People – Manufacturing Operations

COO/Chief Operating Officer

Justin is currently the Chief Operating Officer (COO). He joined Hydra-Flex in October 2009 as the Operations Manager and has since transitioned into Product Line Manager, supporting our product development processes and existing product lines, and then to Director of IT & Business Development for many years. Justin is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse, and has a degree in Managing Information Systems with a minor in Accounting. Justin enjoys spending time with his two daughters when not golfing or playing fantasy football. His diverse education and background has been an asset in having a variety of roles at Hydra-Flex.

Director of Operations

Joel Matthews joined Hydra-Flex in July 2020 as the Director of Operations. Prior to joining Hydra-Flex, Joel served customers in a diverse range of markets including medical, defense, aerospace, telecommunications and consumer electronics. Joel has over 20 years of leadership experience in product development, operations, supply chain and program management. Joel earned his B.B.A. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and his M.B.A from the University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. When not at work, Joel enjoys spending time with family and friends as well as working on outdoor projects at home.

Purchasing Manager

Jessica joined the Operations Team at Hydra-Flex in August 2016. She brings over two decades of supply chain and inventory management experience to her role as Purchasing Manager, and she contributes to Hydra-Flex’s ability to provide on-time delivery of quality products. She has an extensive background in custom fabrication and manufacturing and believes strongly in delivering consistent customer satisfaction and maintaining strong relationships with quality suppliers. Fall and spring are Jessica’s favorite seasons here in her native state of Minnesota, and you will often find her enjoying free time with her husband at their cabin in the northern woodlands.

Buyer

Laura joined Hydra-Flex in September of 2020 as our Buyer. She graduated from UW-Stout with a degree in Retail Merchandising and Management with a concentration in Buying and Product Management, and has Minors in Business and Graphic Design. She’s an avid record collector and also loves coffee, cooking, traveling, and spending time with her husband and cats. You can catch her photographing concerts all over the Twin Cities for publications and venues around the Twin Cities.

Manufacturing Engineering Manager

Joe joined Hydra-Flex in September 2017 as a Senior Manufacturing Engineer. Joe has a background in Process Improvement, Automation, and Operations. At work, he is looking for ways to improve current processes and use data to solve problems. At home, Joe enjoys spending time with his family and can usually be found in the garage working on a project.

Manufacturing Engineer

Sola joined Hydra-Flex in February of 2020, as a Manufacture Engineer. He has an education from Minnesota State University – Mankato with a BS and MS in Manufacture Engineering. Sola comes to Hydra-Flex with 6+ years as a Manufacture Engineer, and a year experience as an analyst. He is most excited to work on automating processes and eliminating waste with the production team by implementing new technologies and faster processes. Outside of work, Sola likes to spend time with his wife and pets, browse for memes and watch the Chicago Bulls. He grew up in Indonesia, and would love to travel to Bali again!

Manufacturing Engineer

Julie has over 20 years’ experience in electronics. With the last 20 years being in contract manufacturing, servicing the Medical, Aerospace, Defense and commercial industries. She has worked just about all positions in manufacturing from assembly to Engineering, with NPI being her favorite. Julie received her associate degree from Hennepin Technical College and her bachelor’s degree from Bemidji State University (this she achieved all online, the first time she went to the Bemidji campus was to pick up her degree)! When she is not working, Julie likes to hang out with her family, her dog Tucker and friends. She also loves to travel and her favorite place so far has been Italy.

Inventory Coordinator

Sopheara joined Hydra-Flex in July, 2012 as an Assembler. With 12 years of experience in the manufacturing industry and after holding various roles within Production, Sopheara continues to contribute to the success of Hydra-Flex. When not at work, Sopheara enjoys spending time with his wife and four sons and cheering on the Minnesota Vikings.

Technical Production Supervisor

Zack interned with Hydra-Flex during the summer of 2018 before joining the team full-time in May 2019 as a Manufacturing Engineer. He graduated from the University of Minnesota – Duluth with degrees in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. At work Zack focuses on problem solving, process improvement, lean manufacturing, and data analysis. He is always looking for different methods to increase efficiency. Outside of work Zack enjoys spending time with his family, fishing, hunting, woodworking, watching his favorite sports teams, and spending time at the cabin.

CNC Process Technician

Mike joined the team at Hydra-Flex in December of 2019. He graduated in 2003 from South Central Technical College and has been in machining ever since. His background is in CNC Turning, CNC Milling, Grinding, Manual Machines & Programming. In his career, he has machined parts in the Medical, Aerospace, and Defense Industries. Mike has made mold components for Silicone and Injection molds as well as having done R&D, Prototype and Tooling Parts. Mike is an avid Twins and Wild Fan. He is married and has 2 boys, enjoying fishing, hunting and gardening in his spare time.