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Manufacturing's Winner & Loser of the Week

This week ‘Manufacturing’s Winner and Loser of the Week’ focuses on a woman who has achieved a great feat in the manufacturing industry and a company  . . .

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This week ‘Manufacturing’s Winner and Loser of the Week’ focuses on a woman who has achieved a great feat in the manufacturing industry and a company that can’t seem to catch a break in the past couple of weeks.

Winner

Yesterday, it was announced that Julie Hamp will be leading the Japanese automaker’s global communication effort as the first female executive in the company’s history, making her ‘Manufacturing’s Winner of the Week.’

In the past, Hamp had worked as a leader in Toyota’s North American communication department, she led PepsiCo’s global communications, and also worked in communications at General Motors. With a resume like this it is clear why she got the job.

After the announcement Toyota released a statement saying that her promotion, as well as others is a result of "ongoing efforts to diversify its global leadership team and leverage talent from its biggest, most experienced market."

Loser

Lumber Liquidators has not been having a good week, in fact it hasn’t been having a good two weeks. Last week, the company acknowledged that the U.S. Justice Department may be seeking criminal charges under the Leary Act, which includes a ban on illegally sourced wood products. 

Now this week, after a “60 Minutes” report that focused on health concerns related to one of their laminate flooring products, Lumber Liquidator’s stock plummeted to the lowest it has been in two years and has since prompted calls for a federal investigation.

In the report, “60 Minutes” disclosed after three certified labs confirmation, some of Lumber Liquidators’ flooring from China had higher levels of formaldehyde than regulations allow.

Lumber Liquidators stands by their product and are asserting that they are both safe and compliant, but they are not convincing everyone. U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, specifically is still skeptical and has requested that federal investigators look into Lumber Liquidators.  

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