When people think of ABS, they think of our blending, conveying, drying, repelletizing, and control solutions, but every piece of equipment starts with something even more important: the people behind it.
From the first design sketch to final assembly and customer support, it takes an entire team to bring an idea to life. Engineers develop innovative solutions, production builds them, and shipping, administration, and many other departments keep every project moving forward. Long after equipment is installed, our field service and technical support teams continue helping customers get the most from their ABS equipment. Every department plays a role in delivering the quality and reliability our customers expect from us.
One place where that teamwork really comes to life is in our R&D lab.
Located at our headquarters in Wallace, Michigan, the R&D lab is where ideas are put to the test. The lab features functional equipment covering most of the ABS product line, allowing our team to test customer materials, evaluate new product designs, and gather real-world performance data before equipment gets shipped to our customers.
“The R&D lab allows us to perform real-world testing with customer materials and new product designs,” says R&D Manager Brent Thoune. “Having functional equipment available gives us the ability to gather meaningful performance data and make informed improvements.”
The lab also gives customers the opportunity to be part of the process. Customers are always welcome to visit the lab to see equipment in action or send their own materials to ABS for testing. Working together helps us make sure our solutions perform the way customers need them to in real production environments.
Some of our best improvements have started with a simple conversation.
“Our customers regularly communicate with us about the challenges they’re facing, and those conversations often spark new ideas,” says Thoune.
One of Brent’s favorite examples is our cordless vibratory feeder, which is now a standard feature on ABS blenders. Customers were running into damaged power cords during cleaning and maintenance, so the engineering team found a better way. By eliminating the corded connection, the feeder can now be removed quickly and easily without disconnecting wiring. It’s a small change that makes a big difference for the people using the equipment every day.
That approach is what drives everything we do at ABS. We don’t innovate just to add new features; we innovate to solve real problems.
“We design and improve our equipment with the end user in mind throughout the entire process,” says Thoune. “Our goal is to make the job easier for our customers while helping drive efficiencies in their operation.”
Whether someone is designing equipment, building it on the production floor, testing it in the R&D lab, or supporting customers in the field, everyone is working toward the same goal: creating reliable equipment that helps our customers succeed.
That commitment starts with investing in the people who make it all possible.
“Investing in our facilities means investing in our people, and may be the single most important thing we do as an organization to secure long-term sustainability. Creating an environment that gives our team a sense of pride will instill purpose in our daily work, and that starts from the moment they pull in the parking lot,” says President Kane Rasner.
At the end of the day, our equipment is only part of the story. It’s the people behind it who make the real difference. Every improvement, every innovation, and every customer success starts with a team that’s committed to building better solutions together.
Check out our teams below!