Phillips Industries and Phillips Connect, under the leadership of Corporate Director of R&D Dan Forthoffer, are transforming their R&D capabilities to meet the current and future challenges facing vehicle operators in the evolving transportation industry.
The companies say this expanded initiative supports Phillips Industries, Phillips Connect, and Phillips Europe, and works collaboratively across all business units to bring the best solutions to Phillips customers.
In transforming the unit, Forthoffer — who joined the company in 2021 — is focusing on gathering engineers from not just the trucking industry, but also from the aerospace (NASA), defense, networking technologies, ADAS, and passenger car industries. Core teams within the new R&D organization are focused on the conceptualization and feasibility phase of product development.
Phillips Industries says a foundation of the R&D organization is a quality group and a proprietary test regime known as the Phillips Trustmark Quality Requirements Validation Routine. The company says each product must adhere to the testing regime before launch, preserving and building on the Phillips quality reputation as new products and systems are developed. It combines industry-standard testing and additional testing methodologies found in real-world applications, providing further assurances based on actual field experience, the company adds.
“Phillips Industries, and now Phillips Connect have well-deserved reputations for developing innovative and top-quality products and systems solutions that address timely issues facing the heavy-duty trucking industry,” says Forthoffer. “Today, we are entering an entirely new paradigm with technology and vehicle development that offers so much, but also presents challenges that create valuable R&D opportunities.
“Our new team will marry the high-tech, aggressive product development cycles of Phillips Connect with the methodical, quality-driven development, and manufacturing processes of Phillips Industries. This union will create innovative, robust, and high-quality products to meet those challenges.”
“Dan has brought significant experience to this company, and has a knack for grasping the possible,” adds Rob Phillips, CEO, Phillips Industries and Phillips Connect. “From the years when my dad was drawing out product solutions on cocktail napkins with John Jacobs, to today’s explosive growth of Phillips Connect, the mindset here has always been ‘anything’s possible when we combine creativity with deep industry expertise.’ Dan is a great addition to the Phillips organization, and we expect our customers to reap the benefits from his knowledge and inventive mentality.”
