Sandvik Coromant Receives IndustryWeek's Best Plants Award

Global leader in metal cutting, Sandvik Coromant, has earned the 2022 IndustryWeek Best Plants Award for its Westminster, South Carolina, production site. The award is given to North American manufacturing plants that lead their industries in outstanding operational excellence, customer service and employee engagement.

IndustryWeek’s (IW) evaluation and selection process for the award includes an in-depth questionnaire and supporting statement that details candidate achievements. Selected by a panel of IW editors and outside experts, participants are judged on practice and performance factors such as performance measurement, management practices, employee empowerment, customer focus, manufacturing operations, flexibility and environmental and safety programs.

For over 20 years, Sandvik Coromant has continuously improved its  Westminster facility and empowered its people. The company has reportedly invested over $200 million in the production center, which has positioned Sandvik Coromant to serve its customers’ metalworking and machining application needs and provide customer support when needed. According to the company, the 328,000-square-foot production unit reconditions solid round cutting tools and manufactures more than 2,300 standard article and customized cemented carbide inserts, as well as more than 50 grades of ready-to-press powder and press tools.

The factory, which primarily serves the automotive and aerospace industries, features high automation and advanced technologies. As part of its Green Factory initiatives, the facility and its production equipment have undergone digital transformation to better meet its 2030 energy reduction goals. Renewable energy credits will power its total electricity consumption through 2024, supporting its goal to halve its carbon emissions, while efforts such as ethanol recycling contribute to its goal of greater than 90% waste circularity. The company has also reportedly recycled 245 tons in 2019 and 219 tons in 2020.

Sandvik Coromant’s Westminster site is also said to invest in the continuous improvement of its people. All employees have a learning and development plan, and the company offers ongoing learning opportunities. A mature safety program ensures employees know how to work as safely as possible, and personnel are encouraged to report unsafe conditions into a global database so the conditions may be corrected and preventive actions implemented. The company says its strong safety cultures contributes to industry-leading results in regard to OSHA recordables and lost-time injuries.