With almost 2 years of COVID under our belts, we have a lot to reflect on as we look ahead to what 2022 may bring. Our CEO, Bob Hartline, is proud of what Xymox has accomplished during this weird time (that’s an understatement) and is hopeful of where he sees Xymox and the Printed Electronics industry heading! Here’s what he had to say:
Companies had to quickly adjust and adapt to a new way of business, what changes did Xymox make that have had a positive effect on business that you think might stick around, even after things go back to “normal”?
A big change that we made was adjusting hours all throughout the factory, from office hours, to the warehouse and the manufacturing floor. It seems to have given us more flexibility to meet scheduling demands as people were coming in and out with Covid. As an added bonus, the employees like the hours much better as well!
At one point, we switched back to in-person meetings, but quickly shifted back to virtual. They seem to be more efficient, and we intend on sticking with those going forward.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing the industry in 2022?
Supply chain shortages still remain the biggest challenge. Companies everywhere are struggling to stay ahead of this situation. We are working to combat it at many levels to help reduce the impact on our customers, but when it’s out of our hands, it is out of our hands. We have dramatically increased our purchasing of standard materials and components to stay ahead of lead time delays and stock issues. We continually are being pummeled by price increases from our suppliers, when we can…we are purchasing additional inventory ahead of price increases, and addressing the option of blanket orders with customers to anticipate stock needs. Once a component is qualified, if a supplier can’t provide that component, we don’t typically have an option of resourcing it from somewhere else due to the custom nature of our products. We will continue to do everything we can, for our customers, to mitigate the pain and frustration caused by this global crisis.
What is on the radar for 2022? Any new technology advancements or new factory equipment?
The most exciting technology addition we have is our new Flex Edge™ sensor, which will give people the ability to have a touch screen with zero-border and sensing ability right to the edge of the sensor (check out this blog post).
We’ve also added a new high tolerance screen printing line! For added capacity in sensors and other tight tolerance circuitry applications.
Investing in new equipment and technologies is always on our radar to keep us on the leading edge of innovation!
Can you share with us some goals that have been set for Xymox in the coming year?
The past couple of years have brought about some new focus areas on how everyone operates as a business. We’re continuing to invest in equipment and inventory to shore up our ability to meet the new needs of our customer base. We have always been a company with a strong forward looking strategy. With two, really unpredictable, years behind us, we want to keep moving Xymox forward into the future. This year we are stretching our strategic look out to 2027. We have so many great things to offer for companies looking to enhance their user interface experience, this longer strategy will help better us position ourselves in the market. We continue to push the boundaries for user interfaces and will be here for a long time Enabling the Power of Touch®!
In last year’s look ahead, you had a personal goal for 2021, and that was to upgrade your motorcycle. Did you achieve your goal?
Yes! It was a long time coming and I’m so happy I finally took the leap. The new technologies on motorcycles have changed dramatically from my 1995 model. I put on 3800 miles this summer, exploring the beautiful back roads of Wisconsin! Looking forward to some longer rides next summer to explore the great open roads beyond Wisconsin!
I joined the bionic knee club in late 2021, so in 2022, I’m going to continue working on making my new piece of hardware work really well!
