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Team 1 Plastics Honors Retirement of Team Member Craig Clem

In December 2019, Craig Clem joined the Maintenance Department at Team 1 Plastics.  “Craig came in at a critical time for the development of our Tooling Maintenance Department,” expressed Team 1 Plastics Co-Owners Craig Carrel and Gary Grigowski. “With a lot of experience, Craig really allowed us to move to the next level. ”  Andy Zblewski, Team 1’s Maintenance Manager and Craig’s direct supervisor added, “We were experiencing an increase in new and transfer tooling with many requiring minor adjustments or repairs.  He came from a tooling background and hit the ground running.”

Andy also shared that as he gained knowledge and experience, “Craig enjoyed working alongside the younger employees in Tooling Maintenance, sharing his knowledge openly…he is leaving the department in a better position due to his attention to detail, and the sharing of knowledge with his peers.”  For the past six years, Craig served as a vital Team Member, while setting a great example and training others in his department.  Andy, Craig, and Gary speak for so many of his fellow Team Members in saying, “We will greatly miss him.” 

A VITAL TEAM MEMBER

Craig was eager to share his multi-step journey when asked about what brought him to Team 1.  “When I got out of the military, I went into the toolmaking trade because it was my dad’s thing.  I was a toolmaker until 2006 when the company I worked for quit making tools.”   Craig then spent the following nine years as a Project Engineer at Hatch Stamping, another seven years at Lefere Forge in Jackson, and five years at TAC Manufacturing.  “My job at the forging company was hot and wasn’t an easy job, but I was happy to be working with the bad economy.”  After spending five years on second-shift at TAC, Craig explained that he needed a change.  “I updated my resume online for a day position at TAC and Team 1 found my resume.”  Using his knowledge, skills, and experience to “hit the ground running,” Craig has played a vital role for the company from the start.  “Team 1 was going through some changes, cleaning tools without a Preventive Maintenance (PM) program and constantly needing to fix things,” he shared.  “It took a while, but once we got the PM program started here, we went from 187 rejects to only 3 rejects a month!” 

Craig spent his six years at Team 1 enjoying every minute, and passing on his knowledge to those around him.  It was always important for him to show up to work ready to help others, while also setting a good example as a stellar Team Member.  “I have always said that if you see a piece of paper lying there, just pick it up. Don’t leave it for the next guy.”  It is this sense of “team” that will always stick with Craig. “The name is fitting; ‘Team 1.’  They really care about their employees.”

A LASTING IMPRESSION

From the time he arrived at Team 1 Plastics, Craig Clem knew he wanted to share his knowledge and experience with those around him.  Between helping the company at a critical time upon hire, sharing his passion for fellow Veterans, and serving as a mentor to others in Maintenance, Craig has left a lasting impression.  “We are like a family back there in Maintenance,” he shared. “We are all really close and got a good group.” 

Fellow Maintenance Team Member Jadon Austin was an apprentice and only “a couple years in the trade,” when Craig started at Team 1.  “Jadon knew a few things, then he went to school and he realized that maybe I DO know what I am talking about.”  Seeing great potential in Jadon, Craig pushed him to continue with his education and training.

“Encouraging me to watch him whenever he was doing something I had never done or seen before,” shared Jadon, “Craig was always there to help me learn and give advice on how to do something better, and more efficiently.  He showed me a lot of the old ways of doing things, and I showed him a lot of the new ways of doing things; making us a tight-knit team that functioned like a well-oiled machine.  Every day I learned something new; not just about our profession, but personally as a friend.  Most of my growth came from my motivation to continuously improve, learn, and apply, of which Craig was a large part.  I will miss having him around every day but am thankful to have had him as a mentor and good friend.”

HONORING THE RETIREE

Last week, Team 1 Plastics held a luncheon in the break room of its production facility in Albion, Michigan.  Current and former Team Members were in attendance to honor Craig’s time at Team 1, and to bid him farewell for retirement.  In addition to a meal, Craig was presented with a six-year plaque for his service to the company and an Amazon gift card.  Photos from the luncheon can be seen below.

RETIREMENT PLANS

When asked what his plans are for retirement, Craig shared that he is happy to be “spending more time with my kids and grandkids.  I also want to travel a little bit and see my son who lives in Ohio.”  With his youngest daughter graduating this year, he will have his hands full preparing to send her to Jackson Community College in the fall.  As for a “retirement hobby,” Craig will be spending time fixing up a 1965 pickup truck in his buddy’s garage.  He even got a jump-start on this hobby with funds from the Amazon gift card given to him by Team 1.

Thank you for your years of service to this company, Craig.  May you find success wherever your retirement takes you!