Craig Sutton of Deere & Company Elected to the IMEC Board of Directors
MOLINE, Ill. (PRWEB) July 24, 2018 -- IMEC is a part of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), a Congressional program directed under the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). IMEC, the Illinois MEP, was founded in 1996 to improve the productivity and competitiveness of Illinois’ small and mid-sized manufacturing firms, by helping to optimize operating capacity, implement advanced process innovations, increase sales, enter new markets, and improve profitability.
IMEC is led by a board of directors comprised of the leaders of manufacturing companies. The board of directors is focused on increasing the productivity and global competitive advantage of organizations in Illinois and provides input on the organization’s policies, programs, and performance.
“The IMEC Board of Directors plays a key role in the success of the organization,” said Dr. David Boulay, President of IMEC. “The involvement of manufacturing leaders such as Craig gives us the unique perspective of the individuals that work in the manufacturing environment every day. They help us to drive forward our purpose to foster long-term economic and workforce competitiveness by providing the feedback and experiences related to performance and practices required to be successful in today’s highly competitive industrial climate.”
As Manager for Advanced Manufacturing Innovation at Deere, Sutton is challenged with the identification and validation of new emerging trends to enable a competitive advantage for John Deere manufacturing units. He has over 21 years of experience at Deere with roles ranging from customer support, quality engineering, product engineering, product validation, and manufacturing engineering. Craig has work experience on Deere’s precision farming equipment, self-propelled sprayers, and combine harvesters. His most recent role focuses on new technologies such as additive manufacturing, robotics, lightweight material integration and Internet of Things (IoT) for manufacturing.
Craig received his bachelor’s degree in agriculture engineering from the University of Illinois and an executive MBA from the Tippie School of Business at the University of Iowa. He currently works at the John Deere Technology Innovation Center in Moline, Illinois.
“I have a passion for technology and for using it in manufacturing to ensure competitiveness for our community and region. IMEC has built a solid foundation for all manufacturers regardless of size to be successful today and in the future. I’m very excited to collaborate with a group of outstanding thought leaders to help create long-term success for Illinois manufacturers.”
Along with Sutton’s experience in product design and advanced manufacturing, he also serves on the Quad City Manufacturing Lab board, Western Illinois University College of Engineering advisory board, and the Iowa Innovation Council. In addition, he leads Deere’s engagement with the Digital Manufacturing Design Innovation Institute (DMDII) and serves on its technical advisory committee.
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About IMEC
IMEC is a non-profit economic development organization focused on fostering long-term economic and workforce competitiveness across the state of Illinois. Committed to driving organizational improvement and enterprise excellence, IMEC provides a range of hands-on, goal oriented solutions in continuous improvement, strategy, workforce, technology and top line growth to lead organizations to their competitive future. IMEC is funded in part by the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership and through fees paid by Illinois businesses for IMEC’s services. IMEC has seven offices statewide and 48 full-time industry improvement specialists. For more information, visit http://www.imec.org.
Simone Erskine, IMEC, http://www.imec.org, +1 3096772977, [email protected]
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