The start of 2025 marked a change in leadership at Corning’s Wilmington facility.

Bryce Dill (left) started as manager of the Wilmington plant for the New York-based company, taking the role over from Russ Lopatka, who is now serving as Corning’s North America manufacturing manager for optical fiber.

About 1,000 people now work at the Wilmington facility, which opened in 1966. The Wilmington facility, originally an electrical resistors facility in the 1960s, was converted over time into an optical fiber plant and continues to be a staple facility for Corning.

Though relatively new to this role, Dill has a history with Corning.

He has worked for the company for 17 years holding various roles – living in Wilmington that full time. Dill was most recently the Wilmington plan’s operations manager before moving into the site’s top role.

Following is a recent Q&A with Dill. To read more, go to WilmingtonBizMagazine.com.
 

What have you brought to your new role as plant manager since starting this year?

“In this new role, I have built upon the strong foundation of the plant, which has been at the cutting edge of manufacturing for decades.

Our talented workforce here in Wilmington uses advanced, proprietary manufacturing processes to make optical fiber – the revolutionary material invented by Corning more than 50 years ago that forms the backbone of today’s telecommunications networks.

I am honored to continue the legacy of innovation.”
 

What projects are the facility focusing on this year?

“The optical fiber that our workforce makes here in Wilmington has never been more important, because connectivity is so central to the way we live today.

Fiber is critical to Generative AI, and to the important work of bringing high-speed connections to more people in more places. Think about it: Every time you type a query into a Gen AI application, you’re relying on optical fiber.

For us here in Wilmington, as the world’s first optical fiber manufacturing facility, this all translates into a continued focus on innovation – one of Corning’s core values.”
 

Future projects for yourself as plant leader or the facility overall for next year and beyond?

“With our Wilmington site being the technology center for our division, it’s here that we continue to develop and implement our latest products and processes – as demand for Corning’s innovations continues to grow.”
 

Are there other community groups you’re involved with? If so, in what ways have you or are currently volunteering and what drove you to work with them?

“I have been engaged with the United Way of the Cape Fear Area since 2016 and joined their board of directors last summer.  The United Way is an incredible organization that understands the needs of our community and leverages their funding to create a 4x impact in our region.

Our United Way works tirelessly to improve our community, and I am excited to be part of the team making that impact.”