Building Quality by Building People

Doing great work is one thing. Teaching someone else how to do great work builds something bigger.

Advanced manufacturing depends on more than advanced equipment. It depends on people who understand the work and take ownership of the details, then pass that knowledge forward.

Ivan Karanovic is one of those people.

With a career built around CNC machining and programming, Ivan joined us about two years ago after seeing our commitment to technology, tooling and people firsthand in Windsor.

Today, he combines his machining and programming experience with another important responsibility: helping develop the next generation of talent.

“There are no steps that can be skipped,” Ivan said of his approach to training. “I start at the beginning and do the basics, laying a foundation.”

Quality Starts Before the Machine Runs

For Ivan, training isn't simply about teaching someone how to program or operate equipment. It's about helping them understand the entire process.

Experienced team members help newer employees understand why individual features and checks matter and how decisions at one stage of manufacturing affect the work that follows.

That discipline directly supports quality.

Every job has steps that must be completed correctly. Missing one can create rework and disrupt scheduling, negatively affecting other departments. Getting it right the first time keeps the entire operation moving.

Ivan has watched his team make significant progress in that area during his time with our company. “I appreciate that they work hard,” he said. “They’re getting much better at putting out quality the first time.”

The impact extends beyond the machining cell. Stronger skills and more consistent processes upstream mean less rework downstream and greater confidence as work moves through the operation.

Collaboration Without Egos

Repeatable quality also requires people to work together.

Ivan describes an environment where programmers, mold makers, scheduling, machining and leadership collaborate on the right plan before production begins and communicate quickly when something changes.

“There’s no egos involved,” Ivan said. “We just get the work and get it done.” 

Developing People for What's Next

As we continue investing in manufacturing technology, developing people becomes even more important.

As developing programmers master foundational work, experienced programmers gain more capacity to focus on new equipment and increasingly advanced applications.

The willingness to keep learning reflects a broader philosophy: continuous improvement means finding better, more efficient ways to consistently achieve the quality the job demands. “If you can do it faster and have it the exact same quality,” Ivan said, “then you’re winning in the end.”

For Ivan, one of the most rewarding measures of progress isn't a machine or a cycle time. It's seeing someone he trained succeed. “I love doing a great job,” he said. “And I love to see other people doing a great job, especially the people that I’ve trained.”

That’s how expertise grows and quality becomes repeatable. It’s how we continue raising the bar: developing people who can deliver great work, the right way, from the beginning.