Value Tool & Engineering’s story is about adaptation, expansion, and unwavering dedication to quality and workforce.
In this Martinomics blogpost we learn more about this Palm City manufacturer, which has a part on nearly every active duty U.S. military aircraft today, and about Steve Hartz, its mission-driven CEO.
Steve Hartz is the CEO and founder of Value Tool & Engineering. Founded in 1997 in South Bend, Ind., the company expanded to Palm City in 2017. Originally a traditional tool and die shop, VTE evolved to specialize in customized tools and fixtures for the aerospace industry. Today, its production machining capabilities encompass creating design-and-build aircraft ground support equipment and tools and manufacturing precision parts for the aviation and defense industries. Last year, VTE grossed more than $16 million. Still, with 80 employees in South Bend and only 12 in Palm City, the company is eager to tap into local talent but doesn’t always find it easy. So, Steve has teamed up with the BDB and others to explore ways to solve this challenge.
BDB: What components do you manufacture for the aviation industry?
We make components that go in fuel nozzles for jet engines, components that go in afterburners for military aircraft and engine components, and other parts for military and commercial aircraft. We also make testing equipment and ground support equipment, such as carts, stands, and hoists, that hold a jet engine in place for maintenance. We make a trailer where they can put an APU—or auxiliary power unit—for an aircraft and hoist it on the stand to run a test cycle and ensure all the gases and fuel flows are correct. We make these sophisticated parts and other tools, including a custom wrench, to adjust the fuel flow.
Was the move to manufacture specialized tools and support parts an outgrowth of the components that you make?
Yes and no. My customers might say, ‘Make an engine for an airplane.’ They must supply the equipment to maintain and work on that engine in the field. (Some of these engines weigh anywhere from 80 to 1,800 pounds.) So, the company may use VTE on both ends. Actually, we were a ground support company before we were a component manufacturing company.
What brought you to Martin County?
The cold air of South Bend, along with a chain of events, led me to purchase another related business in Stuart to bring our company here before later expanding to a larger facility in Palm City.
How did you get into such a specialized field?
I graduated from high school and served as a nuclear weapons specialist in the U.S. Air Force. I worked in manufacturing for two years and got an apprenticeship in tool and die. The general manager (of the company where I had my apprenticeship) was starting his own company and asked me to work for him. I was his first employee and then became his general manager, and when he started to veer away from tooling, I started my own company and went back to aerospace.
You’re a strong example of the view that college isn’t the only path to marketplace success.
Not only am I a strong example, but we have four charter schools in South Bend—one that I founded and three others that came out of the organization I started, Career Academy South Bend. We were the first to have career technical education academies in that area.
What is your most pressing need right now?
I’ve said I could double my business if I could find the people. We’ve grown annually by a 16-percent average over the last 12 years. We could do better if I had more employees. I spoke at a STEM conference and said, ‘If you engineer all the products in the world but have nobody to build them, it’s worthless.’ For a long time, people thought you could engineer everything here and build it in China. But I think people didn’t realize it’s not the engineer that has control—it’s the manufacturer.
Great point.
We also need more apprenticeships, which entail three years of classes and four years of on-the-job training. But 95 percent of the skill is the guy standing beside you with all the experience. And there we have a 30-year gap.
You’ve joined the conversation with BDB’s Talent Advancement Team to address this issue.
Yes. I’ve been talking to the BDB and other education and community leaders. They realize the issues and are trying to work through them. That’s one of the things I like most about doing business in Martin County. I appreciate that the BDB has reached out to me and others, asking the right questions and trying to improve the situation.
