Superlite Block Lone Butte implemented Relay with TeamTranslate™, enabling real-time communication in multiple languages, streamlining training and safety processes, and unlocking access to a broader talent pool—leading to improved team coordination and increased hiring success.
SUPERLITE BLOCK LONE BUTTE
Concrete Manufacturer Expands Hiring Pool with TeamTranslate™
USE CASES
Phoenix-based landscape and architectural manufacturer, Superlite Block Lone Butte, is enhancing communication with Relay. Because of TeamTranslate™, the site has overcome language barriers and expanded hiring efforts within months.
Delivering Innovative Products with Modern Communications
Superlite Block Lone Butte Plant, a subsidiary of Oldcastle APG, a CRH company, is a recognized leader in concrete masonry technology and design. Located near Phoenix, AZ, the Oldcastle location strives to deliver high quality standards and innovative products to its local major retailer and professional landscaping customers. Some of the landscape and architectural products they manufacture include premixed bags of concrete, permeable pavers, paving stones, and retaining walls.
With a 90-person team spread out across a 36-acre operating facility, Site Manager, Christian Schultz quickly recognized the need for a better way of communicating.
36-Acre Manufacturing Facility Needed Better Communications
Before Relay, Christian and his workers were used to using cheap walkie talkies or non-company provided cell phones out on the forklifts in the yard. Inside the plant, workers just yelled over the loud machinery or used hand signals to communicate. Having worked at many other manufacturing facilities throughout his career, Christian shared that his teams have always been frustrated by the radios they’ve used in the past.
He described the high-costs, reliance on radio dealers, and constant need for replacements, just for the radios not to work properly. “They were good, but not great. Nothing like the all-in solution Relay has.” Because even the best traditional radio solutions have their flaws, he shared that sites often go with a cheaper solution, leading workers in the field to lose trust in radios all together. “Most people buy a cheaper one and then it doesn’t work and people believe no radios work.”
Using Radios Beyond Communication
Regardless of past poor radio experiences, Christian recognized that radios were absolutely necessary for communication in areas where workers were spread out. It didn’t sit well with him knowing that their current way of communication wasn’t reliable. “They didn’t have real-time, crisp and clean communication,” he shared.
When Christian saw an ad for Relay, he was immediately attracted to the modern yet rugged hardware design and reached out for more information. He admitted that he had never even considered that radios could be more than just communication tools. It wasn’t until he had onboarded Relay that he realized the full extent of what Relay could do.
Describing Relay’s Dashboard, he shared, “I didn’t even know I needed this but I love it and it’s not just because it’s cool, it gives you that flexibility that I never even realized you could have.” Christian also mentioned that he has appreciated the extra thought and user-friendliness that’s gone into 1:1 calling, automatic time outs back to the home channel, ease of channel management, and of course, language translation. “Those things are really cool and they’re a massive step over other solutions.”
TeamTranslate™ Bridges Language Gaps
Relay’s translation capabilities have been a game changer for the Superlite Block Lone Butte plant in many ways. Limited-English-speaking workers are using TeamTranslate™ to send and receive all Relay messages in their native language. They’ve always managed to get by, but this has helped certain employees understand things better. Christian shared, “We ended up changing his device to Spanish so that he could communicate more clearly and he definitely has a better understanding of stuff being said back and forth, and same the other way.”
The facility also has hundreds of truck drivers come through everyday, some not speaking any English. The Superlite team has used Relay’s pocket translator function many times to streamline communications with these visitors. “When interacting with non-English speaking truck drivers, our employees would have to get someone who spoke their native language. Now with the pocket translator feature, we can avoid any delays.” He continues, “We can just turn the device to translate and then exchange it back and forth. That’s been immensely helpful and has been used many times. It’s been well worth it.”
Best of all, the Superlite team has been able to expand hiring efforts now that they have a reliable translation tool in place. “There’s a lot of hardworking Hispanic groups in the area but many of them don’t speak English,” shared Christian. “I just want good talent, period. You’re often going to find that in different groups with different cultures and languages, but I’ve always kind of been restricted because if they can’t speak English, I couldn’t teach them safety or train them properly.” They started by hiring one non-English speaking employee, and after great success, tapped into even more non-English-speaking talent. “Relay now allows us to tap into that employee for referrals. He has referred three more people who were in the same boat, but now we have a way to work with that in any plant that they go into,” shared Christian. Seeing how passionate the non-English employees are about their Relays has been awesome for Christian to see, “I’d paid for that all day long.”
“I think we’re only scratching the surface on what this will do for us. It’s exciting.”
– Christian Schultz, Site Manager at Superlite Block Lone Butte
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Concrete manufacturing site located near Phoenix, Arizona
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Employs approximately 90 team members across 36-acres
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Produces concrete blocks, pavers, retaining walls, and premixed concrete products
INDUSTRY
OBJECTIVE
Improve communication across a 36-acre concrete manufacturing facility by replacing unreliable radios and breaking down language barriers to expand hiring potential and support a multilingual workforce.
RESULT
