In this episode of the In Service podcast, “New Eco-friendly Efforts at Darley”, we feature a special guest, Amanda Norman, a manufacturing engineering manager at Darley. She shares her transition from product development and enhancement to a focus on manufacturing engineering the most efficient and highest quality products Darley has to offer. She shares some new projects Darley is working on including their new use of green energy as long as Darley’s transition from diesel to electric pump motors. She ends on what truly makes the “Darley Difference” and how Darley’s positive working environment truly enhances performance, productivity, and overall customer service. This is her journey from product development and enhancement to focus on manufacturing engineering of the highest quality and most efficient products. 

“Being family owned, we have the ability to work on some of the coolest customer projects possible and the sky's the limit and the attitude here is anything’s possible- we just have to figure out how to make it work…there's always a focus on how can we meet the needs of the customer, and how can we make sure that what we are doing for them is of the highest quality possible” - Amanda Norman

In this episode of the In Service podcast, “The Realities of India’s Fire Service Industry”, we feature a special guest, Udit Agrawal, the director of Brijbasi, a family-owned company providing innovative solutions in the field of fire fighting, safety, security, disaster management and rescue equipment with headquarters in New Delhi, India for over 50+ years. Today we hear insights from Udit, who is part of the second generation of Brijbasi and has worked at the company for over 12 years. Though he had no engineering background, the industry was easy for him to catch on, and he quickly grew a passion for introducing new technology and fire fighting systems. Udit also shares specific challenges to the fire services in India and what it truly takes to be an entrepreneur. 

“A lot of patience is a requirement. You have to be calm even in the toughest of situations. One year can be a very challenging one, but if you have hope at that time then it doesn't matter anymore. So just keep trying even in the challenging years, and just find out what else you can do.”  - Udit Agrawal

Udit Agrawal | LinkedIn

In this episode of the In Service podcast, “Leaders Need to Look in the Mirror”, we feature a special guest, Kyle Matousek, a lieutenant firefighter and Darley essay competition winner. Kyle shares lifelong lessons he learned from his experience in the US coast guard that he now applies to his day-to-day life in the fire service. He shares insights from his Darley award winning essay about “Introspection” and how we all need to inspect our current habits in order to truly change into the best version of ourselves. He also overall emphasizes the idea of how important it is to find and stay true to your true self, in order to reach your ultimate success. 

 “I think a lot of times we have to look at the success and failures as leaders of our people as our own successes and failures. And I think that's overlooked way too often. We wanna enjoy the successes of our teams, our company, our crews, but we also wanna own those failures as well and realize our involvement and lack of involvement or our attitude towards that  enables or does not enable somebody's ability to succeed. So we have a part in all of it, whether we like to think so or not.” - Kyle Matousek

Kyle Matousek, MS | LinkedIn

In this episode of the In Service podcast, “Making One-of-a-Kind Pumps: A Conversation with Darley's Chief Engineer”, we feature a special guest, Wayne Hable, the chief engineer of Darley’s pump division. With his background in engineering, Wayne shares what his day-to-day looks like and what truly makes Darley’s pump so unique. He shares his passion for interacting with customers, shares insights about persevering through challenges, and even shares the story behind his guinness world record title. 

“What everyone needs to know is we treat everyone like family- customers, coworkers, employees on the floor, potential customers, everyone-vendors. We treat them as family….you treat them as you want to be treated. You talk to them like a human. I try not to do a big pitch in sales, I just talk-get to know people” - Wayne Hable

Wayne Hable, P.E. | LinkedIn

In this episode of the In Service podcast, “Finding Comfort in Your Own Skin”, we feature a special guest, Kerry Henderson, a battalion chief and first place essay competition winner at Darley. Kerry shares her experience of working in the fire service for over 22+ years and how the rush of the industry inspired her to pursue her career. Kerry shares the importance of emphasizing values such as authenticity, empathy, and communication and how prioritizing those values truly makes a difference in the fire service. She also gives insights on who is going to change the fire industry and challenges that recruiters are facing on a daily basis.

“You have to do the hard work before you get promoted. I think some people think there's this magical thing that will happen like ‘okay I got promoted, they say I'm the one for the job and I'm going to get this crew and this magic will happen- and they'll just come along and follow me’….but you have to know yourself first and really learning that makes you authentic.” - Kerry Henderson

Kerry Henderson | LinkedIn

In this episode of the In Service podcast, “The Evolution & Possibilities of VR Training”, we feature a special guest, Tom Cox, the director of EMS sales at Darley. Tom was a paramedic in the 1980’s and has since been in EMS sales in training for 25+ years. In this episode, Tom shares the pressing needs of EMS training and his initial thoughts of using VR to train EMS. He also shares his excitement for the current “push for technology” that EMS is currently undergoing. 

“There's a whole new level of people that are younger that are coming up that thrive on this kind of evolution of technology and whatnot that are going to make big use of this. And I think in the future 5-10 years down the road, the sky's the limit for the kind of care that can be delivered in the field.” - Tom Cox

In this episode of the In Service podcast, “The Necessity that is Positive Conflict”, we feature a special guest, Brandon Howard, a lieutenant firefighter and Darley essay competition winner. Brandon shares insights with us about his award winning essay focusing on what makes a successful leader. He shares insights on the importance of dynamic leadership, the impact of a positive culture and motivation, how to juggle priorities, and overall, how positive conflict leads to max productivity. 

“Many Hats: I don’t think you can just be one thing and be a successful leader. Because if you're kind of a ‘one trick pony’ for a lack of better terms I think that might be successful in certain occasions, but then it's not going to serve you across, every call, every personal conflict, every hazard that we face…you can't just be this ‘one trick pony’ and hope to limp your way through a career as lieutenant. " - Brandon Howard

In this episode of the In Service podcast, “Darley: A Match Made In Heaven”, we feature a special guest, Garret Yohnk, a Darley Engineer and Lieutenant firefighter. With over 10+ years in the fire service, he shares his fire fighting origin story along with how his love for both the outdoors and passion for mechanics led him where he is today. Listen in for his insights on anything from the engineering at Darley and new products they are working on, to the daily challenges the fire service faces, to the importance of living with passion. 

"I think Darley is different because they actually care, genuinely care, about the customers." Jordan Hatmaker, Account Manager at Darley for Navy and Air Force, has worked in the defense contracting industry for more than 10 years. She has seen it all and knows the value of customer care; especially when dealing with U.S. military service members. 

In this episode, you're going to meet Jordan, a powerful force on the Darley team. She's an adrenaline junky and adventurer who has walked away from a near-death skydiving accident. She's a solution provider for the Navy and Air Force. She's a remarkable professional, and we're excited for you to meet her. 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordanhatmaker/

How do you go from music education to a Green Beret? Just ask Nick Winter, Darley's Supply Partner Manager for C5ISR category. He's experienced the world in his career - Nebraska, Israel, Kentucky, Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, Africa and Chicago to name a few places.  In this episode, we're going to spotlight Nick as a whole person and professional. From his experience as an active duty Green Beret to his expertise as a C5ISR manager for the defense industry: Nick brings a wealth of experience, knowledge and joy to the Darley team and our partners. Did we mention he's also quite good on the drums? Listen in to learn more! 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-winter/