Business View - October 2015 109
turers’ engineers.
“I’ve got to give credit to Product Development,” says
Cavalier. “They’re constantly trying to understand the
movement of what the market’s going to be two years
and five years and ten years out, and what the customer
thinks – that keeps us in the conversation. It’s just a mat-
ter of how much business we can develop with our rela-
tionships. We want to make sure that we’re one of the
key players within the OEM process; that we have more
capabilities than just roof racks.”
In order to keep on the cutting edge, JAC’s technology
is also reaching into areas like cameras and LED light-
ing systems that can be incorporated into the roof racks,
themselves. “We can put cameras in a roof rack to get
a 360 view around any vehicle. We can put security sys-
tems in a roof rack. It’s not just about metal working; it’s
about the whole technical field and how it’s integrated
into the car and what it means to safety and to the ve-
hicle’s appearance. We want JAC to truly be involved
in anything that’s going to be innovative in that vehicle
because we have the capability of doing that.” In addi-
tion, the coatings and sealings of JAC’s products have
to stand up to years of harsh car wash detergents and
rough weather, so the company does a lot of testing of its
various finishes.
Cavalier also admits that proximity to the manufacturers,
both in Michigan and the southeast, where more auto
plants are being built, is helpful. “Franklin is in a good
location for us to meet delivery needs. Any time we can
minimize the amount of freight that just helps the cost to
our customers.
As Cavalier looks ahead, he sees JAC Products maintain-
MANUFACTURING
