Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
Welcome to the Clear Impact Podcast brought to you by Mitre Brands University. Thanks for joining us today. My name is Sheri Conner and I am your host.
[00:00:19] Speaker B: Yeah. To see the teams come together the way they have was just magic, you know, to see how thoughtful our key leaders were of each other through all of those changes and taking care of people just blew me away. How excellent how leadership is here.
[00:00:34] Speaker A: Good afternoon. We are here on the Clear Impact Podcast and we are chatting today with Chris Davis. Welcome back.
[00:00:42] Speaker B: Thanks so much, Sherry. Thanks for having me again.
[00:00:44] Speaker A: Yeah, thanks for tapping in. So we're in our brand new studio that isn't quite finished yet. So this is exciting to have you be our first guest in here.
So, Chris, before we get started with our conversation today, for those who may not have heard the previous episode or maybe don't know who you are, can you give us just a brief recap of your role and responsibilities here and maybe a little bit of your history?
[00:01:08] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely, Sherry. I am the Vice President of Operations for pgt. So that's basically everything Mitre has in Florida operationally. I moved down here at the beginning of 2025 to take that role. I was already with the business based up in the Pacific Northwest and I've been with Mitre this coming month for 10 years.
[00:01:29] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:01:30] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:01:30] Speaker A: And you're adjusting to Florida?
[00:01:31] Speaker B: Loving it.
[00:01:32] Speaker A: Yeah. But we've been talking a lot about the Florida manufacturing operations and the changes that have been taking place over the past six months or so and we've had a number of different people and you actually spoke about it the last time you were in. So I just kind of wanted to touch base and see how everything is going with CGI and PGT commercial both coming over. The Sparta and scout lines came over and then all the PGT commercial came over. So how's all that going?
[00:01:59] Speaker B: Yeah, in a nutshell, it's going really, really well. So I'm not sure if we spoke about before we had a really clear integration plan for any sort of acquired businesses that would take us through addressing culture, looking at products and brands in each market and then which plants we would build the products in. And that's where we are on this. We've been working really, really hard on the culture change in throughout the whole plant. And that's going sensationally well. The leadership team fully bought in and so now we're starting to see the benefit of that in so many different ways. The first of which was last year. We had big focus on taking care of the customer. So quality improvements on Time and in full improvements. And most recently we implemented a new lead timesheet because we had heard, even though we thought our lead times were good, some of our customers weren't. Well, they're experiencing differences in what we publish from what they would get. And so we dove into it, corrected all of that. So now what we publish is true. And so all the customer facing metrics operationally are really well. So we obviously needed to consolidate the plant footprint, brought over the Sparta windows and doors, the 160 door, the 450 door and commercial. All of those went really, really smoothly, about as smoothly as anybody could hope with the exception of the 450 door. We had some teething problems the first few weeks on that. They've all been ironed out and things are running fantastic. That was a lot of work to get that corrected. But what's amazing about the culture that we're building is how well all of the different teams come together cross functionally to jump on issues that are important. And the reason that 450 was only problematic for a couple of weeks was because the team just absolutely rallied together to work through what was a pretty challenging problem and get it resolved so quickly. Yeah, I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like that before.
[00:04:00] Speaker A: That's amazing. So that caps off some of the current changes that have been happening. Are there more ahead?
[00:04:06] Speaker B: There's always changes. I mean, but I think the big ones are done at this point. What we've got coming up later this year, we have some product infill sort of stuff with the rationalization. There's a couple of little holes that we need to plug really quickly on the product offering. We will also be moving to a single quoting platform, which you've probably heard from Chad Sanderson and others on this.
So that's coming. And then we have Pembroke Pines Glass plant coming up later in the year and that will enable us to in source door IGs, which most excitingly will give us the opportunity to shrink our lead times from right now we're bottoming out around 18 to 19 days, business days on lead time.
But once we insource those doors, we'll be able to get closer to for sure under three weeks, maybe as low as two weeks. Wow. Nobody's thought about doing that in Hurricane Windows before, so.
[00:05:03] Speaker A: Yeah, well, I know I had the opportunity to sit in on one of the operations meetings not too long ago. Chris Roof invited me to come sit in and he and I recorded an episode about that process and what happened. But one of the Things that came up was there was a piece of door glass that had to be reordered, and it had been reordered multiple times.
And the conversation was, can we do this one in house?
And I love that we can pivot very quickly on our window glass when we have an issue. And so I do see that having that capacity in house is going to be really great for everybody.
[00:05:40] Speaker B: Yeah. I mean, that's such a true statement. Because our ability to turn around something if there is a problem in the field right now is amazing. We had one of our bigger dealers ask us for some commitments on a replacement piece of glass, replacement sash, replacement window, about nearly a year ago, and we documented those. We smash those commitments every single time, no matter which one of our customers asks and no matter whose fault it is. Because we know when our customers are trying to button up a job, sometimes something gets broken, sometimes it's on us. It doesn't really matter. But we've got to help our customers take care of business. And we're being nimble on that is an absolute key part of how Mitrevue is taking care of its customers.
[00:06:22] Speaker A: Yeah. Well, especially when you're having something custom made, but it holds up other items when you're doing a remodel or a new build, especially the cash. Right. You can't get paid until it's done, so everybody wants to finish it up as quickly as possible.
[00:06:34] Speaker B: That not trivial at all?
[00:06:36] Speaker A: No, no, not at all.
[00:06:38] Speaker B: So, so important.
[00:06:39] Speaker A: Yeah, for sure.
So do we know, like, when Pembroke Pines? What's the target on that? I know there's a lot of stuff outside our control.
[00:06:46] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah. From a construction standpoint, the timeline's pretty clear. And from a permitting standpoint, it is becoming increasingly clear.
So, yeah, we've done a lot to get to know the folks in the city there and try to understand the permitting process and answer all the questions. So we're on the home stretch on that now.
If all goes according to plans, you know, commissioning sort of late May through June into July 1, production probably around July.
[00:07:16] Speaker A: Nice.
[00:07:16] Speaker B: That's if nothing slips up. And it probably will.
[00:07:18] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:07:19] Speaker B: With no buffer whatsoever in that timeline.
[00:07:21] Speaker A: So we'll say Q3.
[00:07:23] Speaker B: Yeah. And we'll ramp up gradually. You know, really, we're looking to have it fully ramped up and cruising in early 2027.
[00:07:31] Speaker A: Nice.
[00:07:31] Speaker B: But we'll take chunks out of it. Late this year,
[00:07:36] Speaker A: we are sharing our expertise around all topics relating to the window and door industry, whether you are a customer selling our products or a homeowner. Doing research. The Clear Impact podcast provides helpful content that makes an impact. Subscribe today wherever you listen to podcasts.
Excellent. That's awesome.
So, anything else that we need to know about as far as what's happening in Florida?
[00:07:59] Speaker B: Just thinking about, you know, it's always a tough decision to make a call on plants, especially ones that are operating well, like Hylia Medley were. I'm happy to say that we will retain 33% at least, of the people from those plants have either moved to Venice, Fort Myers, or will be working at Pembroke Pines.
[00:08:18] Speaker A: Oh, nice.
[00:08:18] Speaker B: And that's the current number as of today. As we open up more roles in Pembroke, that number will increase.
[00:08:24] Speaker A: Oh, nice.
[00:08:24] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:08:25] Speaker A: Good. Yeah. I've seen a few faces that I've recognized from my visits over to cgi. Bumped into in the cafeteria and on the mezzanine. So it's like, oh, hey, you're here. Yay. So that's always nice.
[00:08:36] Speaker B: Yeah. To see the teams come together the way they have was. Is just magic, you know, to see how thoughtful our key leaders were of each other through all of those changes and taking care of people just blew me away. How excellent our leadership is here.
[00:08:50] Speaker A: Yeah. Well, we're all in it together. Right. So we've been doing this We Are Florida campaign, and it started off just as a marketing thing, but it's really become part of our local DNA, if you will. And you're, you know, fairly new Floridian. What does we are Florida mean to you?
[00:09:06] Speaker B: To me, this really just speaks to the fact that we have local people engaged in manufacturing for a product that is used locally. There's probably no other industry where it makes more sense to have the products made in the neighborhood where they're going to be deployed. So we have relationships with our customers. We have relationships with our suppliers. Suppliers.
And in the end, for us, it's so important to take care of our customers. I know. I keep coming back to that, but it's kind of everything that we do. It's where we create unique value. And being based right here, where our customers are installing the windows and doors is everything for us to be able to offer the best in class lead times with amazing quality, the ability to turn something around in a heartbeat if there is an issue. I think it's really just an unmatchable value that we can provide to our customers.
[00:09:56] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:09:56] Speaker B: So I'm looking forward to the next many years as we grow with them.
[00:10:01] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:10:01] Speaker B: And so, yeah, good things.
[00:10:03] Speaker A: Yeah. No, it's exciting to know that, you know, you can Come visit the factory, come visit the plant. I mean, obviously with a sales rep, you know, we don't just invite people in, but we're right here in Venice, and we do host a lot of tours, and we have manufacturing groups. And I think last week we had some high school students that came, or maybe the week before. We've had a lot of group tours coming through just to see, like, how windows and doors are built and that they are so different than what you would see up north.
You know, when you're not having to worry about. You don't have to deal with hurricanes and things like that.
[00:10:36] Speaker B: So it's different. And it's great that you went and toured the Shark Tank with the operations team.
[00:10:42] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:10:43] Speaker B: Because we were hearing feedback from tour groups that that was their favorite part of the whole tour, which none of us were expecting, but it's kind of cool to hear that.
[00:10:51] Speaker A: Yeah. So I sat in on a meeting, and Chris and I recorded a podcast about that.
Going to be working on developing a course just around the principles of that morning meeting and what it does for the team and how it keeps everybody aligned and just knowing what's going on. And as the organization gets bigger and bigger, that's even more critical. Right. And I was very surprised at how many different voices were in that meeting.
And it makes sense. Right. But I was never aware of what was going on, so I was like, oh, that's pretty cool.
[00:11:21] Speaker B: There's a lot in it, isn't there?
[00:11:23] Speaker A: Oh, yeah.
[00:11:23] Speaker B: It's quite a complex operation.
[00:11:25] Speaker A: It was rapid fire, too. I mean, there was, like, there was no slack in that meeting at all. But anyway, so, no, I was grateful that I got to sit in on that. So, one last question, and we've been touching on this for a lot of the guests lately. Which part of the MITRE DNA resonates with you the most? Which one's your favorite? If you have one, you can have more than one.
[00:11:46] Speaker B: You know, this probably most of it speaks to me because I just love being part of this team. I think the one that probably speaks to me the most is that we dream big, set goals, and get to work. Nothing fires me up more than having a really difficult assignment to rally a team together towards tackling. And this last year and change has been easily the biggest transformation year of my entire career. And most of any of us who are involved in it. That's true. So it's been fantastic to work on something so positive, so massive that's going to create so much value, you know, into the future.
[00:12:21] Speaker A: Yeah, that's an awesome one. I heard Matt say that early on and I wrote it down. I didn't know it was part of the DNA. I didn't even know about the DNA at that point, but I heard him say that and I was like, oh, that's good. I'm going to write that down. So, yeah, that's one of my favorites too.
[00:12:35] Speaker B: Couple of other changes you might be looking or people might be looking forward to here. The end of this week we actually have round one of some site cleanup stuff. So it will free up a whole bunch of parking spaces.
[00:12:49] Speaker A: Yay.
Oh, that's amazing.
[00:12:52] Speaker B: We'll be moving the trucks parking spots off around the main Venice building into the far side of the glass plant. So that means when the drivers come to get in their trucks, they'll park over there instead of around this building, which will free up a good amount of space.
[00:13:07] Speaker A: Oh, nice.
[00:13:08] Speaker B: Yeah. And then we just saw last week the first really good version of what our long term material storage plan looks like as well. So that will be a multifaceted couple of year sort of program. But as we walk through that, that will end up freeing up more space on the outside of the building, which equates to more parking spaces as well. So I think our parking wo will be behind us. Maybe not after round one, but pretty close and for sure after round two.
[00:13:35] Speaker A: Oh, excellent.
Yeah, I mean, I have a Jeep, so I just make my own parking space.
I'm sure you've seen that more than once. I'm just like, you can just fit right here. But I know for others that's not an option, so that'll be great.
[00:13:49] Speaker B: Yeah, we've heard some feedback about it and I was worried that people thought we didn't care about them and so that's not the case at all. So we've made sure we got moving on that sooner rather than later.
[00:13:59] Speaker A: Yeah, well, we focus our energies on making sure the products get out and that the customers are served. And then, you know, if we have to suffer a little bit with inconvenient parking for a short term, so be it. Right. We work here, we can handle it. So it's all a matter of priority.
[00:14:13] Speaker B: Absolutely. But taking care of people is right up there. So we want to make this a facility that people are proud of and you know that it's the best place people could come to work in the neighborhood. We've got yet a little bit of work to do on that, but we're going in the right direction.
[00:14:28] Speaker A: Yeah, well, we're very Spoiled.
I mean, if people don't know pgt, we have a health clinic on site. We have a daycare on site. We have a gym. For those of us that don't do a manual labor job and want to go do something before, after work or at lunch, we have a cafeteria. Did I already say the cafeteria? It's one of my favorites.
So you don't have to pack your lunch or, you know, if you're craving breakfast, you can pop upstairs or if you're needing a candy bar or a soda or whatever. They have everything up there, so it's not free or anything like that. But we are pretty spoiled here. And it's awesome for our customers, too, when they come for training or for tours, they can take advantage of those things as well.
[00:15:06] Speaker B: Yeah. But definitely set up with some great benefits for the team members here.
[00:15:10] Speaker A: Yeah. Excellent. All right, well, Chris, I really appreciate your time today. Thanks for being a rookie in the new studio with me.
[00:15:16] Speaker B: Yeah, no, it's great. We're far enough apart that we're not right in each other's faces here. Yeah.
[00:15:21] Speaker A: Yeah. So it'll be prettier in a few weeks. We're working on that as we speak, but wanted to have a little bit more elbow room, so.
[00:15:28] Speaker B: Great.
[00:15:28] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:15:29] Speaker B: Thanks for having me in to be the first one here.
[00:15:31] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:15:31] Speaker B: Appreciate it.
[00:15:31] Speaker A: All right, thanks, Chris. Thanks. Have an amazing day.
[00:15:33] Speaker B: You, too.
[00:15:34] Speaker A: All right, bye.
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