Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • European Rubber Journal
  • Plastics News
web
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • ITEC
    • Automotive
    • Tire
    • Non-Tire
    • Suppliers
    • Silicone
    • Latex
    • Coronavirus
    • Executive Action
    • Government/Legal
    • Opinion
    • Technical Notebooks
    • International Elastomer Show
    • Women in Tire & Rubber
    • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Goodyear recognized by Lockheed Martin as 'elite supplier'
      EV tire advancements to help secure future
      Lambillotte: Only question on AVs is timing
      CAR official says EV future brighter than autonomous
    • Smithers webinars focus on performance materials in green tires
      Ford to close 3 plants, end production in Brazil, costing $4.1 billion
      Study: Vehicle buyers cling to familiarity amid pandemic
      Kumho launches commercial LT, performance tire lines
    • Smithers webinars focus on performance materials in green tires
      Ferentino Tyre opens Sri Lanka plant; eyes exports to U.S., Europe
      Kumho launches commercial LT, performance tire lines
      Taiwan tire makers propose settlement of import duties case
    • JobsOhio funding gives Sperry & Rice room to grow
      TRAC's Glenn Maidment caps 51-year rubber industry career
      LafargeHolcim looks to solidify U.S. presence with Firestone Building Products purchase
      Hankook Tire holding company adopts Hankook & Co. identity
    • Smithers webinars focus on performance materials in green tires
      Endurica earns prestigious Tibbetts Award from SBA
      Kuraray to raise elastomer prices again
      Synthomer optimistic, raises earnings forecast
    • Safic-Alcan extends distribution agreement with Momentive
      Momentive aims to grow silicone presence in Asia-Pacific region
      IRP Medical solidifies portfolio with KDL deal
      Rubber lab services firm Ace reports record year
    • ASTM cancels April meetings as COVID-19 continues impact
      Paycheck Protection Program funding reopens Jan. 15
      Detroit Auto Show canceled; alternative event being planned for September
      Top Glove reopens COVID-hit factories with enhanced precautions
    • Jack Murphy joins Akron Dispersions
      Adriano Alfani named Versalis CEO
      Maroon Group adds to Southeast sales team
      ASTM taps rubber executive as new board member
    • Paycheck Protection Program funding reopens Jan. 15
      Taiwan tire makers propose settlement of import duties case
      Lobbying group unveils policy agenda to speed transition to EVs
      NADA, bank group to assess political contributions after U.S. Capitol siege
    • Column: Pandemic looms over everything in life, business in 2020
      Column: Lessons from the 2020 Best Places to Work
      Editorial: Silicone hit hard by pandemic, expected to bounce back
      Column: Still far way from normal
    • Effects of multiple repurposed materials for reinforcements of standard rubber compounds
      Impact of peroxide blends on the cure rate and aged properties in HNBR
      Techniques to detect long chain branching in polymers
      A comparative study looking at effects of curing kinetics and batch variation on SBR injection molding and numerical analytics
    • WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
      IEC keynote: Communication key to logistics
      IEC speaker: Specialized elastomers may reduce spread of life-threatening pathogens
      Rubber Division seeking abstracts for Spring Technical Meeting
    • WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
      New video celebrates women in rubber industry
      ITEC panelists say women can thrive in tire industry
      Rubber Division planning second Women of Rubber event
    • Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Faster Access to Your Polymer Compounding Experts Around the World
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Take a walk thru a HEXPOL Lab
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      HEXPOL offers a unique selection of High Performance Elastomers to match your application requirements
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      It’s what you can’t see that makes the Difference at HEXPOL
  • Blogs
    • Products
    • Wacky World of Rubber
    • New Products: MonTech introduces 1,500 kN lab press
      New products: 3M introduces new durable, pliable medical adhesive
      New Products: Lanxess launches energy-efficient PU elastomer
      New Products: MonTech automates bale cutter for safety, productivity
    • Wacky World of Rubber: How Trelleborg, teens sealed a spot in the world record book
      Wacky World of Rubber: Of chicken and feet, but not chicken feet
      Wacky World of Rubber: Time to go mattress shopping
      Wacky World of Rubber: Because nothing says football like 'frunk' shrimp
  • Newsletters
    • Rubber in Automotive
    • Silicone News
    • Latex News
    • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Smithers webinars focus on performance materials in green tires
      Ford to close 3 plants, end production in Brazil, costing $4.1 billion
      Study: Vehicle buyers cling to familiarity amid pandemic
      Kumho launches commercial LT, performance tire lines
    • Safic-Alcan extends distribution agreement with Momentive
      Momentive aims to grow silicone presence in Asia-Pacific region
      IRP Medical solidifies portfolio with KDL deal
      Rubber lab services firm Ace reports record year
    • Jack Murphy joins Akron Dispersions
      Synthomer optimistic, raises earnings forecast
      Top Glove reopens COVID-hit factories with enhanced precautions
      Malaysia electronics group to enter rubber gloves sector
  • Multimedia
    • Videos
    • Photo Galleries
  • Directory
  • Resources
    • Classifieds & Mold Mart
    • Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Sponsored By HB Chemical
      The Company Behind the Inventory
      Sponsored By French Oil Mill Machinery
      Process Improvement, Cost Reduction with Custom Press Systems
    • Sponsored By Uncountable Inc.
      Cooper Standard deploys lab informatics platform to synchronize R&D
      Sponsored By Elkem
      LSR Select™: A solution to improve your financial impact in molding applications
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Peroxide Cureable Silicone Injection Molding
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Understanding and Selecting Performance Additives for Rubber Compounding
  • Data
  • Events
    • RPN Events
    • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
    • Industry Events
    • Past Events
    • ITEC Library
    • International Silicone Conference Library
    • 2021 Healthcare Elastomers Virtual Edition
      2021 Rubber in Automotive Virtual Edition
      2020 International Silicone Conference Virtual Edition
      2020 ITEC Virtual Edition
  • Advertise
  • DIGITAL EDITION
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
January 02, 2017 01:00 AM

Forbo's Hoffman to retire in February

Mike McNulty
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    Wayne E. Hoffman

    HUNTERSVILLE, N.C.—Wayne E. Hoffman has spent 46 years in the industrial rubber products industry and experienced virtually every possible high and low the sector can dish out.

    Each experience has been a new adventure for the longtime veteran—and sometimes another obstacle to overcome. But he admitted he has enjoyed each and every one of those experiences.

    Hoffman has finally decided to hang up his gloves in February—not because it has been mandated by his employer of the last 24 years, Forbo Siegling L.L.C.—but because he figures it is time to retire to St. Augustine, Fla., with his wife, Karen. Hoffman disclosed his plans at the recent NIBA—the Belting Association meeting held in Indianapolis.

    He will be replaced as president of Forbo Siegling's North American region by Bob Ciurczak, who has 26 years of experience, primarily with the Schneider Electric Group, in different industries relevant to Forbo Siegling's business both on the original equipment and end user sides.

    "My career has reflected the many ups and downs in the industry," Hoffman said in a recent interview. "But that goes with any career." For him personally, the executive said, "it has been mostly ups."

    Bob Ciurczak

    Launching career

    Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Hoffman headed off to the University of Akron after high school in his quest to become an engineer. He worked the overnight shift at an aluminum company while going to school full time to earn his degree and graduate in 1971.

    Hoffman quickly landed a position as an industrial engineer at B.F. Goodrich Co. in Akron. "It was a tremendous learning experience," he said, adding that BFG's Akron complex was a city within a city.

    "I was at BFG during the Hey MAC (Make Akron Competitive) days of the early 1970s, a time when the entire Akron complex was trying to address its ability to compete against more modern facilities, which were often located in the Southern section of the U.S.," he recalled.

    "The Akron complex was huge, employed over 10,000 and produced everything from tires to golf balls to rubber bands to conveyor belts, industrial hoses and fire hoses," he said. "There was also a growing aerospace division. It was an amazing place."

    BFG's V-belts department was the first large operation that the company relocated south, setting up the business in Elgin, S.C., in 1972. That set the stage for Hoffman to transfer to the site as a young engineer, with hopes of being part of something new and big.

    He said he had no fear that the giant Akron operation would be relocated or sold business by business, which eventually happened. The opportunity of a new professional adventure lured him to Elgin, Hoffman said.

    His job was to help launch the company's newest factory at the time. He remained there until 1982 when he was promoted to plant manager, responsible for modernizing the firm's industrial hose manufacturing facility in Salisbury, N.C.

    After 15 years with BFG, Hoffman left the company to manage KRC Inc., an industrial hose manufacturing business, at the beginning of 1986. He stayed with KRC until August 1990 when he became marketing manager for Scandura Belting Co., which would later become part of Fenner Dunlop Americas Inc.

    "My career in conveyor belting really began in August 1990," Hoffman said. "I had spent approximately 10 years in V-belt manufacturing and 10 years in industrial hose manufacturing, so in hindsight transitioning to marketing in conveyor belting was clearly a watershed moment."

    In March 1993, Hoffman left Scandura and moved on to Siegling America Inc., where he soon was named vice president of finance. He became president of the company on Jan. 1, 1995, and was promoted to president of the Americas with added responsibilities for Mexico and South America in 1996, posts he has held until today.

    Forbo acquired Siegling in 1994 but did not change its name to Forbo Siegling L.L.C., the U.S. arm of Switzerland-based Forbo International S.A., until 2007.

    Common thread

    Looking at the industry today compared to his early years in the rubber products business, Hoffman said that a common thread for him is that while there seems to be constant change today in the sector, it's no more so than it was in the early 1970s.

    "The big difference today is that the industry is global, and companies are competing on a much broader scale," he said. Back in the 1970s, firms were attempting to remake themselves as American operations, Hoffman noted.

    In the 1980s, he said, "we were all worried we'd be working for Japanese companies with the appetite they demonstrated through U.S. acquisitions. Further, the 1980s were marked by significant factory closures in the U.S., particularly Northern U.S. operations. Whole industrial manufacturing operations were being closed at an unprecedented rate.

    "By the 1990s, manufacturing companies were making large investments in computers with little or no benefits, but focused on the new reality of developing global competition. Manufacturing was growing much faster in Asia and Mexico than in the U.S."

    In the 2000s, computers finally began to provide realistic support of business systems and the sophistication of reporting advanced rapidly, Hoffman said. "It was a period where management learned more quantitative information about their individual operations than they ever imagined."

    He noted that Forbo Siegling has changed along the way, "but because we've always used very advanced technology, our ability to support our expanding customer base has improved. I personally have learned a lot of lessons along the way managing through this sea of change."

    High, low points

    In his long career, Hoffman experienced his greatest difficulties in late 2008 when the global financial system collapsed and, even though Forbo Siegling enjoyed a broad market base of customers, the rapid economic decline impacted companies across the board tremendously, he said. "Developing strategy very quickly to ensure ongoing success was more than demanding facing such unprecedented unknowns in a short period of time."

    On the flip side, his best experiences came in 2001 when he was president of both Forbo Siegling and NIBA—in which he has been very active over the years—at the same time. "That was personally very gratifying, but also tremendously time consuming."

    Another highlight was his assignment in Asia for Forbo Siegling during 2005 and 2006. "I was asked to take over all our Asian operations in addition to the Americas for about 18 months, and again, was extremely gratified with the progress made during that extraordinary period in Japan and China's industrial development period."

    Some of the important lesions he's learned along the way include:

    "Sales are the results of people with people, not computers at the core. Computers enable us to be efficient with extraordinary information content but will not replace the impact of face to face communications.

    "Leadership is critical to a successful manufacturing operation. Ensuring that all are equally communicated with in a fair, firm and friendly way will be respected.

    "The only thing for certain is change, and learning to excel in that environment leads to success.

    "Integrity in business is not lost in 2016 but sought after.

    "Don't assume everyone will view your decisions equally from the same experience base."

    Hoffman said he was leaving Forbo Siegling and the conveyor belting industry "with a lot of optimism that they will prosper for many, many years to come. Processes and procedures will change with the times, but the fundamental basis for conveyor belting as a supply chain component is well in place."

    Related Articles
    Forbo Movement Systems to add roll production machine
    Forbo to double fabrics production
    Acquisitions, breakups highlight 2015
    Forbo cautious despite first half gains
    Technology is key, but people remain difference maker
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Rubber & Plastics News wants to hear from its readers. If you want to express your opinion on a story or issue, email your letter to Editor Bruce Meyer at [email protected].

    SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Rubber & Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe Today

    Subscribe to Rubber & Plastics News to get the best coverage and leading insights in the industry.

    SUBSCRIBE
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    MISSION

    To serve companies in the global rubber product industry by delivering news, industry insights, opinions and technical information.

    web
    Contact Us

    2291 Riverfront Pkwy, Suite 1000
    Cuyahoga Falls,
    OH 44221

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1726

    Resources
    • About Us
    • Digital Edition
    • Contact the Staff
    • Advertise
    • Order Reprints
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    • Terms of Service
    • Careers
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Partner Sites
    • Tire Business
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Plastics News
    • Plastics News China
    • Urethanes Technology
    • Automotive News
    • Crain Brands
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • ITEC
      • Automotive
      • Tire
      • Non-Tire
      • Suppliers
      • Silicone
      • Latex
      • Coronavirus
      • Executive Action
      • Government/Legal
      • Opinion
      • Technical Notebooks
      • International Elastomer Show
      • Women in Tire & Rubber
      • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Blogs
      • Products
      • Wacky World of Rubber
    • Newsletters
      • Rubber in Automotive
      • Silicone News
      • Latex News
      • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Multimedia
      • Videos
      • Photo Galleries
    • Directory
    • Resources
      • Classifieds & Mold Mart
      • Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
    • Data
    • Events
      • RPN Events
      • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
      • Industry Events
      • Past Events
      • ITEC Library
      • International Silicone Conference Library
    • Advertise
    • DIGITAL EDITION