What will your duties be as the Director of Sales for North America?
Prior to now, I was a product manager for vacuum furnaces in North America for SECO/WARWICK Group. In 2017, the Group split the vacuum furnace division in North America into its own company — from that was born SECO/VACUUM while SECO/WARWICK maintained its atmosphere, aluminum, and CAB lines. During that time, SECO/VACUUM and SECO/WARWICK in the USA ran parallel paths, both of us reporting to the group, and during that time I was responsible for vacuum furnaces. But SECO/VACUUM was its own brand and its own company.
In the spring of 2025, the Group felt the timing was right to reconsolidate both USA divisions and function as one. As a result of this merger, management transitioned my role as a Product Manager to the Director of Sales for SECO/WARWICK in North America. What that means now is that I’m responsible for all of North American sales of thermal equipment, consisting of vacuum, atmosphere, aluminum, and CAB furnaces, while also supporting our sales staff and rep network whom engage with our clients.
What made SECO say, “Hey, Tom would be perfect for this position”?
I think the company felt that, due to my previous experience in capital equipment sales and technical knowledge, it would be a good transition to support all furnace lines.
How do sales in North America differ from those elsewhere, like Europe for example?
It’s an interesting question, and I would say culture plays a big role on how things are accomplished. Different cultures process opportunities and conduct business differently across the globe. Even in North America there are differences in how business is conducted in the various regions, and one must adapt to meet those demands. At the end of the day, a furnace system must meet the client’s expectations; how you interact and develop the relationship with those clients is what can lead to positive experiences for all involved.
What ways will this position help as SECO/WARWICK makes this consolidation into one company?
In the strategic alignment of our resources, we are able to draw upon the various skill sets from both groups, and in my case, the group was able to look internally vs. externally to meet our expanding growth. Our management team, consisting of our President Piotr Zawistowski, VP Don Marteeny, and myself have worked together these last 15 years, which has provided us many years of synergy where we each understand what the other is thinking, allowing us to effectively communicate our business plans. With this merger, we’re also implementing the reshoring manufacturing. Our U.S. operations have grown significantly; we are shifting away from our reliance on our European division, and our timing couldn’t be more perfect. Our onshoring planning, which was decided a couple of years ago, will be finalized in Q4-2025.
This reshoring ensures SECO/WARWICK is competitive in the North American market.
Anything else you’d like to mention that we didn’t talk about?
I’m not a PhD; I’m not a metallurgist; I’m a manufacturing engineer by schooling and background. I used to be in precision machining sending parts to heat treating, and eventually I moved to the “dark side,” which is heat treating. Metallurgy is a fascinating science, and I am lucky enough to be part of a strong team that can control some of the hottest temperatures man has ever created. As I transition to the Director of Sales role, I have learned quickly that controlling metals atomically is easier than the human resource side of things. I’ve been tackling this for about six months; it feels like it’s been six weeks, but I’m starting to get my arms around the position much better. I have really enjoyed the challenge and look forward to this opportunity to grow the business and myself personally.
More Info www.secowarwick.com
