Chris Seidel

Position: Process Engineer

Date of Hire: 04/05/06

Other Positions Held / Length of Each: “C” Team Captain – 3 years; Lead Captain – 3 years

Favorite Story / Memory during Time Working at Team 1: Chris said that it was a phone book that was directly responsible for him joining Team 1 Plastics in 2006. He and his wife, Barb, were preparing to move from Brown City, Michigan, to the Albion area. Chris said that when they visited Jackson, they looked in the local phone book for plastics injection molders, and they saw the entry for Team 1 Plastics. Chris sent a resume to the company, and ultimately, got an interview and was hired.

He commented about joining “C” team, “I walked in to a great environment! I had never operated a K-cut or a robot before in my life. It took time to learn that, but the team that was assembled around me made the transition easy. They could perform any task that I was learning, and they helped me to learn.” Chris specifically mentioned Shelley Lewis. “Any time that I had a question, I could ask her if Tim [Henry] wasn’t around. It is that kind of teamwork that makes Team 1 succeed!”

How has Team 1 helped your Personal and/or Professional Development? Chris said, “I’ve always been a very quiet person, but working at Team 1, I’ve been able to open up a little bit. So, I think personally that’s helped me.” In his professional development, Chris said that because each job is unique, it causes him to think creatively. “Each process is different. Some are simple. Some are more complicated. The complicated ones make me think outside the box.” Working on the launch team, his job involves tasks such as designing end-of-arm tools and performing trials for new products. “Seeing a process from inception to being released to production is fulfilling to me.”

Favorite Aspect of Working at Team 1: Chris loves the variety of challenges and problem solving that the work gives him. “To me, as a process engineer, no two processes or no two jobs are the same. Every day is different, and it’s a different challenge.”

What do you want to share about your life outside of Team 1? Chris and his wife, Barb, have two dogs. One is Scottish terrier, and the other is a Havanese – also known as a Cuban dancing dog. Chris said the breed got its nickname because the dogs “will stand up on their back feet and walk like they are dancing.” Chris said that he enjoys woodworking and that he plans to build his own CNC machine next winter. The CNC will be 3’ x 5’ and made out of aluminum. He said that he will need to build the frame and install “all the guts, such as the motors, and then, tie it into a computer. It’s going to be a lot of work. To me, it’s a challenge to build it and get it working right.”

Piece of Advice and/or Encouragement for Future Team 1 Team Members: “Take advantage of all that Team 1 has to offer.” Chris said that when he started in the plastics injection molding industry 30 years ago, he was a “machine operator” (the same position as a Production Assistant at Team 1 Plastics). “I worked my way up to where I am today by asking questions and wanting to know how things work, and I had some really good mentors.”

He said that injection molding is not really that difficult to understand. “It looks really complicated, but once you get doing it, it’s really not that difficult. With the schooling that Team 1 will provide for you, anyone can go from a Production Assistant to where I’m at [a Process Engineer] in no time.”

Random Question: Do you pick “X” or “O” in Tic Tac Toe? Why? Chris replied that for him, it really doesn’t matter whether he has an “X” or an “O”. Then, he laughed and said, “All I want is to get those three corners to make the other person suffer!”