Roush® Engineering. Racing. Performance. Excellence.
When most of us hear the name “ROUSH,” we think racing. And there’s good reason for that; after all, ROUSH is the winningest name in NASCAR. With more than 370 wins to its credit, the organization runs five full-time NASCAR Nextel Cup teams with drivers Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray, and David Ragan. It’s also one of the few organizations to have captured titles within all three of NASCAR’s top divisions, including the coveted NASCAR Nextel Cup.
There’s no question about it: ROUSH is an iconic name in the world of racing; the company has managed to combine Jack Roush’s engineering prowess, competitive spirit, and drive to become the largest professional motorsports organization in the world. Perhaps not surprisingly, these attributes permeate all of ROUSH’s operating units, as they approach all endeavors with the same philosophy. “Urgency is a critical element of motorsports,” says Evan Lyall, CEO of ROUSH Enterprises, headquartered in Livonia, Mich. “NASCAR is going to have a race every Sunday whether you’re ready or not, so you’d better be ready.” This sense of urgency and competitive drive to work harder and be better than the next guy is palpable throughout the organization.
ROUSH began in 1976 as Jack Roush Performance Engineering. “In the beginning, the company was focused solely on engine development,” says Lyall. In 1981, the business took a turn and formed a sister company, Engine and Control Systems, which was focused on auto engineering. Jack eventually married the two together, which morphed into the Tier 1 supplier of fully integrated engineering and development support services known today as ROUSH. “We started out as engineers,” says Lyall. “That’s the big difference between ROUSH and our competitors — we’re engineers first. We take our customers’ visions from a sketchpad to the showroom floor. We understand the product development process for the transportation industry and the challenges our customers face better than any supplier.”
In 1988, ROUSH formed ROUSH Racing (known today as Roush-Fenway Racing, due to a joint venture formed in 2007). “Ford was looking to go back into racing, and they called us to gauge our interest,” says Lyall. “Given our engineering expertise and Jack’s passion for all things racing, it was the perfect opportunity to further diversify our business.”
In 1995, those at ROUSH came up with yet another way to diversify the business when they formed ROUSH Performance. ROUSH performance combines the engineering expertise of ROUSH with the motorsports experience of ROUSH-Fenway Racing to produce complete performance vehicles, modular engines, and high-performance parts. “We’d been supplying high-quality automotive products to OEMs around the world for years,” says Lyall. “The idea was to couple our product development capabilities with the ROUSH brand recognition, which was huge because of Jack’s involvement in NASCAR every Sunday, and sell our products directly to the public. Cars are a passion for many people; we thought this would be a great addition to the ROUSH brand, and we were right.”
Today, automotive enthusiasts can purchase a ROUSH Mustang or F-150 at more than 500 dealers across the country. There are three “stages” of quality. Stage 1 consists mostly of appearance features; Stage 2 contains appearance features and suspensions to make the vehicle more aggressive from a handling perspective; and Stage 3 contains everything in Stages 1 and 2 plus power improvements. For do-it-yourselfers, ROUSH also sells specific part components.
While ROUSH has traditionally grown the organization organically through people and investments in equipment, they’re beginning to develop an acquisition strategy. “We’re looking to consolidate a few companies that compete in the automotive performance aftermarket,” says Lyall. “They might be companies with little brand recognition that would benefit from becoming part of the ROUSH family or companies that do have brand recognition but don’t possess the engineering depth we do to take it to the next level. The ultimate goal is to expand ROUSH Performance more quickly.”
This is part of the organization’s long-term strategy to achieve deliberate, responsible growth. “We’re committed to promoting an entrepreneurial environment for our people,” says Lyall. “That environment has enabled us to diversify, and diversification has helped us weather the tough times that have plagued the automotive industry. I’m confident that staying committed to these goals will position us to be the leader in providing engineering services to the auto industry and establish ROUSH as a preeminent brand in enthusiast markets.”
What’s ROUSH’s best-kept secret (at least ’til now)? The depth and breadth of their services. “We’re a service company,” says Lyall. “We’ve been involved in enumerable auto projects over the past 26 years. Trouble is, we can’t talk about them. As a result, people are often surprised at how widespread our capabilities really are.”
ROUSH’s services include:
ROUSH has grown from 26 staff in 1981 to more than 3,000 staff throughout Southeast Michigan and in Concord, North Carolina (the headquarters of ROUSH-Fenway Racing). Lyall refers to this growth at “meteoric” and cites Plante & Moran’s advice as crucial in managing it. “Plante & Moran has been with us since we were a relative ‘mom and pop’ organization,” he says. “And while the service they’ve provided in terms of audit and tax advice has been helpful, it’s the consultation they’ve given us on growing our business that’s been particularly key. [Retired partner] Jim Bayson deserves a lot of the credit for helping to guide our business from where we were when we started to where we are today. We’re much larger, more complex, and more self-sufficient because of the guidance we’ve received over the years from Jim and others at Plante & Moran.”
There’s no question about it: ROUSH is an iconic name in the world of racing; the company has managed to combine Jack Roush’s engineering prowess, competitive spirit, and drive to become the largest professional motorsports organization in the world. Perhaps not surprisingly, these attributes permeate all of ROUSH’s operating units, as they approach all endeavors with the same philosophy. “Urgency is a critical element of motorsports,” says Evan Lyall, CEO of ROUSH Enterprises, headquartered in Livonia, Mich. “NASCAR is going to have a race every Sunday whether you’re ready or not, so you’d better be ready.” This sense of urgency and competitive drive to work harder and be better than the next guy is palpable throughout the organization.
Engineers First
ROUSH began in 1976 as Jack Roush Performance Engineering. “In the beginning, the company was focused solely on engine development,” says Lyall. In 1981, the business took a turn and formed a sister company, Engine and Control Systems, which was focused on auto engineering. Jack eventually married the two together, which morphed into the Tier 1 supplier of fully integrated engineering and development support services known today as ROUSH. “We started out as engineers,” says Lyall. “That’s the big difference between ROUSH and our competitors — we’re engineers first. We take our customers’ visions from a sketchpad to the showroom floor. We understand the product development process for the transportation industry and the challenges our customers face better than any supplier.”
In 1988, ROUSH formed ROUSH Racing (known today as Roush-Fenway Racing, due to a joint venture formed in 2007). “Ford was looking to go back into racing, and they called us to gauge our interest,” says Lyall. “Given our engineering expertise and Jack’s passion for all things racing, it was the perfect opportunity to further diversify our business.”
It’s All About Performance
In 1995, those at ROUSH came up with yet another way to diversify the business when they formed ROUSH Performance. ROUSH performance combines the engineering expertise of ROUSH with the motorsports experience of ROUSH-Fenway Racing to produce complete performance vehicles, modular engines, and high-performance parts. “We’d been supplying high-quality automotive products to OEMs around the world for years,” says Lyall. “The idea was to couple our product development capabilities with the ROUSH brand recognition, which was huge because of Jack’s involvement in NASCAR every Sunday, and sell our products directly to the public. Cars are a passion for many people; we thought this would be a great addition to the ROUSH brand, and we were right.”
Today, automotive enthusiasts can purchase a ROUSH Mustang or F-150 at more than 500 dealers across the country. There are three “stages” of quality. Stage 1 consists mostly of appearance features; Stage 2 contains appearance features and suspensions to make the vehicle more aggressive from a handling perspective; and Stage 3 contains everything in Stages 1 and 2 plus power improvements. For do-it-yourselfers, ROUSH also sells specific part components.
On the Horizon
While ROUSH has traditionally grown the organization organically through people and investments in equipment, they’re beginning to develop an acquisition strategy. “We’re looking to consolidate a few companies that compete in the automotive performance aftermarket,” says Lyall. “They might be companies with little brand recognition that would benefit from becoming part of the ROUSH family or companies that do have brand recognition but don’t possess the engineering depth we do to take it to the next level. The ultimate goal is to expand ROUSH Performance more quickly.”
This is part of the organization’s long-term strategy to achieve deliberate, responsible growth. “We’re committed to promoting an entrepreneurial environment for our people,” says Lyall. “That environment has enabled us to diversify, and diversification has helped us weather the tough times that have plagued the automotive industry. I’m confident that staying committed to these goals will position us to be the leader in providing engineering services to the auto industry and establish ROUSH as a preeminent brand in enthusiast markets.”
ROUSH: Services at a Glance
What’s ROUSH’s best-kept secret (at least ’til now)? The depth and breadth of their services. “We’re a service company,” says Lyall. “We’ve been involved in enumerable auto projects over the past 26 years. Trouble is, we can’t talk about them. As a result, people are often surprised at how widespread our capabilities really are.”
ROUSH’s services include:
- Vehicle assembly
- Sales & distribution
- Concept design & styling
- Body engineering
- Chassis engineering
- Powertrain engineering
- Electrical engineering
- NVH engineering
- Technical communications
- Vehicle integration
- Testing
- Prototype development
- Tooling & manufacturing
ROUSH & Plante & Moran: 18 Years of Driving Success Together
ROUSH has grown from 26 staff in 1981 to more than 3,000 staff throughout Southeast Michigan and in Concord, North Carolina (the headquarters of ROUSH-Fenway Racing). Lyall refers to this growth at “meteoric” and cites Plante & Moran’s advice as crucial in managing it. “Plante & Moran has been with us since we were a relative ‘mom and pop’ organization,” he says. “And while the service they’ve provided in terms of audit and tax advice has been helpful, it’s the consultation they’ve given us on growing our business that’s been particularly key. [Retired partner] Jim Bayson deserves a lot of the credit for helping to guide our business from where we were when we started to where we are today. We’re much larger, more complex, and more self-sufficient because of the guidance we’ve received over the years from Jim and others at Plante & Moran.”
