Episode 55: An Interview With Remington Schieffer, American CRS

Remington Schieffer, vice president of American CRS speaks with Scott Francis, editor-in-chief of Products Finishing. Source | PF

In this latest installment On the Line, Products Finishing delves into the crucial role of rectifiers in the electroplating process and the importance of industry education with a trend toward increasing implementation of automation solutions. Remington Schieffer, vice president of American CRS Equipment (Escondido, California), offers his insights.

Listen to the complete interview below.

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Products Finishing (PF): You recently joined American CRS after several years providing technical support for rectifiers in the surface finishing industry — can you talk about your new role?

Remington Schieffer (RS): American CRS has a long legacy of selling switch-mode rectifiers into the metal finishing market and in other industries. The owner, Ed Strickland, an incredible mentor to many in the industry, passed away unexpectedly in 2023.

Corey Loudon has assumed the presidency and assembled a team to pick up the pieces. My role at the business is kind of filling some of the space that Ed left in the technical area — I focus on some engineering, some electrical, some troubleshooting and I’m really focused on building the services division at American CRS. It’s service work in the field, training customers and providing product support. That’s the fun stuff — helping customers, working to solve problems and processes. That’s really what I get up for in the morning.

PF: In addition to educating customers and troubleshooting problems, you devote some of your time to classes and presentations on various aspects of rectifiers at NASF events. Can you share some of your thoughts on industry education?

RS: I am very passionate about education, because I can point to several mentors today that have helped me — that have taken the time to explain, work with me and really tutor me. I feel a responsibility and a duty, both to American manufacturing and everybody that I work with. If I can pass on some of that education that I’ve received and other lives can be impacted like mine has, then success begets success.

I really feel like the metal finishing industry has been moving for some time toward automation — toward more efficient work. What we sometimes lose sight of is that the automation, or the systems we rely on as a business to be profitable or more efficient, sometimes shortcut the education necessary to make sure that when your staff members run into a problem, they know how to solve it.

You hear time and time again about the gentleman with a full head of gray hair that puts in 14 hours to figure out why the nickel isn’t depositing onto some part appropriately. That type of learning is hard fought and hard won and sticks with you — and it’s becoming increasingly rare in today’s marketplace.

You have experts that come in. They solve the problem, they fly away with their boots, cape and utility belt and then when you need them again, you put up the Bat-Signal. I’m concerned that approach might be limiting our capability as an entire industry. Suppliers and vendors should be forming partnerships with metal finishers — both captive and job shop — and helping enhance their organization. I think our customer base is starting to seek out the vendors that do that. So, a big part of what we’re doing at American CRS is trying to build that training and that leadership, to give back to the groups and associations, to teach the customer base and make them better as a result of that interaction.

PF: Can you talk a bit more about this push and pull between running a viable business and supporting customers?

RS: Vince Lombardi said “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.” Setting goals that high really raises the standard in which you want to engage with your customer base and the type of good that you want to do. And it might not be very altruistic at all — it might just be good business to try to give back to the customer base and make sure that they feel the value that you’re providing them.

Personally, maybe I’m not the best business person, because I am driven by altruism. I do want to feel that at the end of the day I made an impact with who I spoke to and that they’re better off. I would rather have a reputation for being the person who provides solutions and provides real value to a customer than the person who is making that extra bit of money for his business by selling a product when it really wasn’t what was actually needed — something that was a disproportional response. I find it refreshing to be able to offer the $1.25 fix, if that’s what is actually needed.