CPT M.C. Stephen Cherry IV
Editor's Note: CPT Cherry was the last Quartermaster officer at Hertling Industries, Inc., in the Army's Training With Industry program. The business shut its doors in July 1995, although the 70-year-old company's name continues under manufacturing by Hertz of America, Inc.
Ever since the Army drawdown started after the Persian Gulf War in the early 1990s, we have experienced the impacts on our organizations of downsizing, resignations of our friends who no longer wanted to stay in the Army, those who were forced to leave and retirements of those who decided to call it quits. Through my Training With Industry (TWI) program at Hertling Industries, Inc. in Brooklyn, NY, I have experienced firsthand the effects that our current economy and our retail buying trends have had on a civilian manufacturing industry. This enables me to compare my experiences with the military drawdown to the downsizing in the civilian sector.
Hertling Industries, a tailored clothing manufacturer, has been in business since 1925. Hertling manufactures men's and women's suits, sportcoats, slacks, topcoats and vests for retailers such as Nordstrom's, Brooks Brothers, Polo and Neiman Marcus, just to name a few. The majority of garments that Hertling manufactures are 100 percent wool. The company does manufacture a small number of silk, silk/linen blend and cashmere garments. Initially, Hertling did only contract work, manufacturing garments with all the fabrics and trimmings provided by the retailer. This meant that all Hertling had to do was sew garments together at a predetermined cost and meet the retailer's specifications for a particular model.
Hertling became a full-blown manufacturer in 1980. A manufacturer merchandises the products/models to sell to the retailer. A manufacturer purchases the fabrics or piece goods and the trimmings and develops the models that the company thinks the retailer will buy.
From 1983 until the late 1980s, Hertling was one of the premier tailored garment manufacturers in the nation. Hertling had over 550 employees with two separate coat factories and a separate women's skirt and slack shop to try to meet the demand for orders from retailers. Hertling's production during this period was over 3,000 coats and more than 2,500 pairs of slacks per week.
Since that time, competition from manufacturers abroad with their cheaper labor rates overseas and also the current consumer trends at home toward more casual wear and a less-tailored look have influenced a declining production of men's suits. According to industry statistics, the average American male is buying only one new suit every seven or so years. Most men are simply not buying suits at all. This has obviously hurt production of men's suits at Hertling Industries, Inc. Annual sales 10 years ago were around $26 million. Current sales forecasts predict around $10 million in sales for 1995. The number of Hertling employees has decreased from a high of more than 550 to a current work force of just under 200.
These factors have forced Hertling, much like today's Army, to combine positions in management and the work force by only allowing multifunctional employees to remain. Declining sales have also forced Hertling to reduce its work schedule to only four days per week to cut costs until new sales can generate more production. Competition within the tailored garment manufacturing industry, much like today's Army, is too severe to allow for excess. Even the large manufacturers of suits are feeling the heat.
The Army's TWI program provided me a unique opportunity to learn the basics of the clothing and textile industry. It has also enabled me to experience the day-to-day operations in a civilian manufacturing industry and the different problems of today's manufacturers in our marketplace and economy. These problems, although in a civilian setting, mirror many of the same problems we are experiencing as soldiers. Collectively, we have to learn how to do as much or more with less. Individually, through education and training, we have to strive to be multifunctional to stay competitive.
My TWI experience has also reinforced some of the Army's characteristics of high-performing organizations: good organizations communicate on all levels, and personnel are always the most important resource. The TWI experience at Hertling will serve me well as I transition to my follow-on assignment as the Chief of Cadet Services Branch at the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY. I will be in charge of a civilian workforce with the mission of operating a uniform manufacturing facility and providing equipment, academic materials and personal services for the U. S. Corps of Cadets.
CPT M.C. Stephen Cherry IV has a bachelor of science degree from East Carolina University. He is a graduate of the Combined Arms and Services Staff School, Quartermaster Officer Advanced Course, Infantry Officer Basic Course, and the U.S. Army Officer Candidate School. His assignments include Assistant Support Operations Officer, Headquarters and Company A Commander, and Battalion S4, 325th Forward Support Battalion, 25th Infantry Division (Light), Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; Battalion S1, Company Executive Officer, Assistant S3 and Rifle Platoon Leader, 3/6 Infantry Battalion, 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized), Fort Polk, Louisiana.