Thunderbird’s Active Management Process (AMP) fosters continuous progressions in technology, materials, processes, and applied knowledge. This second strategy for continuous growth is to amplify the strengths of each company and to synchronize those capabilities across the Thunderbird formation. Shared best practices, joint research, and development elevate the entire Thunderbird family.
Thunderbird progressively invests in the growth of technological strengths. Examples of this are ongoing investments in injection molding, metal stamping, robotic assisted automation, 3D printing, and the cultivation of advanced in-house capabilities in tooling and mold-and-die making—technologies that elevate our companies to better serve our customers.
The growth of materials application knowledge is an area of special interest to our customers. Product or sub-assembly applications requiring plastic and metal componentry can often be holistically addressed. Understanding material options based on performance characteristics often contribute to more cost-efficient component manufacturability and significant improvements in end-product performance.
Thunderbird ushers continuous process improvement in every area of operation. This is progressively achieved by system integration wherever possible across our companies. For example, cellular manufacturing among paired locations forms the collective ability to accelerate production flows, hold to high-quality metrics, reduce scrap rates, and consistently meet compressed delivery schedules.
The cultivation and sharing of knowledge-driven best practices are priority aims of Thunderbird. Cross-training, team-building, leadership development, and personal recognition are some of the ways we build “bench strength.” Application-specific knowledge is especially cultivated as we collectively grow our abilities to explore and solve customer needs.
