Rich Wilbur

Rich Wilbur is the Northern California Refining Strategic Account Manager and has been employed with Valin since October 2009. He has worked to provide his accounts with the highest levels of consistent and reliable service for the last 12 years.

Valin has been providing Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) for a large energy company in Torrance, CA for years. Rich went above and beyond to help establish a new and reorganize an existing VMI system at an energy company that Valin serves. Recently there had been issues with maintaining the current inventory bins to the customer’s expectations. Although the customer expressed that they were planning to go in a different direction, Rich stepped in and contacted the manager of the VMI program, and successfully scheduled a time to discuss.

At the end of January Rich began the long drive from Northern California to meet the customer in Southern California. The most direct route would take him roughly 6 hours and bring him over the “Grapevine” on I-5. Unfortunately, a major storm rolled into the area dumping snow and shutting down the pass over the Grapevine. Rich did not want to reschedule the appointment, so he identified an alternate route that took him back north several hours and onto Coastal Route 101. A trip that should have taken 6 hours turned into a 12-hour marathon. Rich rolled into the hotel just after midnight but, he still made the meeting the next day!

Rich provided on-site assistance for the next two days as the team completed the reorganization and set-up of the VMI bin stocking location. Without his help, this project would have taken considerably longer to complete. The customer was so happy with the result they introduced Valin to a new customer. On the last day of the project, Rich met with the referred customer in the chemical products industry. His knowledge and support of instrumentation products assisted Valin in winning a new VMI bin stocking agreement. The initial order amount is several thousand with annual and ongoing material, repair, and operation business opportunities that will be made available. Expanding and onboarding customers into the Vendor Managed Inventory program is a core sales objective for Valin’s 2021 Sales Program.

Rich is considered by many to be an expert in the instrumentation field along with his knowledge of refining applications. Rich kicked off 2021 with a significant win at a major refinery by capturing a new filtration application for Turbine Intake Filters that Valin had not previously supplied, thus capturing new market share with a very high order value.

Rich is supporting Southern California accounts during the temporary absence of a regular account manager while executing his core job responsibilities in Northern California. These are not his assigned accounts; he simply stepped in to help Valin and its customers. His efforts in Southern California set him apart. Rich has a can-do, optimistic attitude when working with new customers and projects. He is a valued team member in Dublin and within Valin.