Snack World - February 2014 - (Page 21)

Tin Shop Turned Industry Leader W BY BOB GATTY hen A.C. Horn started his small metal fabrication shop 107 years ago, his goal was to grow to seven employees and stop there. The reason, according to his grandson, company President Doug Horn, is that if there were more than seven employees, state unemployment tax would need to be paid. A.C. Horn did not want to do that. Today, things are a little different at Dallas-based A. C. Horn & Co., where 59 employees produce plant equipment used throughout the snack industry in the US and abroad. Moreover, Doug Horn's son, Michael, vice-president and fourth-generation president-in-waiting, plans to increase exports to the tune of 50% of the company's output from its current 30%. Over the years, a conservative business approach and a determination to provide the best customer service has helped the company succeed. It has lived by this credo: "A. C. Horn & Co. strives to achieve the highest standards of excellence and integrity with our family of customers, vendors and employees. Our commitment to these principles ensures our long-term growth, profitability and overall quality of life." When A.C. Horn died in 1946, his son, A.C. Jr., or Ace, took over and guided the company for the next 50 years. "He was a very good businessman - conservative, cautious, and he really built the company," Mr. Horn said. "We were a job shop. We made parts and pieces for other people. But we became a precision metals fabricator." In about 1973, with the help of another sheet metal shop, the company began building conveyers and other items for Frito-Lay, Plano, TX, according to Doug Horn. "That was our entry into the snack food industry," Mr. Horn said. "We worked with a Frito-Lay plant to make take-away conveyors from packing machines. One afternoon one of my men and I were walking in a plant, and we saw that our customer was interested in collators. Since we were only building the pack-offs, we decided to develop our own collator line. We have sold hundreds of these machines over the years." Mr. Horn said he wanted to expand the company's market reach, and a business friend told him about SFA and SNAXPO. "In 1987, we attended our first SNAXPO with our slot top conveyor," he said. "We've been going ever since, developing relationships throughout the industry. In Nashville, I saw an opportunity and decided we did not want to be a little sheet metal shop anymore. We have developed a lot of good relationships in the industry because of our involvement with SFA." In 1997, the company purchased Cantrell International, adding proprietary product lines for nut roasting and popcorn processing, and now offers equipment for these processes as well as peanut blanching and milling. Today, Michael Horn is driving plans for the future. "Right now," he said, "there is a lot of organic growth potential within our existing lines. I think we can develop innovative machines and different lines in the areas we already work in and be a bigger and better version of what we are. I don't want to reinvent the wheel." The company continues to invest in equipment, facility improvements and technology to help it succeed in the future. "I want to develop and maintain the good relationships that have built this company," Michael Horn said. "People are what make this business successful - our employees and our customers. We have really great machines, but if we don't have customers who rely on them, we have nothing." * www.sfa.org February 2014 Snack World 21 http://www.sfa.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Snack World - February 2014

Snack World - February 2014
Table of Contents
Letter from SFA
News - Dieticians forecast 2014 nutrition trends
SFA offers salary and benefits survey
SnackWell’s brand is sold
Supplier Insight - Opportunity for Impact
Legislative Summit Preview - Snacking on the Hill
Business Member Profile - Humility, Integrity, Business Success
Associate Member Profile - Tin Shop Turned Industry Leader
Healthy Snacking Trends - Shaking Up Salty Snacks
SNAXPO Speaker - SNAXPO Gets Presidential
New Snacks
Products & Services
Ad Index

Snack World - February 2014