • Adexa, Inc.
  • Autodesk, Inc.
  • Demand Management, Inc.
  • iBASEt, Inc.
  • JDA Software Group, Inc.
  • Leading2Lean