{"schema_version":"secwatch.filing_event.v1","accession":"0001654954-23-000255","form_type":"8-K","ticker":"EML","cik":"0000031107","company_name":"EASTERN CO","filed_at":"2023-01-10T23:59:59+00:00","discovered_at":"2026-05-14T18:03:47.581714+00:00","generated_at":"2026-06-20T17:19:05.126050+00:00","sec_items":["5.02","9.01"],"event_type":"leadership","sentiment":"neutral","materiality_score":0.6,"calibrated_materiality_score":0.6,"confidence":"high","headline":"The Eastern Company appoints Mark Hernandez as CEO effective Jan 23, 2023","bullets":["Mark Hernandez appointed CEO, succeeding August Vlak who has served since 2016.","Hernandez was a board member and most recently EVP at Navistar (global manufacturing).","Vlak led strategic restructuring and stewardship through recent challenges.","Hernandez plans to focus on organic growth, margin expansion, and shareholder value."],"urls":{"canonical":"https://secwatch.observer/filing/0001654954-23-000255","json":"https://secwatch.observer/filing/0001654954-23-000255.json","markdown":"https://secwatch.observer/filing/0001654954-23-000255.md","text":"https://secwatch.observer/filing/0001654954-23-000255.txt","edgar_index":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/31107/000165495423000255/0001654954-23-000255-index.htm","edgar_primary_document":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/31107/000165495423000255/eml_8k.htm"},"model":{"generated_by":"deepseek-v4-flash:cloud@v2","generated_at":"2026-06-20T17:19:05.126050+00:00"},"review":{"review_status":"machine_generated","human_reviewed":false,"corrected":false,"correction_note":null,"correction_timestamp":null,"superseded_by":null,"related_filings":[]},"source_grounded_claims":[{"claim_id":"b7455a998d","claim":"Mark Hernandez was appointed as Chief Executive Officer at EASTERN CO.","evidence_excerpt":"On January 9, 2023, The Eastern Company (the “Company”) appointed Mark Hernandez as its next Chief Executive Officer, to succeed August (Gus) Vlak, who has served as Chief Executive Officer since 2016, effective January 23, 2023.","evidence_source":"SEC 8-K Item 5.02","evidence_url":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/31107/000165495423000255/0001654954-23-000255-index.htm","confidence":0.95,"family_label":"Executive change","details":[{"label":"Action","value":"appointed"},{"label":"Role","value":"Chief Executive Officer"}],"fact_type":"executive_change"},{"claim_id":"c3c5378a32","claim":"August Vlak departed as Chief Executive Officer at EASTERN CO.","evidence_excerpt":"On January 9, 2023, The Eastern Company (the “Company”) appointed Mark Hernandez as its next Chief Executive Officer, to succeed August (Gus) Vlak, who has served as Chief Executive Officer since 2016, effective January 23, 2023.","evidence_source":"SEC 8-K Item 5.02","evidence_url":"https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/31107/000165495423000255/0001654954-23-000255-index.htm","confidence":0.95,"family_label":"Executive change","details":[{"label":"Role","value":"Chief Executive Officer"}],"fact_type":"executive_change"}],"license":"Source filings: public domain (SEC EDGAR). Summaries (headline + bullets): CC-BY-4.0; attribute https://secwatch.observer"}