Shelton is one of Connecticut’s fastest growing cities. In the modern era, it has become a bustling commercial and residential hub in “The Valley“ region. But this city also has a deep historic legacy of manufacturing. For example, many people may know Shelton as the home and birthplace of the Wiffle Ball. But there is no shortage of manufacturers who choose to run their businesses out of Shelton. That includes our event hosts: OEM Controls, Inc.
OEM Controls designs and manufactures hydraulic joysticks for equipment across several industries That can include everything from aerial work platforms, agriculture equipment, garbage trucks, even trains and ships. The company prides itself on creating rugged and customized solutions to whatever their client needs. That focus on customization is why their factory has over 200,000 unique part numbers, and 21,000 unique configurations for joysticks alone.
As we visit OEM Controls, we celebrate the company’s 60th anniversary. What started as a small distributor ran out of S. Brian Simons’s apartment in Westport, has today evolved into a 75,000 square foot facility with over 200 workers here in Shelton. The full team came out to participate in the AEM Manufacturing Express’s event, proud of the fact that the controllers manufactured here make an impact on American life everyday. Two trucks from Super Duper Weenie, a Connecticut staple, served lunch as people mingled, listening to music and collecting free swag from both OEM Controls and I Make America.
Brian is still the CEO of the company, and his sons Keith and Sam serve as Co-Presidents. Keith and Sam both opened the event praising the hard work of their team and how proud they are of 60 years in the business. After all these years, the demand for their products is as high as it has ever been. Both Sam and Keith continued to praise OEM Controls’ standard of excellence that has led to their years of success. OEM Controls mission statement reflects this: “Excellence occurs by meeting the requirements of our customers”.
“Our strategy starts with people, supported by playbooks, platforms, processes, and technology.” Said President Sam Simons in his opening remarks “That helps us get smarter, solve problems, continuously improve, and become that truster preferred partner of our customers.”
OEM Controls’ team of over 200 includes over 30 electrical, mechanical, systems, and embedded engineers, the last of whom write the software that runs on the chips. Add design verification testing and LabVIEW work, and what comes out the door is rugged, customized joysticks and electronics built for OEMs and system integrators across the industry. The philosophy behind it is simple: the customer knows the machine, and OEM Controls knows how to move it.
A large part of the success OEM Controls has had is their ability to attract talented and hardworking people to join their team. “There are so many opportunities working on process and data analysis, interacting with customers, designing new applications, coming up with new products, implementing new processes,” said VP Ken Fried. “There are so many different ways people can be creative in a manufacturing company.”
That applies to the efforts the company makes to develop the next generation of manufacturing workers here in the community. OEM Controls supports robotics teams at Shelton High School, and it has been involved with local trade schools and high schools for years, including seats on their boards. A work-based learning program with a nearby technical high school has been running for about five years, cycling students between the classroom and the shop floor.
The community work goes well beyond recruiting. OEM Controls partners with Toys for Kids, a local Shelton program run through a group called TEAM, and hosts a golf tournament that raises money for the American Cancer Society. Sixty years in, it has been a steady presence in the Valley. And the work itself leaves an impact far beyond the state of Connecticut. Thanks to the hard work done here by the people at OEM Controls, equipment of all kinds is able to operate more efficiently and safely.
OEM Controls is a great example of how many people it takes to manufacture the equipment that builds powers and feeds the world. Without the critical components like the joysticks OEM Controls makes, no equipment would be able to operate at its maximum efficiency.
