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Doorway to Opportunity
Serving not only as a remembrance to Ivan Drienik, the founder of this company, "The Room" was created by the employees a little over a year ago to honor the one year anniversary of his passing September 6, 2007, and to ensure that everyone not only gets a small history lesson on the founder, his wife Ardith, and their daughter Victoria, but more importantly that everyone know what he meant to each and every employee and how many lives he touched. It has been their own special way of remembering and honoring the man who created so many opportunities for others. If you go and survey most of the 25 or so employees who have over 20 years of service, you will find a simple and common word that best describes what Ivan provided for people at R&D. "Opportunity, that's what he was all about," says Terry White, a 25 year veteran employee at R&D. "Every employee felt like he always created opportunity for them." The success stories of people who Ivan reached out and helped create opportunity for could be the material for many good books. Marc Wright, a 20 year employee, says "He gave me the biggest opportunity in my life!" "The story told on the 4 walls of this room is one which can only be classified as "The American Dream," says Mike Parris, another 20 year employee of R&D. He states, "Ivan was all about the American Dream." Not only did he live the American Dream, he shared virtually all of it with everyone around him. His generosity for his employees and many people that he came in contact with was second to none.
"I had the good fortune to work with Ivan for some of his machine tool purchases and Ivan was one of the best people ever to understand the benefits of advanced technology. Ivan understood that by investing in advanced technology his talented people could achieve even more," Rod Vestal, Hartwig Team Leader Kansas City Facility.
R&D Tool and Engineering, also known today as R&D/ Leverage is a privately, owned company located in Lee's Summit, Missouri. The company designs and manufactures molds and tooling for the packaging industry along with supplying product design and prototyping services. In addition, the company has a sister facility located in Sutton-in-Ashfield, England. For more information visit www.rdleverage.com
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When you first step out into the manufacturing area at long time Hartwig customer, R&D/Leverage, (formally known as R&D Tool and Engineering) to take a tour, you can't help but stop and be amazed at this small 10' X 10' room filled with pictures, an Okamoto surface grinder, and a decorative metal sign hanging which bears the words "Ivan's Doorway to Opportunity, His Gift to us." These words are the first indication that you are about to enter into a very special place about a very special man.
Ivan's story goes back to Czechoslovakia, where he was born on March 24, 1942, and lived in an orphanage for a portion of his childhood until he escaped from the country and eventually immigrated to the US when he was 18 years old. Once here he was drafted into the United States Army and served his country. While in the Army he met his wife Ardith, and they eventually settled in Lee's Summit, Missouri, where he founded R&D Tool and Engineering in 1976. The company started out offering contract machining, and in the mid 80's the company expanded into designing and manufacturing tooling and molds for producing plastic bottles. Ivan was a true entrepreneur and visionary, he believed in reinvesting in technology and people. That philosophy and vision is why the company today employs over 250 people in the US and also has facilities in England that employ another 70.
"This area was created by the employees that were hired, motivated, and developed by his gift of opportunity. This story shows how an exceptional company was built." JC Connelly, Hartwig Sales EngineerWITS 2009 is October 20 - 22 Click here for details
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