Continuous Improvement and Capabilities Manager

Partner insights from Its September 2026 Client Town Hall. Its September 2026 Client Town Hall covered IAQ trends, the science behind its standards, and real partner success stories. This September, the Asthma & Allergy Friendly(R) Certification Program brought its certified partner and agency community together for its latest Client Town Hall. The session was organized by Leah McInerney, Senior Client Success Manager alongside Gemma Cox, Junior Client Success Manager. Asthmaandallergyfriendly built the agenda around the topics its partners told Asthmaandallergyfriendly mattered most: indoor air quality (IAQ) trends, the science behind its standards, and real partner success stories. Here is a look at what Asthmaandallergyfriendly covered, including two client spotlights from Mohawk andAlen. Who joined Asthmaandallergyfriendly. Over 50 minutes, Asthmaandallergyfriendly welcomed 29 participating clients from 14 certified partners: 3M, Alen, Benjamin Moore, Blueair, Kleenex, Knauf, Mohawk, Rabbit Air, Renegade Brands, Rexair, SIJO, Tarkett, Trane Technologies and True Value. Asthmaandallergyfriendly were also delighted to be joined by four of its agency partners: Ampersand Agency, K2Forma, Mower and Olmstead Williams Communications. The year in review. Leah opened the Town Hall with a look at where the Program has got to in 2026, starting with its new certifications. Mohawk SmartStrand(R) Carpet Styles enhanced with Pur-Ease(TM) Technology became the world's first Asthma & Allergy Friendly(R) Certified treated carpet, independently tested against the Program's standard for treated carpet. The Anker eufy Robot Vacuum Omni E35 also joined the Program, with certification announced at IFA Berlin in September. Between January and September 2026, earned media secured with its PR partner SPARKS generated more than 2.3 billion impressions across over 90 placements in national consumer and trade outlets. Of those article placements, 67% included key quotes from Certification Program experts. Five podcast episodes featuring certified partners LG Electronics, Mohawk and Benjamin Moore reached a combined audience of more than 3.07 million listeners. Representatives from Knauf North America, the Chicago Asthma Consortium, and the Asthma & Allergy Friendly(R) Certification Program with 300 packed Resource Tote Bags, 2026 CHW Educational Forum, Chicago, May 21, 2026. Asthmaandallergyfriendly were also out in market with its partners throughout the year. At IBS/KBIS 2026, Asthmaandallergyfriendly supported clients on the show floor and spoke on a panel about the importance of third-party certification. At the Do It Best / True Value Spring Market, Asthmaandallergyfriendly supported clients at market and ran an educational training session for buying and retail teams. At AAAAI 2026, a strong display of certified products showed clinicians why managing the home environment matters, and in May Asthmaandallergyfriendly teamed up with the Chicago Asthma Consortium to advance community asthma education at this year's Community Health Worker Forum. During Asthma & Allergy Awareness Month in May, Sharnell Weathersby, Senior Brand Manager, Kleenex(R) Air Filters at Kimberly-Clark, received its Community Impact & Leadership Award. Under Sharnell's leadership, Kleenex(R) Elite Allergen Air Filters earned Asthma & Allergy Friendly(R) Certification, and the team went on to donate a year's supply of certified filters to 200 families nationwide through the Chicago Asthma Consortium, AAFA's HEAL program and Habitat for Humanity ReStores. Awareness Month also saw the launch of its May marketing pack, built from a client survey on what partners would find most useful, alongside a full suite of educational articles for each certified category and several client webinars. Partners also put the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America's (AAFA) Allergy Capitals and Asthma Capitals reports to work across social and educational activity, and Asthmaandallergyfriendly were proud to see certified partners recognized in the September Asthma Capitals report for their community impact. Dr. John McKeon, CEO of ASL, then led two sessions for partners: the latest industry and IAQ trends, and an update on scientific innovation and the standards that underpin certification. Client spotlight: Mohawk. Leah McInerney and Gemma Cox with the Mohawk Industries team, highlighting Asthma & Allergy Friendly(R) Certified SmartStrand(R) carpet Its first spotlight welcomed Denise Silbert, Vice President of Marketing for Soft Surfaces at Mohawk Industries. Mohawk joined the Program at the start of 2026, with its certification announced in April. Changing the conversation about carpet. For Denise, the journey to certification began around a decade ago, when she first explored carpet innovations with Airmid Healthgroup. "The challenge that we kept running into was the stigma associated with carpet and the widespread belief that carpet was bad for people with allergies, even within the medical community." "I never really let go of the belief that carpet could be a part of the solution, not considered a problem." The belief that carpet could play a more positive role in home comfort inspired Mohawk to seek independent testing: "We wanted to make sure that we had independent science-backed validation to prove it... so that we could put that old stigma to rest." Denise noted that this focus reaches well beyond her own team, explaining that the wider organization will keep "being very focused on wellness going forward" and that "we do recognize that indoor air quality is very important to our consumer base." Bringing certification to life. Mohawk is working with its retail partners to bring certified products to life in store, through high-visibility displays and storytelling across media. "Certification gives us a really powerful proof point, and so kind of making sure that we are maximizing that as much as possible, so it's visible and can be a part of the conversation." With tens of thousands of retail sales associates helping consumers make decisions, Denise sees certification as a confidence builder on the shop floor: "Being able to give them the confidence to say, 'Have you considered this carpet? It's certified to help,' will be a key part of the conversation." Early wins. Carpet is a mature category, and Denise shared that the certified product line is performing ahead of the wider market: "To be up double digits in a down market is pretty compelling." Advice for Brands considering certification. Denise was clear that certification is a commitment. Mohawk's R&D team worked on the technology for around three years before approaching Airmid and ASL. "Really do it for the right reasons." "I think for us it forced more rigor, but also the benefit of that is building trust with our customers, making sure that it's not just some gimmicky, you know, solution, but something that's credible and that's long-lasting." Her closing advice was simple: "just go for it." Client spotlight: Alen. Its second spotlight featured Jonathan Polland, Marketing and Product Project Manager at Alen, which has now been part of the Program for around 15 months. A partnership that has matured. Jonathan highlighted the launch of the BreatheSmart 25i air purifier as a turning point. Alen already had certified air purifiers, but the 25i was the first new product it launched with certification in place. "The 25i was the first time we launched a brand new product with the certification in place from day one, and it felt like a real important evolution in our partnership. Instead of the certification being something we added to an existing product, it was part of the 25i story from the get go, and part of how we introduced it to customers." He also credited the collaboration with the ASL team: "From the beginning, you've been incredibly collaborative, helpful in making sure we understood what the certification represents and how to communicate it responsibly." Why third-party validation matters. On the decision to expand Alen's certified portfolio, Jonathan was clear: "We believe really strongly in third-party validation... that's exactly why independent validation is valuable." "Having that certification represented across more of our offerings allows that independent validation to be relevant to more of those customers." For Jonathan, the partnership has always felt substantive, and "not just simply having a badge and checking a box." Where certification resonates. Speaking directly with customers has shown Jonathan how they see certification: "They're thinking about whether they can trust a product to bring it into their home, and it's added that credibility and a level of confidence, particularly for people who are thinking about asthma, allergies, or even the air their family is breathing." Looking ahead, he sees education as the biggest opportunity: "I think there's a tremendous opportunity around education and storytelling." "When we combine those perspectives, there's an opportunity to take a pretty complicated topic and make it feel a lot simpler." What's Next for the Program. Leah closed with a look at what is coming up: Indoor Air Quality Awareness Month: partner marketing packs, ready for social content throughout October. Website redesign: its new website launches in October. U.S. trade mission: in-person check-ins with partners, and an on-site presence at Greenbuild. AAP Conference, San Diego: showcasing certification to the pediatrics community in October. Client Survey and Awards Feature: returning after last year's success, celebrating partners' award-winning portfolios. New launches: exciting certifications to look out for in the coming weeks. Thank you to every partner and agency who joined Asthmaandallergyfriendly. Its partners are central to the success of the Asthma & Allergy Friendly(R) Certification Program, and Asthmaandallergyfriendly look forward to the next Town Hall. October 12th, 2026

TODAY: President Trump returns to Ohio. Commentary. If you are covering President Trump's rally in Vandalia today, please consider the following statement from the Republican National Committee: "The energy in Vandalia today is electric, and Ohioans are thrilled to hear directly from President Trump and Republicans, who are putting more money in their pockets, bringing jobs roaring back to Ohio, and keeping their communities safe. This November, Ohio voters will proudly stand with Republicans' commonsense wins over far-left Democrats who would take it all away. Ohio is fired up and ready to keep winning." - RNC Spokesman Hunter Lovell Background: Thanks to President Trump and Republicans: * The Working Families Tax Cuts are putting more money back in Ohioans' pockets and helping families, workers, and seniors keep more of what they earn. * Saved the average Ohioan $3,172 on their taxes, with wages projected to increase by up to $6,100 over the next four years. * 1.4 million seniors benefited from no tax on Social Security, and 5% of Ohio workers benefited from no tax on tips. * Increased take-home pay for Ohio families by up to $9,800. * Protected 208,000 Ohio jobs, saved $37 billion in GDP, and saved $19 billion in wages. * Ohioans received an average tax refund of $3,308 this year. * Ohio received $202 million in rural health care funding. * Historic investments are coming back to Ohio: * Pratt Industries announced a $5 billion investment to create 5,000 new manufacturing jobs in Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Arizona. * Kimberly-Clark announced a $2 billion investment to expand its U.S. manufacturing operations, including a new advanced manufacturing facility in Warren, Ohio. * Anduril Industries announced a $1 billion investment for a new autonomous weapon system facility in Ohio. * Amgen announced a $900 million investment in its Ohio-based manufacturing operation. * Electra announced a $850 million investment in a new aerospace facility in Springfield, creating nearly 2,000 jobs. * GE Aerospace announced a $1 million investment for southwest Ohio workforce programs. * Homicides are down 16.1% and violent crime is down 10.4%. * Prescription drug prices saw the largest annual decline in more than 60 years. There have been zero releases at the border for 16 straight months, and ICE is removing the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens from Ohio communities.

CPG automation projects need a sourcing-to-logistics risk register. Listen to article Logistics Industry Analysis Automation can make a consumer packaged goods line faster while making the supply chain around it more fragile. A redesigned case may run beautifully through a packer but cube out a trailer. A new supplier may lower material cost but introduce dimensional variation that stops a conveyor. A labor-saving business case may quietly assume flawless inbound timing. These are not isolated engineering, procurement, or transportation problems. They are dependencies in one operating flow. CPG companies need a sourcing-to-logistics risk register that assigns each dependency an owner, a leading indicator, a fallback, and a financial exposure before equipment reaches full production. Automation risk crosses functional boundaries. Major CPG operators are already treating automation as a network transformation. Supply Chain Dive reports that Procter & Gamble's Supply Chain 3.0 program is in "full execution," with maximum automation, broader systems integration, sensor and imaging data for quality inspection, and automated warehouse processes that include truck loading and unloading. The company expects scaling to take another 24 months and productivity benefits to extend over five to 10 years. That timeline creates exposure to changes outside the project team's control. Packaging specifications evolve. Suppliers and plants change. Carrier capacity tightens. Product portfolios shift. Colgate-Palmolive warned that rising oil prices could affect material costs in the fourth quarter, while Kimberly-Clark projected $30 million to $40 million in incremental quarterly costs partly because of a tight North American freight and logistics market. Kimberly-Clark also incurred additional transportation costs after a fire damaged a third-party distribution center. The lesson is not to slow automation. It is to stop evaluating it as a fenced-off equipment installation. A faster cell has limited value if its input variability, output design, compliance requirements, and transport capacity remain unmanaged. Start with the handoffs where ownership usually becomes ambiguous. Packaging incompatibility. Record every critical physical tolerance: film thickness, carton dimensions, label placement, pallet pattern, weight, and acceptable variation. Link those specifications to the machine, SKU, supplier, warehouse equipment, and transport unit they affect. A leading indicator could be the percentage of incoming lots outside the validated tolerance. The fallback might be a qualified alternate material, a manual bypass, or a preapproved case configuration. Supplier change. A nominally equivalent component can behave differently at production speed. Track supplier, manufacturing site, material formulation, certification, lead time, minimum order quantity, and change-notification requirement. Do not release a substitute based only on purchasing approval; require production-like trials and confirmation that transport and storage conditions preserve its performance. Labor assumptions. Automation often removes direct touches but creates maintenance, exception-handling, quality, and replenishment work. Record the assumed staffing by shift, required skills, mean time to repair, training coverage, and manual throughput during downtime. A falling first-time-fix rate or rising queue of unresolved faults should trigger action before service deteriorates. Transportation constraints. Capture trailer cube, axle weight, temperature range, hazmat status, loading method, appointment windows, dock compatibility, carrier equipment, and lane capacity. A packaging redesign that adds two millimeters per case may sound trivial until it reduces pallet density or trailer utilization across millions of units. This cross-functional evaluation is becoming more important as the technology landscape expands. Modern Materials Handling describes Pack Expo International 2026 as North America's largest packaging and processing show, bringing tens of thousands of professionals together over four days. Its Vision 2030 agenda explicitly connects cybersecurity, alignment between equipment manufacturers and CPG companies, and the use of downtime data for operational improvement. Those topics belong in the same risk conversation because connected equipment, specifications, and operational data now affect one another. Use one row for each testable dependency. "Packaging risk" is too broad. "Carton supplier B's score variation causes rejected seals above 180 units per minute" is actionable. Each row should contain: * Dependency and affected flow: Identify the machine, material, supplier, SKU, facility, lane, customer, and shipment class. * Failure mode and leading indicator: Define what could fail, the metric that gives early warning, its threshold, and how often it is measured. * Accountable owner: Name one decision owner even when several functions contribute evidence. * Preventive control and fallback: State the normal control, alternate material or process, capacity of the fallback, and maximum activation time. * Financial exposure: Estimate revenue at risk, scrap, downtime, premium freight, penalties, inventory, and recovery cost for a realistic event window. * Evidence and status: Link the latest trial, specification version, supplier confirmation, shipment result, and approval date. Rank entries using probability, operational impact, detection time, and recoverability. Add an "irreversible by" date for risks that become expensive after an equipment order, packaging print run, sourcing award, or carrier bid is locked. Review high exposures weekly during design and commissioning, then move stable dependencies into monthly operating reviews. Measure total flow instead of local speed. An automation project can hit its line-rate target and still shift cost downstream. The scorecard must therefore compare the full flow before and after implementation. Track good units per labor hour, but pair it with overall equipment effectiveness, changeover time, scrap, unplanned downtime, and manual exception hours. Downstream, measure pallet and trailer utilization, damage, warehouse touches, detention, tender acceptance, on-time delivery, and premium freight. Include working capital through raw-material buffers, work in process, finished-goods inventory, and days of supply. Use a common financial measure such as total cost per saleable unit delivered. Then separately report service, resilience, and compliance outcomes so savings cannot conceal a rising customer or regulatory risk. For every launch, compare the approved business case with actual results at 30, 60, and 90 days. If line productivity rises while logistics cost, inventory, or exceptions rise faster, the project has not improved total flow. Make automation resilient by design. The strongest automation program is not the one with the most equipment. It is the one that can explain every critical dependency from source material through customer delivery - and respond before a variation becomes a stoppage or missed order. CXTMS connects shipment plans, carrier capacity, freight costs, milestones, and exceptions to the wider operating record. Request a CXTMS demo to see how shipment-level data can strengthen a sourcing-to-logistics risk register.