Metalsmith Avedis Zildjian was a student of change. A maker of musical instruments for the court of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, he also dabbled in alchemy: the art of transmutation and transfiguration.
Yet it was through science and the labor of his own hands that Zildjian achieved a very different kind of magic. Since 1623, his business has kept the rhythm of the world. The Avedis Zildjian Company is the oldest manufacturer of percussive musical instruments — from cymbals to drumsticks to drumkits to, more recently, e-kits — and is one of the oldest continuously operating global companies.
Zildjian, still family-owned, has withstood international conflicts, the rise and fall of empires, and more than four centuries of innovation and upheaval. They’ve made their own mark on the world as well. The Zildjian family name — which means “son of a cymbal smith” — is etched, literally, into the history of art and culture.
This spring, Andrew Smetana ’25 added his own name into that history.
As Smetana, a self-taught musician who can play the piano, the guitar, the bass, and, of course, the drums, wandered through the showroom of Zildjian’s Norwell, Massachusetts, headquarters, he marveled at the legends brought to life around him with each step.
Passing through the company’s many showcases, he was met by a new icon every few feet: the drumkit used by Gene Krupa to bring the house down with “Sing, Sing, Sing (with a Swing)”; a replica of the Ludwig Super Classic that helped Ringo Starr power Beatlemania; even the set Animal the Muppet, thrashed alongside Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, much to Kermit the Frog’s dismay.
A collection of musicians’ photos and autographed cymbals line the walls, each with their own wild story and important legacy, and each paying tribute to the Zildjian instruments that helped them find their groove.
“I saw some of the coolest things I’d ever seen in my life,” Smetana admits.
But he also promised himself that the grandeur wouldn’t blind him to the job that needed to be done.
“We expect more from the supply chain capstone students because they can do a little more.”
This past semester, Smetana and his team of Bryant Global Supply Chain Management seniors — including Alexis Diamantes ’25, Jessica Gaskin ’25, Alexis Klein ’25, and Kelvyn Strong ’25 — all became a part of the Zildjian tradition. Tasked with helping the centuries-old company improve their supply chain efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance delivery performance, they would step into an unprecedented moment for both Zildjian and for the world.
Mid-project, the 2025 global trade war would crash down on the legendary music company.
“I came to Bryant because I wanted a hands-on education. And that’s exactly what I got,” Smetana laughs.
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Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management Chris Roethlein, Ph.D., who founded Bryant’s Global Supply Chain Practicum in 2010, has been preparing his students for moments like this his entire teaching career. In a way, his business is transformation, as well.
Arguably more than any other field, the global supply chain runs the world. From the distribution of life-saving vaccines to securing the pipeline of parts for the latest videogame system, the supply chain courses through nearlyevery aspect of our daily lives.
Roethlein aims to prepare his pupils to be masters of that universe. Over the last eight years alone, the senior practicum program, through which undergraduates serve as professional consultants for real companies, has saved corporate partners an estimated $270 million. Roethlein’s client list includes a long tally of household names and other, quieter, organizations that keep the country and the world running.
More than 660 students have collaborated on 128 projects for more than 100 different companies since the practicum was first introduced. This past semester alone, supply chain practicum teams collaborated with National Grid, Edesia Nutrition, Large Construction Company, Pratt & Whitney, and Hayward Holdings in addition to Zildjian — advising them on issues ranging from waste reduction to facility expansion to supplier performance reporting.
The practicum has become a signature program at Bryant and a unique resource for companies in every industry — one with a reputation for, and track record of, success.
“We are the only college in the United States that has a program like this,” states Roethlein with the quiet confidence of a man who has spent his life sweating the details. Tested by industry before dedicating his life to teaching — and known for both his attention to precision and ability to put the pieces together — Roethlein considers the practicum the purest extension of himself.
“When they confront something unexpected,” he says, “it gives them a chance to rise to that challenge.”
The program’s success is founded on an uncompromising commitment to excellence, matched by a dedication to ensuring that students are ready to lead from their first day on the job, no matter the industry they choose. “Our role is to elevate our students and bring them to a higher level,” shares Roethlein. “We expect more from the supply chain capstone students because they can do a little more.”
So, whether they’re helping global leaders discover new ways to stay ahead of the game, or supporting a legend like Zildjian as they weather a global sea change, disruption isn’t a problem. It’s an opportunity.
“One of the things that I really push is creating a sense of urgency,” reflects Roethlein. “Students need to appreciate that, in the business world, you have to have a sense of urgency to get things done. You have to be organized and you have to be able to plan ahead — but you also have to be able to adapt quickly.
“When they confront something unexpected,” he says, “it gives them a chance to rise to that challenge.”
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Each member of the Bryant practicum team had specifically selected the Zildjian project; some for the challenge it presented, others because they aimed to work in a related industry.
For Smetana, it was more personal. “This is a company that means so much to so many people,” he notes. “I wanted to help make a difference for them using the skills I had developed.”
Advised by Roethlein and Marketing Professor Michael Gravier, Ph.D., who spent more than a decade as an Air Force logistics officer, the team immediately set to work by meeting with company leaders and collecting data.
It took a moment for the undergraduates to build the rapport needed to do their jobs as trusted partners, the students admit, but their dedication and acumen won the company over. “I feel like they respected us as colleagues,” says Diamanates.
That trust also gave the team license to innovate. Bill Lawrence, Zildjian’s senior vice president of operations, says the company initially presented the consultants “with a general idea, a disjointed dataset of suppliers, and a hope that they would be able to find some meaningful supply chain improvements.”
Though they had no background in instrument manufacturing, the students applied what they had learned through their supply chain coursework to dissect its nuances. They discovered that while Zildjian’s cymbals are manufactured in Norwell, and its drumsticks are crafted in Newport, Maine, the company sources the raw materials for its products both domestically and internationally before selling them around the world.
“We got a behind–the-scenes look at manufacturing, artist work, and product development,” notes Klein.
From there, they devised ways to streamline logistics and vendor management to support Zildjian’s growth across its business units. By drawing together data from a variety of sources, they developed a full picture of the company’s needs and practices and used that knowledge to evaluate vendors — analyzing everything from price to product scope to international shipping routes — and guide sourcing decisions.
“If you’re a problem-solver, this is the business for you, and Bryant is full of problem-solvers,”
A spend analysis helped them identify cost-saving, efficiency, and purchasing opportunities. For Smetana, the project added a new dimension to his respect for Zildjian’s products. “Working with them gave me a deeper appreciation for how a company can preserve its heritage while still remaining competitive,” he says.
The cost of success, and of change, he notes, does not have to be one’s soul.
With the supply chain vendor consolidation process now in hand, the team decided to add a second element to the project. Led by Gaskin and Strong, they would also investigate mitigating tariff risks — a key concern for the international company, which has raw materials coming in, and finished products going out, constantly.
But when the Trump administration announced a sudden, and unprecedented, wave of global tariffs in April, even a company as time-tested as Zildjian was thrown for a loop.
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Jason Kelly, the director of Bryant’s John H. Chafee Center for International Business, was at the State International Development Organization’s 2025 Washington Leadership Forum, which assembles U.S. trade directors and top federal and international officials to discuss critical trade policy and legislative issues, when the tariffs were announced. “It was chaos,” he recalls. “Suddenly, people who had built their careers on knowing every detail had no answers.”
Global trade relies on stability, notes Kelly, a former consultant for the U.S. Department of State who, before coming to Bryant, served as executive vice president for Moran Shipping Agencies. Any sort of change has reverberations that extend to every industry — from baby products to electronics to, yes, even cymbals produced in the United States.
So when the world’s greatest superpower announced unexpected and sweeping tariffs, it set the word ablaze — and sent companies large and small scrambling in ways that will extend far into the future.
The events of April 2025 might serve as a wake-up call, says Kelly: Every business is an international business and no one can afford to ignore the global landscape. It’s also part two of a primer on the intricacies and importance of the global supply chain — an education that began with empty shelves at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Yet amidst the chaos, this was the sort of moment where Bryant thrives, Kelly notes. Not only is it an incredible teaching tool for students, he says; it’s an opportunity to leverage the talents of the university’s faculty and students to benefit the greater community.
“If you’re a problem-solver, this is the business for you, and Bryant is full of problem-solvers,” Kelly reflects.
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With the introduction of the tariffs, the Bryant team pivoted to helping Zildjian ride new waves in the international commerce scene. They recruited Bryant Executive in Residence June Youngs, who has helped solve national and international supply chain issues for Hasbro, Nabisco, Ocean Spray Cranberries, and, most recently, CVS Health, as their in-house expert.
“She was pretty incredible to talk to,” Smetana notes. “She’s seen just about everything.”
But no one had seen anything quite like this before. It meant rethinking their work to date, and a more intensive project, but the Bryant consultants weren’t complaining.
“I loved how we had the chance to respond to real-world events and pivot,” says Strong.
“They uncovered new approaches to our supply chain, new avenues to recover previous costs, and ways to save costs going forward.”
The group returned to basic principles, taking the concepts they learned in the classroom and finding ways to apply them in new ways. They examined the ins and outs of international commerce and formulated creative solutions that complied with both Zildjian’s best practices and international law.
In short, the Bryant student consultants did a little alchemy of their own.
Working together and with Zildjian’s teams, they developed a comprehensive plan for the company to limit tariff-associated risks, including refining sourcing strategies. They also drafted proposals to take advantage of free and foreign trade zones in the United States that are considered outside of Customs jurisdiction, as well as duty drawback programs — government initiatives that refund certain duties, taxes, and fees paid on imported goods used to manufacture products that are then exported.
Even tweaks to how Zildjian manages and packages its products could help reduce exposure to duties and tariffs. “Especially now, with tariffs being a hot topic, our findings could be useful for numerous companies that may not be on top of the legalities that come with international business,” notes Strong.
Ultimately, the Bryant consulting team was able to identify potential savings opportunities for Zildjian in the range of $500,000 to $1 million over a three- to five year window — an impressive result for a semester of work.
Some of their recommendations are currently being implemented, while others continue to be refined, but the students’ efforts have already made a difference. “They uncovered new approaches to our supply chain, new avenues to recover previous costs, and ways to save costs going forward,” says Zildjian’s Lawrence. “The ideas and strategies developed by the Bryant team have made a significant and lasting impact on the Zildjian supply chain.”
Practice makes perfect, notes Smetana — but nothing beats performing live. "Working with a globally recognized brand like Zildjian has strengthened my problem-solving skills, analytical abilities, and confidence in working with industry professionals," he says.
The team also learned something about their serious, focused professor: Roethlein is a closet music geek. “Almost every day before class, I’d stop by his office and we would talk about music,” recalls Smetana, from the Grateful Dead to Metallica to Kiss.
As a token of their thanks, Zildjian gifted a pair of cymbals to the Bryant Global Supply Chain Management program, which Roethlein proudly placed on the wall of the university’s new Global Supply Chain Lab. They’re a reminder of a tough job well done — and their own symbol of a unique moment in history.
The team had not only survived their trial by fire; they excelled. And they’d undergone a transformation of their own.
Avedis Zildjian was only 22 when he began to perfect his cymbal-making methods — about the same age as Bryant’s practicum students. Defying 3,000 years of tradition and convention, he discovered a new way of forging metal so flexible it could be repeatedly heated, rolled, and hammered into the finest instruments.
His innovation changed the world — and became a gold standard for excellence that would reverberate throughout history.
More than four centuries later, five Bryant practicum students continued that legacy amidst a globe in turmoil. While necessity may be the mother of invention, its lasting impact is forged in the fires of dedication and tempered by experience, knowledge, and adaptability.
Even legends evolve, they learned, as they meet the world around them — offering new wisdom with each passing generation while still retaining the truth, and beauty, at their core.
It’s a feat of alchemy and performance that Avedis would applaud.
Additional reporting by Bob Curley.
If you are interested in Bryant University’ Global Supply Chain Management program and its capstone practicum, please contact Professor Chris Roethlein at croethle@bryant.edu.