Fontaine Modification Fleet Services promoted Juan Salazar to facility manager to keep pace with a “significant” increase in the volume of trucks going through its Laredo TX truck modification center, the company said.
Salazar spent the last two years as Fontaine’s lead process engineer in Laredo and supported that function at the company’s Statesville NC and Springfield OH modification centers.
“The truck industry is constantly changing and growing, and there is no limit to the types of applications our customers are coming to us for,” Salazar said. “I’m thankful for this opportunity and accept the challenge of leading the Laredo modification center to make sure we deliver the quality our customers expect.”
As facility manager, Salazar – who spent four years as an engineer at Navistar’s technical center in Mexico – is responsible for production planning, quality control, and achieving delivery, financial and employee safety goals.
Specifically, he is spearheading the transition to a more efficient production process and the addition of a second shift to ensure the Laredo center can handle the increase in truck volume, which has nearly doubled, going from 600 trucks per month in January to 1,100 per month in May.
The Laredo modification center specializes in installing work systems, off-loading and electronics systems, vehicle tracking systems, safety equipment and graphics packages for heavy-duty trucks. The modification center supports Freightliner Trucks and Navistar manufacturing plants, utilizing ship-thru agreements with both OEMs.
To help the Laredo facility meet the increased demand for its truck modification services, Salazar led a change to more of an assembly-line production process where each technician specializes in one task or area before passing on the project to the next stage in the process. Salazar says this approach, along with the hiring of an additional 28 technicians and the addition of a second shift, will allow the facility to meet its commitments.
“We’re excited to welcome Juan to our Laredo facility management team during this time of increased demand for our services,” said Jamil Young, president of Fontaine Modification. “His quality assurance experience and focus on continuous improvement in production and safety make him the right person for this position.”