Business Management ABCs

A Company Profile: Gene Hass

Few have the kind of drive and entrepreneurial talent to engineer innovative new automation technology, as well as successfully run a well known enterprise like Haas Automation, Inc.  Gene Haas does it all. From developing a CNC vertical machining center, to sponsoring his own NASCAR team, as well as creating charitable foundations and providing grants and contributions to charitable organizations, Haas has proven that he has the ambition and insight to play a leading role within the automation industry.

Gene Haas is most well known for his VF-1 vertical machining center. The VF-1 has become the cornerstone of his career in the automations field, and he has gone on to develop horizontal machining centers, as well as rotary tables and CNC lathes. With such a strong offering of machining tools, Haas Automation has become widely recognized as one of the top CNC machine tool manufacturing company, and particularly in 4th and 5th axis parts positioning.

Gene bring his passion for mechanical innovation into his love of automobile racing. Haas successfully led a pair of drivers into the top ten rank of the 2009 NASCAR season – a remarkable feat for a team in their first season. The Stewart-Hass racing team is a powerful joint venture between Gene Hass, and racing powerhouse Tony Stewart.

But Gene’s most important accomplishment may be his philanthropic work with the Gene Haas Foundation. The foundation, which was founded in 1999, works with local communities to take on humanitarian projects. Gene has generously given eight and a half million in grants and contributions to nearly 1,000 different charitable organizations, among them the Red Cross, the YMCA, and the Boys and Girls clubs of America.