Editorial Advisory Board 2023-2026: Meet Board Member James Jergens, Ascend Innovative Mold

James Jergens, Owner, Ascent Innovative Mold, is one of MMT's new EAB members. Photo Credit: The Plastek Group

Meet James Jergens. James is owner of Ascend Innovative Mold based in Erie, Pennsylvania.

His business objective is to work with excellence in character and performance to meet or exceed customer expectations and to generate an excellent return for the company. His personal objective is to spend as much time with family and friends as possible and to change the world through these relationships.

James brings a wealth of experience to the MoldMaking Technology editorial advisory board (EAB), including injection mold design and manufacture, management, international mold sourcing, supplier development, product design for plastics, steel-to-plastic conversions, design of deep draw dies for steel stamping, stamping dies, CAD/CAM and tool financing. He is also trained in CMM, quality system management and lean manufacturing.

He has experience with MoldFlow, SigmaSoft, program manager, tool engineer, SolidWorks, Unigraphics, Logopress and Cosmos FEA.

On top of that, James has two patents to his name: Tip Resistant Valve Plugs – US 9,222,588 B2 and Cross Car Structural Beam – US 5,934,744.

While serving on MMT’s EAB, James will share insights on trends, industry news, hot topics and story leads with the editorial team for business issues, software, culture, shop floor/process/workflow, equipment, mold materials, mold components, disruptive technologies, training and workforce development and global strategies.

Toolroom efficiency and mold procurement are two topics James Jergens is passionate about and is always willing to share his insights on.

He looks forward to helping the moldmaking industry further by mentoring the next generation on how to build molds using science and good leadership methods that drive profit and sustainability. James also hopes to continue networking with fellow moldmaking professionals.

James is passionate about improving efficiency in the toolroom and helping molders and OEMs better understand their next mold purchase. He has presented both topics at the MoldMaking Conference in 2022 and is featured in related articles in MMT and via MMT Chats.

James has five children, one of whom works for Husky Technologies in Vermont. When he is not working, James likes to mountain bike, cruise in his Jeep and snowshoe.