2025 Coolest Things Made in the Ozarks Plant Manager of the Year: Tom Halcomb | Amprod LLC

An employee who is praised for a job well done wants to do even better the next time. Success creates energy, and energy creates success.

As plant manager of Amprod LLC, Tom Halcomb knows how to create and harness that energy to improve processes, enhance safety and eliminate defects.

“I hold regular quality update meetings with all departments,” says Halcomb. “These meetings focus on tracking progress in defect elimination and addressing any new or recurring quality issues. They have been highly effective not only in resolving defects but also in fostering communication and collaboration across departments.

“One of our greatest successes came from the elimination of a long-standing process defect. After brainstorming solutions in a cross-functional meeting, we used our standardized quality meetings to track progress, ensure accountability and plan additional improvements. Seeing the tangible results of true defect elimination has energized the team. They are now eager to identify and tackle new opportunities to enhance quality, making American Products the go-to choice for our customers. This continuous-improvement mindset has had a significant positive impact on both product quality and customer satisfaction.”

American Products’s general manager, Matt Calton, who nominated Halcomb for Plant Manager of the Year, praised his leadership and innovation.

“One of Tom’s most impressive qualities is his ability to inspire and motivate his team,” says Calton. “He leads by example, encouraging collaboration and creative problem-solving, which has transformed our workplace into a thriving community focused on excellence.”

Halcomb, a former safety manager, has also had a big impact on plant safety, resulting in what Calton wrote is a “remarkable reduction in workplace incidents.”

Halcomb is even a trained first responder, including OSHA training, incident investigation, CPR/AED certification, confined space rescue and hazardous material handling and response.

But that is just one of many achievements. He has 27 years of manufacturing experience – 18 of them in leadership positions. In addition to plant manager and safety manager, he’s been an operations manager, supervisor, crew leader and operator, so it is easy to see why he cares for plant processes – and employees – from the bottom to the top.

“I have been blessed with an extraordinary team at American Products,” says Halcomb, who described one of his first challenges there.

“The team had been struggling to meet a lofty weekly production goal. By actively listening to their feedback, I identified key process challenges and resource gaps. I immediately worked to provide the tools and resources they needed and coached the team on improving collaboration to solve process issues. Within months, we not only hit our weekly goals consistently but also set new production records multiple times. To celebrate these accomplishments, we recognized all team members involved by awarding personalized trophy plaques. This created a culture that thrives on achieving and surpassing production goals.

“I’m so proud of what we’ve accomplished together – what a team!”