MUSCATINE, IA – The HON Co. announced that its South Gate manufacturing plant, located eight miles south of Los Angeles, received the Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing. The Shingo Prize honors organizations that demonstrate business excellence and exceptional performance in quality, cost and delivery achieved through lean principles and techniques.

“We are extremely honored to receive this coveted award as it further underscores our unwavering commitment to minimizing waste, improving efficiency and being a good corporate citizen,” said Eric Jungbluth, president of The HON Co.

The Shingo Prize, which was established in 1988, is the only award program in the world focused on lean manufacturing. Plants are evaluated on a variety of factors, including customer satisfaction and profitability, quality, cost and delivery, lean core operations, and leadership and empowerment enablers.

Key results demonstrated by the plant include:

* Delivered the highest level of quality products and service by achieving the lowest rate of complaints within the company for eight consecutive years

* Improved on-time shipment of South Gate products to 99.6% while reducing the amount of inventory stored at the plant

* Exceeded environmental requirements by reducing air emissions by 79% throughout the last three years

* Executed RCI practices, which enabled South Gate to implement 1,935 member suggestions in 2006

* Contributed to more than 2,600 hours of community service during the past three years.