As a Strategic Project Manager at ESAB Welding and Cutting products, I am engaged in strategy development and key initiative achievements for the Global Product Management group.
I find leading global initiatives such as product assortment rationalization and cost reduction projects through the use of kaizen events, root cause counter measure analysis, etc. to be challenging and exciting as there is always something new to learn.
Developing a strategy and then implementing the tactics to make it a reality is one of my key drivers.

I am constantly seeking to apply my graduate education in business together with my background and experience in mechanical engineering, new product development, and global manufacturing of industrial products to engage in meaningful projects that yield real results both for the top and bottom lines.

Most importantly, regardless of industry, I am very passionate about change and innovation and I am looking forward to working with or for someone who shares this passion.

Horace Pops is president of Horace Pops Consulting, Inc., Ft. Wayne, Indiana, USA. He previously was director, metals laboratory at Superior Essex in Ft. Wayne. He holds an Sc.D. degree from the University of Pittsburgh and an M.Met.E. degree from Lehigh University, and a B.Met.E. degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He was president of the Wire Association International from 1992 to 1993. He has received numerous honors from WAI, including its Mordica and Donnellan Memorial Awards as well as 17 paper awards spanning 1976 to 2011. He is the sole or co-holder of 10 patents.

Anand Bhagwat is Technology & Quality Manager at Minova USA Inc., a ground support company for the mining industry. He was previously plant manager at FENIX, LLC, a subsidiary of Seneca Wire Group. He was managing director of WAI Wire and Cable Services, Pvt. Ltd., Pune, India from 2006 to 2009. He has experience in wire manufacturing processes, quality, product development and failure analysis, and development of steel rod suppliers. He holds an M.B.A. degree and an M.S. degree in Materials Science, both from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA, and a B.S. degree in metallurgy from the College of Engineering, Pune, India. He also holds six patents in wire and tire reinforcement technology.

Erik A. Macs is director of sales for Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp. He has previously served as Vice President Sales and Marketing for Progressive Machinery Inc., Fine International Corp., and Thermoplastics Engineering Corporation. He also held a number of positions that include production planner at the Entwistle Company, extrusion foreman with Dennison Manufacturing; technical specialist with Union Camp Corporation; materials research associate engineer with Judd Wire; and director of research and development for American Durafilm Company.

He has a degree in mechanical engineering from Central New England College. Macs, who joined WAI in 1991, was the recipient of WAI’s 2013 Donnellan Memorial Award, which honors an individual’s contributions to the Association, as well as WAI’s 2004 President’s Award for extraordinary volunteer service. He served two terms on the WAI board of directors. He is a member of the Education Committee and Paper Awards Committee, of which he previously was chairman. In the past he served on the Electrical Management Committee, Website Advisory Board, and WAI’s Technical Council. A director of the New England Chapter of WAI, he also served as that chapter’s president in 2000. He developed the seminar “Introduction to Insulated Wire Manufacturing” which was presented by the New England chapter in 2001 and 2002. He has chaired the Fundamentals of Wire Manufacturing program since 2007, frequently serving as a course moderator.

Matt Reinoehl is the Process Metallurgist for SDI LaFarga in New Haven Indiana. He joined the company in 2011 during the construction phase and has been involved in all technical and quality aspects of the plant. Matt has spent his career in the wire industry since 1996 and has worked for companies that include Fort Wayne Metals and Rea Magnet Wire. During his career he has had process engineering responsibility for Copper products ranging from Rod all the way down to 56 AWG insulated copper magnet wire. He is a graduate of Tri-State University (now Trine University) in Angola, Indiana.

Coming soon!

Kevin Dancy is currently Sales Manager at Roteq Machinery Inc., Concord, Ontario, Canada. Over his 20+ years in the wire and cable industry he has held management positions in production and engineering for companies including Nortel, BICC Cables, General Cable and Tyco. Prior to joining Roteq he was Plant Manger of Southwire's Canadian factory. Kevin holds a B.A.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from Queen’s University, Professional Engineering License (P.Eng.), and is certified in Production and Inventory Management (CPIM) by APICS.

Coming Soon!

Coming Soon!

C. Richard Gordon is managing director of C. Richard Gordon Consulting LLC. He retired recently as technical service metallurgist at Gerdau Long Steel North America–Beaumont Steel Mill. He has over 40 years’ experience in the steel and wire industries. He previously worked with the National Standard Company managing groups working in the areas of R&D, quality, and process technology for carbon steel and stainless steel wire products. He is a graduate of the Illinois Institute of Technology with master’s and B.S. degrees in metallurgical and materials engineering. He serves on the Board of Directors for the ASM International’s Notre Dame Chapter and is also a member of ASTM, TMS, and WAI.

Huck Hyde has over 35 years of experience with all types of printing. He started with lithography printing and continued in that industry for almost 20 years. In 2002 he found his second home at Gem Gravure's research & development center in Nixa, Missouri. Soon after, he was immersed in continuous inkjet printing, wheel marking and bandmarking for wire & cable. As a technical engineer for GEM for the last 17 years, Huck has been an integral part of the development of specialty inks and applications for marking wire & cable.

Stacy Martin is the maintenance manager at a manufacturing facility with Prysmian Group. Beginning her career with General Motors in 1996, she completed an electrical apprenticeship and spent five years as an electrician. After years of simultaneously working and attending school, she became an electrical engineer in 2005. During her tenure at General Motors, she received the Society of Automotive Engineers Young Industry Leadership Award. She joined Prysmian in 2012 as a process engineer, soon working her way to her current role of maintenance manager.

Jan Sørige is president of Enkotec Co., Inc., the U.S. business of Denmark’s Enkotec A/S, a global supplier of machinery for manufacturing wire nails. He joined the parent company in 1987, and was promoted to his current position in 1995. A WAI member since 1992, Sørige served from 2009 to 2014 as chairman of the Association’s Exhibition Planning Committee, which is responsible for planning the Interwire and Wire Expo events. He is also a member of the Board of Directors. In addition to WAI, Sørige is a member of the Specialty Tools & Fasteners Distributors Association (STAFDA) and the American Wire Producers Association (AWPA).

Thomas Heberling is senior vice president of manufacturing power systems and solutions at Southwire Co., where he has worked for nearly 33 years.

A WAI member since 2010, Heberling has served the Association in multiple roles, one of the most crucial being when he served as co-chair of the WAI Member Relations Committee from 2012–2014. In this role, he carried out a Board initiative that reshaped the educational products serving the industry, and served to further strengthen the value of membership in the Association. In May 2017, he received the President’s Award for his lasting contribution to the Association and the industry for his work on the Member Relations Committee.

Heberling became a WAI Director in 2017 and has served as an Executive Committee Liaison to multiple committees. He now serves in that role for the Nominating and Exhibition Planning committees.

James R. York is vice president of Insteel Industries Inc., where his focus is sourcing, logistics and business development. He joined the company in 2018, and prior to that had worked for Leggett & Platt for 15 years in key management positions, the last one being vice president, president rod & wire products. Prior to that, he had worked for Bekaert for nearly 20 years.

York joined the Board of Directors in 2017 and the Executive Committee in 2018. He has served as an Executive Committee Liaison for several committees and will be the liaison to the Finance, Education and Memorial Awards Committees in 2020. He has been a WAI member since 2012. He is active in the American Wire Producers Association. He is a graduate of the University of Missouri, Columbia, where he earned a degree in marketing from the school’s College of Business.