Cadence Aerospace announced recently the appointment of Anthony (Tony) E. Lawson as Vice President—Operations, Quality & Environment, Health and Safety (EHS). With Centers of Excellence based in the U.S. and Mexico, Cadence Aerospace serves the world’s leading manufacturers of aircraft, aerostructures, aeroequipment and other defense platforms.
In his new role, Mr. Lawson will provide leadership and strategic direction for the Cadence Quality Management System, EHS initiatives and continuous improvement activities while ensuring integration and communication across business functions including manufacturing, operations, engineering, sales, and the supply chain. As part of his responsibilities, he also will continue to provide support to the Cadence Tell Tool facility in Westfield, Massachusetts as Operations Manager, a position he originally began in a contractor capacity. Mr. Lawson reports to Dennis Orzel, Chief Operating Officer of Cadence Aerospace.
“Tony is a demonstrated leader with a strategic and tactical approach to problem solving, cost reduction and process improvement, and I am delighted to welcome him to the Cadence team in a new role,” said Thomas C. Hutton, Chief Executive Office of Cadence Aerospace. “As our Company grows and becomes stronger with new leaders working together to oversee different areas of our business and disciplines across the globe, our overall performance as a provider of highly complex aerospace components and assemblies to commercial and defense customers will continuously improve. We look forward to Tony’s contributions as a seasoned multi-site and program manager with expert competencies in 6S implementation, strategic planning and team development.”
Mr. Lawson’s motivational management style and keen analytical skills have enabled him to successfully exceed general business development targets throughout his more than 30-year career in the manufacturing industry, especially in managing areas including Profit & Loss, Mergers and Acquisitions, ERP implementation and Lean Manufacturing.
Prior to joining Cadence Aerospace, he served Hitco Carbon Composites, Inc., a premier Tier II composite aerostructure company, as both Vice President and later, President of Operations. From 2003-2013, Mr. Lawson was responsible for providing the company leadership for a military, space and commercial aerostructures business unit reporting $120 million in annual sales. Before his tenure at Hitco, he was General Manager, Test Equipment Division at Everett Charles Technologies, where he oversaw a capital equipment manufacturing business unit, reduced material cost through effective change management and purchasing process revisions, and improved customer satisfaction. Earlier, Mr. Lawson held the positions of Vice President, Operations and Vice President, General Manager at Burke Industries, a manufacturer of resilient-based products including rubber flooring tiles, wall base, treads, and accessories. While there, he managed an annual budget of $11 million and 250 employees in the production of silicone-based seals for military and commercial aircraft. He also successfully increased operations efficiency, improved product quality and delivery performance, and implemented both Lean Manufacturing and a new Enterprise Resource Planning system.
For a 12-year period spanning 1985-1997, Mr. Lawson held a number of positions at Northrop Grumman Corporation, a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, space, strike, and logistics and modernization to customers worldwide. In his most senior role with the company, he was Vice President/B-2 Deputy Program Manager, directing all program activities and organizational disciplines across an employee base of 6,000. Prior to that, Mr. Lawson served other parts of Northrop Grumman, successfully directing manufacturing operations, improving on-time delivery and productivity, and reducing costs. He began his career at Rockwell International, a diversified American corporation that formerly was one of the country’s leading aerospace contractors, making launch vehicles and spacecraft for the U.S. space program. In the early 1980s, Mr. Lawson served the company as both Supervisor, Quality Assurance and Supervisor, Quality and Reliability Assurance.
He holds a Master of Science in Business Organizational Management from the University of La Verne in La Verne, California as well as a Bachelor of Science in Public Administration from the University of Arizona in Tucson.
