Jeff Bohanan, Protomet

Jeff wanted to have a world class manufacturing organization. He received his first big opportunity when Mercedes solicited for a 1 million piece contract for an SUV part with a target price of $4/part. No one on the market currently offered that part for that cheap. Jeff was determined to make it work and get the contract, emphasizing that most companies make the bulk of their money on the simple stuff. However, the high tech pieces build your credibility. Jeff successfully fulfilled the contract and it got the business off to a promising start. Currently Protomet has two large industry focuses in wake board parts and homeland security. Protomet recently won the 50 fast award for Tennessee. They have 18 CNC machines at their facility and efficiently use one person to run 3 to 5 machines.
Jeff offered some great advice on managing people. He said to always have integrity, be honest, and control your temper. It also helps to have HR infrastructure to help deal with people during challenging times. Salaries are the most expensive part of most businesses. Jeff quoted as high as 80%, however it is important to hire good people. Jeff feels confident in his team and knows that if he had to be gone for a while, things would run smoothly without him.
Jeff also gave us two great quotes to live by:

“We tend to overestimate what can be accomplished in 1 year. We tend to underestimate what can be accomplished in 5 years.”

“The formula for innovation is a step function…output is not proportional to input…though steady input is required to get to the next step.”