Page 34 - Wallingford Magazine Issue 46 Winter 2024

and Aerodyne Alloys in East Hartford. Concentration mative throughout every Ulbrich
on workforce development and creating a cohesive facility ever since its inception in
corporate culture, part of the Ulbrich Revolution, had 2005.
also paid enormous dividends. Product development centered
The retrenchment yielded a company that could around becoming involved in even
weather price fluctuations in the price of the metals in more exotic alloys than ever, the
which they dealt, and that was fortunate, as 1998 was aim being to corner the specialty
a veritable roller coaster. In 1999, Ulbrich celebrated metals market. Only a handful of
its 75 year in business, but Fred Jr. didn’t have much companies had the capability to
th
time to celebrate. Five divisions were unprofitable, and draw and roll such metals as niti-
difficult decisions had to be made. Aerodyne Ulbrich nol, an alloy used in medical appli-
service centers in Georgia and Texas were closed, cations. The thinking was that the
and their work was transferred to the Indiana service more difficult the raw material was
center. to work with, the more likely Ulbrich
In March of 1999, Fred Jr. underwent another Jon Ulbrich proudly stands in 2012 with his father Chris and would be called upon to supply it.
late grandfather, Fred Ulbrich, Jr.
bypass operation; and, as he had done in 1980, he of Westminster, South Carolina, which made prod- Unfortunately, the decade was
designed a new organizational structure during his ucts that complemented Ulbrich Shaped Wire. First also marked with the passing of
recovery period. Not only did this include Ulbrich transformed into a division named Ulbrich Precision two family members. First, Robert
Steel’s first succession plan, but a realization that the Flat Wire, it expanded the company’s capabilities to Ulbrich, Chris’s brother, passed
company had grown so large that the current model of produce fine wire for the medical and solar industries. in 2002. And then, in 2008, Dick
Fred Jr. holding three positions, Chairman, President Eventually renamed Ulbrich Specialty Wire Products, it Ulbrich – the man who knew the
and CEO, was unhealthy for him and the company. inner workings of the Ulbrich Spe-
also produces steel bars for capacitor makers, music
wire for musical instruments and gold- and silver-plat- cialty Strip Mill perhaps better than
THE 2000S ed wire for special electronic applications. anyone – passed away at 74. This
Ulbrich Stainless Steel entered the new millen- 2002 saw the establishment of Ulbrich Precision was a tremendous loss that put
nium with fourteen divisions in four countries, with a Metals, Ltd., in Galway, Ireland, and Ulbrich of Asia, a damper on an otherwise stellar
combined workforce of 575 highly trained and com- a sales office in Shanghai, China headed up by Bob decade for the company. One very
mitted personnel. Fortunately, it also had the new or- Yang to this day. To augment fine wire sales and capi- positive personnel note occurred
ganizational structure in place to manage this larger, talize on the demand for solar technology, the com- in 2007: Jonathan Ulbrich, Chris
more geographically separated and product-diverse pany purchased a wire manufacturer in Mullendorf, Ulbrich’s son, joined the company
enterprise. Austria, which became Ulbrich of Austria. full-time; a member of the fourth
Fred Jr. had relinquished his three positions, Not only were Ulbrich Steel’s products now on the generation of Ulbrichs was now on
become Chairman Emeritus, and was in charge of set- leading edge of metals technology, but the company board.
ting up an Advisory Board to guide Ulbrich’s strategic itself was constantly investing in more technology, The Great Recession hit the
initiatives and succession planning. Dick Ulbrich was including employees with the advanced computer economy and the company hard
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (aka, CEO). Chris skills to apply to both financial management and the in 2008. The business conditions
Ulbrich was now President and Chief Operating Officer machine operations. The company also made capital were so poor that Ulbrich Steel
(COO), a new title with responsibilities for all operating investments in new mills, furnaces and proprietary barely survived. But survive they
issues within the company. equipment requiring such technology. did, in large part due to all the pre-
The lines of authority and responsibility became All these technical improvements led to an vious capital investment, acquisi-
clearer. Each of the General Managers and sales- emphasis on Lean Manufacturing, a philosophy of tions, international expansion and
people reported through the organization to Chris. To management that was developed in Japan aimed at attention to process improvement.
accomplish this, Frank Best was promoted to Group driving out waste and inefficiencies. It revolves around Both the worldwide economy and
President, Distribution Division NAFTA. Vic Artaiz, the an intensive analysis of every single element of the Ulbrich Stainless Steels and Special
talented general manager with nearly two years’ expe- manufacturing process. Ulbrich called on an engineer Metals, Inc. recovered by the end of
rience managing Ulbrich of UK, was promoted to Direc- named John Peterson and, later, a consultant named the decade.
tor of International Sales. Jay Cei, who had previously Bill Greider to teach the concepts. As Chris Ulbrich The company had proven itself
been promoted to Chief Financial Officer, remained in described it: “Lean efforts redesigned new manufac- to be resilient and nimble, ready to
that position. turing processes for us that were faster, more precise, take on the challenges that it would
2001 saw yet another acquisition, Steel Heddle no doubt face in the years ahead.
cleaner and less complicated.” It has been transfor-
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