Ken McLauchlan - Rollforming, The Next Big Thing! - PODCAST TRANSCRIPTION

Editor's note: The following is the transcript of a live interview with Ken McLauchlan from MetalForming. You can read the interview below, listen to the podcast or watch the episode. 

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Hello and welcome to a MetalCast from Metal Coffee Shop. My name is Heidi Ellsworth and we sometimes get some very exciting, big news that we want to not quite tell everybody yet, but start getting people excited about and so we are here with Ken McLauchlan of MetalForming because they have some fun stuff coming up. Ken, welcome to the show.

Ken McLauchlan: Thank you, Heidi, glad to see you again.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah. Wow. I am so excited. I've been visiting with you all. You've got some cool things that are in progress and that are happening, so thank you so much for being here today. I'd love it if you would introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about MetalForming before we get into a little bit of the teaser.

Ken McLauchlan: Great. Would love to. My name's Ken McLauchlan, I'm the Vice President of Architectural Sales for MetalForming a LLC. We're located in Peachtree City, Georgia and represent several lines based in Europe to the North American market.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: And Ken, just a little bit of your history. You've been in metal construction for a long time.

Ken McLauchlan: Yeah, we make jokes that this industry picked me. I didn't pick it. As a kid, I got into this in the pre-engineered side 33 years ago and I've been on both sides of the fence for the years as a contractor and a project manager to manufacturer's rep for product lines and equipment. So I like to say I'm well versed in the industry, but at the same time I've kind of got great experience from hanging out with some of the greatest people in the world.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, It all comes together nicely and MetalForming is such a great company. In fact, one of the things I've loved with working with MetalForming over the years, it is just this culture of innovation that you all have. Can you talk a little bit about that? I mean, I know you've been... Tell us again how long you've been with MetalForming and then how that culture of innovation has just, it's so cool.

Ken McLauchlan: Yep. So January of this year I came on as part of the management team with new private equity that was involved, but MetalForming itself started 25 years ago and I was actually a customer of MetalForming long before I ever worked for MetalForming. So used to deal with the past leadership from here and some of them still present today, but worked with them over the years and they were always the people you went to when you needed something new or you needed a solution to a problem. So if there was an opportunity to excel, they had a great way of finding it.

They were never scared to get on a limb and say, "Hey, here's an opportunity, this is what we can do to help you. What are your thoughts?" And that belief is still present today with the new management with private equity. So it's been a great experience for me to have customer experience and then move into working as part of their team.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: And it's so important, just like you said, you were on the other side of it, you were working with MetalForming long before you joined the management team, but contractors, I mean just from everything we see, they really depend on MetalForming to really be bringing the most innovation, the cutting edge technology. Why is it important for the contractors to be getting this technology and this machinery for their sheet metal shops?

Ken McLauchlan: So I think as everything's evolved over the years, when you look at sheet metal back hundreds of years that was used over in Europe for applications of moisture protection contractors today the biggest trouble all of us have are labor and trying to find people. So it's trying to find equipment that allows you to solve the need to deal with the environment and the customer base that's there on a regular basis and those needs are changing. A lot of what we do is architectural, it's pretty, but it's very functional and in Europe this is very viewed as a very high-end trade and craftsman level and the machinery they use is where part of that craftsman level comes from. So I think it's a big challenge.

It's a great opportunity for the contractors today to say, how do I elevate my game, what's next, and that seems to be the biggest challenge for a lot of these... A lot of our customers aren't guys that have done sheet metal their whole life. They're guys that have been in the roofing trades and they see an opportunity from their clientele that says, "Hey, listen, you guys do a great job for us, but we want this," and then they need to partner to move that forward and we become that partner.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Right and what they're finding is also when you're in control a lot of times of your own production and everything that's going on with that sheet metal shop, I've been hearing that a lot too and using both, but really having that cutting edge machinery and it's so different today than it was like you said back in the day. I mean there's a lot of technology involved.

Ken McLauchlan: Correct. Yeah, a lot of technology and then really the concept of schedules have shrunk continually. So when I started this magical thing, it wasn't weird to see a six or an eight month schedule on a building and now you see people where in six weeks they want to have you on site and so there's still a lot of offsite manufacturing, which is great. A lot of these contractors have gone to the point of saying, we have to be able to control that fabrication closer, we have to be able to know we have material close, we can fabricate it. Not relying on the rest of the industry, but saying, okay, I can supplement it this way. Whether it's bending certain profiles or whether it's role forming different parts or being able to process different material. It's become very important.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: We keep seeing the growth, the growth in metal and the growth in sheet metal shops and so, okay, one of the best places to actually see on this is METALCON, which is coming up October 18th in Las Vegas and you all have some really big news. I know you can't tell us a hundred percent, but can you give us a little bit of a teaser?

Ken McLauchlan: Yeah, I'm bound by an oath, not to say too much, but what we have is a material handling system that gives the industry the strength it needs with a productivity that a regular contractor can use every day on every aspect of his business. It works within the parameters that we've been asked for. So we listen to the contractor when they walk into the booth or when they call us on the phone and they say, "Hey listen, I need this," and we're like, "Hey, we really don't have that," and with our partners that we have, we've talked about what we should do and where we should go next and our machinery partners have listened and boy do we have a surprise for everybody at this show.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I am so excited. Okay. So overall I want to talk about with that in mind, that of course just going for that, but why you've been to a lot of METALCONS. Why should contractors be attending the METALCON Show?

Ken McLauchlan: Yeah, I think there's a couple of different reasons. One, I was blessed when I was younger to be brought by the companies I worked for and they said, you're going to go and you're going to learn and that was a part and this is one of the best events and environments to learn. There's years, years and years of experience, different seminars that's there, the ability to do hands-on. I mean the presence we have in the booth is dramatic and the amount of equipment that is in the booth that you can see and feel where most people don't get that opportunity is present.

And I think competition that's there is just as good as anything else, but it gives you the opportunity to look around, talk to people, meet face-to-face, like you do business on a regular basis and it's a great opportunity. The venue, everybody loves coming to Las Vegas, right? It is one of those things. So we're expecting a really good turnout, great things to show at the show. So all bets are on.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: It's good and you were on the board for the Metal Construction Association, MCA.

Ken McLauchlan: Correct. This year I was lucky enough to be invited to be a board member, and so I'm in my first official year of that. We're super excited about the show because I think we really saw a turn in the environment and we've got people coming back and this show used to be a global show, and I think it's going back to that now-

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, I do too.

Ken McLauchlan: We're starting to see more and more people coming in. So even when I was in Europe last week, I sat and had discussions with people and they said, "Well, will you be at the show?" Which is exciting to hear when you're halfway around the world.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: It is. Oh, the people at METALCON are going to love that. That is excellent and so as the contractors are getting there, they're going to be able to see a lot on the show and really it's a perfect timing because being in October, everyone's doing their planning for 2024. How important is that relationship between MetalForming and their contractors in that planning process, Ken, because it's all going to be happening at METALCON and 2024 is here before we know it?

Ken McLauchlan: Not to make a pun on construction, but it's foundational. The discussions we have at these booths not only set sales for that time and for product launches, but it also gives people an opportunity to plan for the future, whether they're a small company and they're trying to move into a new area or they're a large company, they're trying to do CapEx budgets. So we'll have an entire team there to support them. Everyone from financing to machinery experts to our technicians work the show.

So people that only get to see them when they're out doing setups or doing training or doing repairs, that part of our team's there as well. So there'll be a huge presence. I just think it's a great opportunity and we're excited to be back in Las Vegas. We're excited to be back at METALCON. We're excited to have one of the biggest spaces there and invite everybody in to see everything we've got.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, I love it and I also just heard that you are, and this is something, another brand new thing that's going to happen at METALCON is Metal and Mimosas. It's going to be Women in Metal Construction Breakfast that I am really excited about and we are at Metal Coffee Shop is a sponsor and I heard that you are too.

Ken McLauchlan: We are very excited to be a sponsor that with a couple other key people in the industry. I think our biggest task is to keep bringing more and more people into this industry and I think this is a great opportunity to do it. And over the years, METALCON has done a bunch of exciting things from different projects and I think this is something new that's revolutionary that's going to change the way we look at how the show starts.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I agree. Okay, I want to talk about that. So when we're looking at on... So first of all, what's your booth number?

Ken McLauchlan: Booth number is 4031 down the main aisle.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: 4031. So contractors should plan on being there at the very beginning of the show, after the breakfast and then the keynote and then they should be at your booth.

Ken McLauchlan: If they want to see the newest and greatest thing, it will be there and we'll be excited to show it to everybody that morning. That's where it'll be unveiled. Until that point, its a very safely kept secret of what we're doing, but just know it's a game changer. That's the biggest thing.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: It's a game changer for everyone's businesses. So you need to be there to see how this is going to work. I'm really excited. So Metal Coffee Shop will be there with cameras rolling. So for those who can't make it, although I think everybody should make it to METALCON, but if you can't, it will be live on YouTube too because this is a big deal and we want to make sure we're capturing it.

Ken McLauchlan: Right. No, we're excited to have partnerships with you guys in this as well. I think these shows you come to and there's always an opportunity to see something new, something different. Our challenge is to be one of those visionaries. We want to maintain that and continue that and this is going to be right down those lanes. So come down the main aisle, come stop and see us in the booth. Say hello, let us know what we can do to help.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Any last thoughts on the big reveal? Any little teasers?

Ken McLauchlan: No, I think I got to hold some stuff back still. I think we're going to have to have some more discussions still.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: I think so.

Ken McLauchlan: You should come to Las Vegas. You should definitely do the mimosas in the morning. I think that's a great way to start the day and to get things going and participate in the events, look at the events that are there, come and see us during the show hours. Give us a call if there's something else we can do to help.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Yeah, and we'll be broadcasting live from the show on our sound stage and also at the booth with MetalForming, but I am going to also agree with exactly what you're saying, Ken. We encourage everyone to get to METALCON. We have actually a promo code RCS30... Wait, I'm going to say that backwards. 30RCS, and you'll get $30 off of your registration. So buy that ticket, get online and sign up because it's going to be a great time in Las Vegas with some really big news. So Ken, thank you so much for taking time out so we could get this out to everybody.

Ken McLauchlan: Our pleasure and we look forward to seeing everybody at the show.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Okay, we'll see you there and we'll see all of you. If you need information about METALCON, it's on the directory, on Metal Coffee Shop or on MetalForming. Of course they're on the Metal Coffee shop and Roofers Coffee Shop. You can find all the information there. We're looking forward to seeing all of you in Las Vegas, so be sure to sign up, get your hotels, get ready, because it's going to be a big deal and thank you so much for watching this MetalCast Ken, one last time, thank you for being on.

Ken McLauchlan: Our pleasure. Thank you very much.

Heidi J. Ellsworth: Thank you and thank you all for watching. Please check out all the MetalCast under the RLW navigation, on Metal Coffee Shop, and on your favorite podcast channel. Be sure to subscribe and set the notifications along with YouTube Metal Coffee Shop, YouTube. You can find this video there. Be sure to subscribe and ring that bell so you don't miss a single episode. We will see you next time on MetalCast.