La-Z-Boy Incorporated's Dayton, Tenn. Facility Honored With "Best
Plants" Award from IndustryWeek
MONROE, Mich., Jan. 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/
-- IndustryWeek magazine today named the La-Z-Boy
Dayton, Tenn. manufacturing
facility as one of its 10 Best Plants in North America for 2012. The plant has been
named a finalist for the past three years, however, this is the
first time the company has received the prestigious
recognition.
The IndustryWeek Best Plants Awards program, now in its
23rd year, annually salutes outstanding manufacturing
facilities on the leading edge of efforts to increase
competitiveness, enhance customer satisfaction, and create
stimulating and rewarding work environments.
"We are pleased that La-Z-Boy has been recognized with this
prestigious honor for our lean and continuous improvement efforts
as we strive to deliver the highest quality products to our
customers," said Kurt Darrow,
president and chief executive officer for La-Z-Boy, Inc. "I applaud
and thank all of our associates for their hard work and dedication
to ensure our Dayton facility is a
world-class manufacturing operation that is unmatched by others in
the industry."
The Dayton, Tenn. location
opened in 1973 and currently occupies more than 1.2 million square
feet. As one of the largest employers in the community, the
company's nearly 1,300 associates manufacture La-Z-Boy's fully
customizable furniture line including sofas, chairs, ottomans and
more.
Key components to the plant's success include just-in-time
material supply and replenishment, on-time delivery, and repeatable
and sustainable quality products. The facility has also seen
impressive results through its lean manufacturing efforts in the
areas of scrap reduction, production lead time, productivity and
safety.
Other recent achievements include the Tennessee Commissioner's Safety Award, U.S.
Air Force Partnership Award, Governor's Award for Trade Excellence,
Tennessee Center for Performance Excellence, and Enhancing
Furniture's Environmental Culture (EFEC) certification through the
American Home Furnishings Alliance (AFHA).
Jill Jusko, senior editor for
IndustryWeek said, "We believe the La-Z-Boy Dayton, Tenn. facility is a pacesetter among
North American manufacturers in terms of operational strategy,
production practices and performance, and will continue to lead the
way in the future."
The winners will be honored during an awards ceremony at the
2013 IndustryWeek Best Plants conference
(www.iwbestplants.com), where they also will share their stories of
operational excellence and continuous improvement. The conference
is April 22-24 in Greenville, S.C.
About IndustryWeek's Best Plants Award Competition
Established in 1990, the IndustryWeek Best Plants awards
program annually recognizes plants, located in North America, that are on the leading edge of
efforts to increase competitiveness, enhance customer satisfaction
and create stimulating and rewarding work environments. Its further
goal is to encourage other manufacturing managers and work teams to
emulate the honorees by adopting world-class practices,
technologies, and improvement strategies. For additional
information, visit www.industryweek.com/iwbestplants.
About La-Z-Boy, Inc.
La-Z-Boy Incorporated is one of
the world's leading residential furniture producers, marketing
furniture for every room of the home. The La-Z-Boy Upholstery Group
companies are Bauhaus, England and
La-Z-Boy. The operating units in the Casegoods Group consist of two
groups, one including American Drew, Lea and Hammary, and the
second being Kincaid. The company-owned retail segment
includes 97 of the 317 La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® stores.
The corporation's proprietary distribution network is dedicated
to selling La-Z-Boy Incorporated products and brands, and includes
317 stand-alone La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries® stores and 563
independent Comfort Studios® locations, in addition to in-store
gallery programs for the company's Kincaid, England and Lea operating units. Additional
information is available at http://www.la-z-boy.com/.
SOURCE La-Z-Boy