VITAL STATISTICS
Where born: Seattle, Wash.Family: Wife Cathy and six children.
Education: University of Washington, Art Center. College of Design, Los Angeles. Industrial design degree.
Primary products: Composite people-mover vehicles, rail-car interiors and aircraft structures.
Primary markets: Transit: Amtrak, Bombardier and Otis Elevator. Aerospace: Dupont, Pratt & Whitney and Boeing.
Number of employees: 76.
Annual sales: $6 to 7 million.
PERSONALITY PROFILE
First "real" job: Working for General Motors as an industrial designer.
Management style: Be a good coach. Let the team run the company.
Strategy for success: Surround yourself with competent people to handle the different disciplines in the company (i.e. operations, engineering, financial and marketing).
A memorable failure: Awarded the turtle trophy for a 21-day sailing race from Victoria, Canada, to Maui, Hawaii.
Heroes: My son, Timmy Van Skyhawk.
Leisure time and hobbies: Sailboat racing and sailing vacations with family in the San Juan Islands.
Favorite book and movie: "The Goal," by Eliyahu M. Goldratt and "The Last Place on Earth."