Dialogue: Developing Pella’s Data Driven Culture

Paul Tate March 28, 2023

Creating a culture where all employees understand the importance of data to driving operational improvements and value is crucial to the future of manufacturing, believes Pella’s Head of Advanced Analytics, Jacey Heuer. 

“What drives me is being part of that blank canvas and having the opportunity to create something with data analytics that is so game changing not only to Pella, but to the whole industry.”

Jacey Heuer, Head of Data Science and Advanced Analytics, Pella Corporation

Pella Corporation was founded in 1925 when lumber business owners Peter Kuyper and his wife Lucille acquired a small manufacturer of roll-up insect screens called the Rolscreen Company and moved the business to Pella, Iowa. As Pella approaches its centenary in 2025, the company has now grown into an award-winning $2 billion enterprise, with 10,000 employees, 17 manufacturing plants across the U.S., and one of the largest window and doors manufacturers in the U.S.

In our latest interview with an industry thought-leader, Pella Corporation’s Head of Data Science and Advanced Analytics, Jacey Heuer, talks to the MLC’s Executive Editor Paul Tate about transforming a mature corporation in the digital age, the need to build a solid data foundation to help reimagine traditional processes, harnessing data analytics and AI technologies to create new insights, and creating a culture of ownership where every employee understands the true value of data to improving the future of the organization.

Q: What excites you most about your role at Pella?
A: It’s the nascent nature of data and analytics in the manufacturing industry, especially in advanced data science and machine learning AI environments. Historically, there have been data and statistics and optimization initiatives in many different forms, like Six Sigma, Lean, and traditional business intelligence systems, which have been around for decades. That’s the precursor to what we’re trying to create now with the next generation of data driven solutions.

My focus is on how we accelerate to that next level of leveraging our data at Pella to drive greater economic value and greater impact across the enterprise – from customer experience and marketing, to improving the P&L and optimizing throughput capacity in manufacturing operations.

A lot of this stems from how we collect data. In the past, there’s been almost a taboo around adding individual transactions to data resources. Traditionally we’ve tried to eliminate that transactional data to create more efficiencies and productivity. Yet, all those transactions are data rich sources of what’s really happening as materials or products go through a facility.

EXECUTIV PROFILE: Jacey Heuer
Title: Head of Data Science and Advanced Analytics, Pella Corporation
Nationality: American
Education: BA degree, Business Administration – Finance & Economics, Wartburg College; Masters’ degree, Business Analytics and Data Analytics, Iowa State University; MBA, Iowa State University
Languages: English
Previous Roles Include:
– Data Scientist, Pella Corporation
– Data Science Author, Pluralsight
– Data Scientist, Brownells, Inc.
– Senior Pricing Strategist, MidAmercian Energy
– Assistant Vice President, Situs RERC
– Financial Analyst, The Members Group
Other Industry Roles/Awards/Board Memberships
– Golden Key International Honour Society, Iowa State University
– Iowa Technology Leadership Institute member

About the authors:

Paul Tate is Co-founding Executive Editor and Senior Content Director of the NAM’s Manufacturing Leadership Council.