By: Wil Deas
The day started earlier than usual—5:45 a.m. wake-up, just enough time to make tea, grab a quick breakfast, and be out the door by 7:00 a.m. I wanted to be sure I was early for my carpool meetup with Tony Laughlin, EandM’s Northern California Regional Sales Manager.
The morning was foggy, but I made good time on my drive from Healdsburg to Petaluma, arriving at 7:53 a.m. From there, Tony and I hit the road, making a quick stop to drop off his son at school before beginning our long trek down 680 to Gilroy—an estimated three-hour drive in rush-hour traffic. Not the most thrilling aspect of our day, but our shared love of metal music helped us pass the time.
Visiting Heinzen
On the way, Tony gave me some background on our visit. We were to meet a member of our sales team, Ken Solis, to review a number of ongoing projects on site. Heinzen is a machine manufacturer in the food and beverage industry. Specifically, they design and build products that help farms process large amounts of produce.
I had the opportunity to see one of these solutions in a finished state, along with some potential future projects. The most impressive? The Sanitary Spin Dryer! Think of the salad spinner in your kitchen, but scaled up to handle 300 pounds of lettuce at a time. These machines wash freshly harvested lettuce and now feature a key addition from EandM, the DSBG family ISO cylinder from Festo.
This Festo actuator delivered multiple advantages over the former actuator:
· Cost savings for the customer.
· Tamper-proofing to enhance security.
· Elimination of manual adjustments.
· Reduced size and weight for improved efficiency.
· Lower maintenance requirements.
As we toured the facility, Jason and Zach, project managers, were incredibly welcoming. With much of the workforce on lunch break, we were able to discuss current projects freely. They expressed interest in having our team return for future collaborations to see where Festo and EandM could help them out. Not only improving the parts used on their machines, but making sure they get those parts as fast as possible.
Our visit was over before we knew it and plans were made for a follow-up meeting. We said goodbye to our hosts so they could get back to their projects. Outside, Tony, Ken, and I had a quick parking lot debrief to compare notes and meeting goals before parting ways. Then, we were off to our next stop—San Jose.
Visiting LetroneX
On our way, Tony again briefed me on this group. We’d be meeting with the team at LetroneX, a relatively new company, despite having an experienced and well-connected team. We’d see no big machines here, no plant floor with several simultaneous projects. Our goal being to learn more about them and their operations.
As such, this visit was a completely different experience. We arrived at a small office building with a few offices and a meeting room, where we spent most of our time. We met Eric and Thè, the brilliant minds behind this emerging System Integrator focused on energy solutions for emerging technologies like battery manufacturing and semiconductors.
From the meeting room, we were brought to a single garage-style assembly room. Products lined the shelves, waiting to be installed into pre-fabricated housings, custom-made for LetroneX, and only requiring assembly in San Jose. This direct supply chain streamlines production and allows them to move from design to fabrication in weeks, not months—a major advantage in today’s market.
We had lunch with the team at a local sushi restaurant before heading back to the car.
Wrapping Up the Day
On the way back, Tony and I completed what is jokingly called the "free loop", the only path to drive around the Bay Area avoiding tolls. We made a quick stop at the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin, something I had never done before. It was a perfect moment to grab some photos before finishing the drive back to Petaluma.
After a bit of traffic, I was dropped off in downtown Petaluma around 4:09p.m. I was back in the car and headed home shortly after, my energy fading. I pulled into Healdsburg around 5:00 p.m., making for a full day on the road, packed with valuable conversations and exciting opportunities.