Archive for the ‘Training’ Category

Reinventing Education – Students Learning “how to think – not what to think” for New Collar Workforce

Tuesday, August 16th, 2022

Our non-profit Industry Reimagined 2030 has identified some prevailing misperceptions about manufacturing that must be dispelled if we want to be successful in growing the supply of available recruits for manufacturing jobs.  These are that “manufacturing is in inevitable decline” and “manufacturing jobs are dumb, dirty and not well paying.”

Fortunately, the importance of manufacturing during the pandemic and advanced manufacturing technologies are changing some of the longstanding misperceptions. The Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute 2022 Manufacturing Perception Study reports “Sixty-four percent of consumers surveyed view manufacturing as innovative, up from 39% of respondents five years ago” and 77% now view manufacturing as more important than they did pre-pandemic.

I recently interviewed Glenn Marshall who is one of our advisors for Industry Reimagined 2030. Glenn Marshall is also serving on the Association for Manufacturing Excellence Management team to help lead a Manufacturing Renaissance. He told me that this “initiative is designed to reduce the critical shortage of skilled workers for advanced technology and manufacturing. He reaches out to business leaders, academia, students, veterans, and policymakers to promote innovative ideas to create ladders of opportunity to make ‘Made in America’ a reality by leading initiatives to design and build things at home, again.”

Prior to retiring, he said that he was the benchmarking/process excellence advocate for Northrop Grumman and Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS). He engaged with all levels of the corporation, supply chain, and the Navy and led the proposal team from NNS to support the Navy’s Task Force Lean initiative. He continues to work with NNS in its outreach to the public schools and colleges Career Pathways program.

He said, “We struggled along with other employers in Virginia and across the nation to find the kind of skilled workers they needed so realized that they had to get involved with the local schools. I met with the superintendent of the Williamsburg James City County (WJCC) School District and arranged to have students tour local manufacturing facilities   part of national Manufacturing Day. These employers showed the students, teachers, and parents the kind of good paying jobs are available and what they could earn doing these jobs which got the students interested. 

Then we worked with the New Horizons Regional Education Center (NHREC) in Virginia and other employers to create an expanded   pubic private partnership to provide career and technical educational options for students within the school districts. NHREC is the largest of nine regional centers in the Commonwealth of Virginia.  NHREC has become a benchmark for community partnerships

The New Horizons Regional Education Center (NHREC) in Virginia has engaged in a public private partnership with Newport News Shipbuilding Apprentice School, employers, public school leaders, legislators and families. They are working to provide career and technical educational options for students within the school districts. NHREC has become a benchmark for community partnerships. Educators and families are discovering that career technical initiatives valued by employers can provide an equitable gateway for each student to learn how to be capable of achieving their career goals and dreams.

Glenn commented, “Upcoming graduates will step into a rapidly changing workforce, with a growing number of “new-collar jobs” requiring specialized, technical skill sets. The future of learning is changing — Beyond creating a world online, advances in artificial intelligence, cognitive technologies, and robotics are upending traditional assumptions about jobs and technology’s role in the workplace. For kids wanting to seize these opportunities, having transferable skills will be more important than a degree. For many, a strong foundation in science, technology, engineering, and math skills will be invaluable. And for some, apprenticeship and certification programs will be essential.”

Glenn also sent me information about Virginia’s lab schools. He said, “These schools are partnerships between public and private universities and colleges, as well as private companies and local K-12 schools. Lab schools that have a specific focus, such as STEM or literacy, or a particular skill or industry, will create learning environments that engage students in hands-on learning.”  My research discovered:  “Legislation approved by the 2010 General Assembly (HB 1389 and SB 736) and the 2012 General Assembly (HB 577) allows any public or private institution of higher education in the commonwealth with an approved teacher-preparation program to establish a college partnership laboratory school…College partnership laboratory schools are public schools established by contract between the governing board of a college partnership laboratory school and the Board of Education.”

I told him that California had passed legislation to re-establish career technical education for grades 7-12 in 2002 (Senate Bill 1934 (McPherson), a companion bill to the earlier Assembly Bill 1412 (Wright), passed in the same year) but it didn’t get fully implemented until 2005. Now, I know of three high schools that teach manufacturing skills such as machining and welding in the San Diego region. The training is a two-year program for juniors and seniors and students receive certifications upon graduation.

Glenn said, “Companies want graduates with an eye for detail, creative critical thinking skills, a collaborative mindset and an ability to deal with ambiguity and complexity. New graduates will need foundational skills in reading, writing math and science, but also know how to think – not just want to think.

He concluded by saying, “To achieve this goal, educators and business leaders must form public-private partnerships and join with organizations like the Association for Manufacturing Excellence (AME), the Reshoring Initiative and others to engage in reinventing the educational experience. The goal is to graduate all students with the critical thinking skills to adapt to the evolving challenges of new-collar careers and the ever-changing demands for the future of work.

The Association for Manufacturing Excellence will host an international conference in Dallas Texas October 17 – 20, 2022.  Register at  https://www.ame.org/ame-dallas-2022  One of the featured sessions will be an international panel discussing how companies are addressing the need to replenish the talent pipeline with skilled career ready new collar workers: 

In order to achieve the goal of creating five million more manufacturing jobs by 2030, we encourage manufacturers to use the increased public awareness to promote manufacturing’s benefits, opportunities, and technological advances to increase the number of youths interested in manufacturing careers. Manufacturers should emphasize that advanced manufacturing technologies now provide, safe, clean working environments that pay well and offer highly transferable skills that enable career advancement.  As incentives, companies can offer internships, work programs, certification or degree programs, and apprenticeships to increase the talent pool and develop the skilled workforce they need to grow their businesses. 

How to Leverage New Technologies & Energize a New Generation to Close the Labor Gap

Tuesday, May 12th, 2020

With over 30 million people unemployed right now due to shutdowns and stay-in-place orders in most states because of COVID-19, it may seem like odd timing for American Machinist and IndustryWeek to release a new eBook titled, “Closing the Skills Gap – How manufacturers are leveraging new technologies and energizing a new generation to finally close the labor gap,” sponsored by Epicor Software Corporation. However, now is the time to be prepared to take advantage of the increased interest in returning manufacturing to America and strengthen our manufacturing base as a result of the weaknesses in the domestic supply chain revealed by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

This eBook is important because the Executive Summary states: “We are on the cusp of a full-scale digital revolution in the manufacturing industry…[and] on the cusp of an enormous wave of retirements as Baby Boomers exit the job market…we have a perfect storm.”  The result could be that the “500,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs today…[could] balloon to 2.5 million over the next decade.”

The facts are that “a whopping 10,000 Baby Boomers retire every day” and “the skills required for a job don’t match talent in existing worker pools. Five out of 10 open positions for skilled workers in the U.S. manufacturing industry remain unoccupied today. This shortage is due to the skills gap.”

The good news is that “Over the last few years, manufacturers across the industry have begun systematically attacking the skills gap head-on…” The eBook outlines the application of the new tactics that manufacturers are applying across industries.

First, the eBook mentions that Gen Z may be the generation that saves manufacturing from the “silver tsunami.” It reports that a new study, 2019 L2L Manufacturing Index, examining the American public’s perceptions of U.S. manufacturing, found that adults in Generation Z (those aged 18-22) are:

  • 19% more likely to have had a counselor, teacher or mentor suggest they look into manufacturing as a viable career option when compared to the general population.
  • One-third (32%) had manufacturing suggested to them as a career option, as compared to only 18% of Millennials and 13% of the general population.
  • 7% more likely to consider working in the manufacturing industry
  • 12% less likely to view the manufacturing industry as being in decline, both compared against the general population.
  • one-third (32%) have family members or friends working in the manufacturing industry, compared to 19% for Millennials and 15% for the general population.

However, there is still work to be done about the perception of manufacturing, as “A majority (56%) of Generation Z would consider working in the tech industry, while only 27% would consider working in the manufacturing industry. Additionally, they are more likely to consider manufacturing jobs boring when compared to Millennials and the general population.”  

In the chapter “5 Ways Manufacturing is Tackling the Labor Shortage,” Poornima Apte lists creative ways manufacturing companies are attracting and recruiting talent:

1. Encouraging a Test Drive – hiring for short-term assignments as a way to company and worker to test whether there is a good fit for permanent employment.

2. Advancing and Training Internal Talent – “Promoting internal talent can be a two-fer. It serves to retain valuable employees, and the company invests in known entities.” Instead of traditional tuition reimbursements for back-to-school training…manufacturing companies are forking over the money upfront.”

3. Tapping into Unconventional Talent Pools – “Companies are looking beyond the pool of graduating students to recruit blue-collar workers… such as ex-convicts looking to reenter the workforce.

Manufacturing companies are also partnering with organizations that cater to veter­ans and minorities.”

4. Looking beyond the resume – “By checking on skillset rather than education alone, companies are more closely aligning specific jobs to the talent they need…77% of employers are willing to prioritize a candidate’s skills and potential over experience.

5. Diving into Data Analytics – “Manufacturers can analyze demographic factors across the country and find out which places will have the best talent…companies can act on that intelligence proactively and recruit more aggressively in areas they feel have more desirable candidates.

Next, Jared Lindzon presents three ways companies can use technology to attract younger employees in the chapter “How to Leverage Technology to Attract a Younger Workforce:”

  • Offer elearning – “As the first generation to grow up with the Internet, younger workers like having constant access to information. But…they’re often not interested in anything that feels too much like school. Leveraging modern technology that millennials know and love, through eLearning, makes a huge difference.” Millennials are eager to learn. They just want to do it using modern, digital platforms.”
  • Update Administrative Processes – …younger workers expect the same level of efficiency, convenience and usability in their work tools as they enjoy in their consumer products. “They bring those same expectations to their jobs, so employers are increasingly exam­ining processes to provide the same quality experience and ease-of-use for employees using technology in the workplace…”
  • Avoid the ‘If it’s not broke…” Fallacy’” – “… staying ahead of technology trends can help attract younger workers…They thrive off of staying ahead of the tech curve to discover new methods of completing tasks and auto­mating processes…Younger workers want to feel like they’re working for a company on the cutting edge. The new generation is more flexible, open to change and willing to get hands-on to discover new techniques…”

The eBook also offers a list of ten suggestions from consulting firm Mercer on how to optimize an experienced workforce in the chapter, “Let’s Not Forget The Value of Experienced Workers,” warning that “ignoring this group is risky. By 2040 the average life expectancy is predicted to be 80 years, up from 56 in 1966 and 72 in 2016. As a result, many people are working longer for a variety of reasons, including financial necessity, purpose, and social/ intellectual engagement.” A few important key suggestions are:

  1. Collect and analyze your age-profile data to explore demographic and skills pinch points.
  2. Develop and implement people and careers strategies that embrace the experienced workforce.
  3. Develop a lifelong learning attitude that positions people to embrace jobs of the future.
  4. Implement an effective flexible-working strategy.

I was really gratified to see that the eBook included the chapter “How Manufacturing Day is Helping Combat the Labor Shortage,” by Tom Bidinger.  Manufacturing Day (aka MFG DAY) was started in 2012 to combat the common misconceptions about manufacturing, and it has made a difference. “MFG DAY—gives manufacturers the opportunity to open their doors and show what it’s really like to work in manufacturing.”

I was pleased to read that Manufacturing Day is contributing to breaking “the cycle of misinformation when it comes to manufacturing careers. A recent survey found that just 67% of parents would encourage their child to learn more about job opportunities in manufacturing. That number needs to increase.” I’ve attended events for MFG DAY in three counties, San Diego, Riverside, and Los Angeles, since it began in 2012 and have visited dozens of companies to see what they were manufacturing.  It’s been a pleasure to see that parents are taking the time to take their children and teens to visit local manufacturers. 

Bidinger writes, “By working together during and after MFG DAY, manufacturers can begin to address the skilled labor shortage, connect with future generations, change the public image, and ensure the ongoing prosperity of the whole industry. “

In the next chapter, “About the Skills Gap and Start Solving it,” Michael Collins writes that “A lack of training and job security is at the root of manufacturing’s image problem.” He adds, “the skills gap is real and a two-pronged problem. First, manufacturing does not have the advanced training programs needed to produce the high skilled workers they need. Second, young people, their parents and counselors do not see manufacturing as a good career.”

He provides a good summary of what manufacturers, especially large, multinational corporations, have done in the past 40 years to reduce labor costs and other costs of doing business and then discusses some of the tools that can be used to address the skills gap. 

The final two chapters provide examples of what two companies are doing to address the skills gap.  In the chapter, “Modern Machining & The Need for Speed,” John Hitches describes what former boxer and machining revolutionary, Titan Gilroy, has done in “an aggressive strategy to combat all the threats to American manufacturing, from outsourcing to the skills gap.”

In the final chapter, “Creating a National Workforce of Trained Welders,” IndustryWeek Senior Editor, Adrienne Selko, describes how Lincoln Electric has partnered with Tooling U-SME to expand its welding education program in order to close the national skills gap in welding.

Utilizing all of the suggestions contained in this eBook will rebuild American manufacturing to create jobs and prosperity and protect Americans from being so severely impacted by unexpected disasters whether natural or manmade like the Coronavirus.

Prairie State College Starts Innovative Mobile Training Program

Wednesday, February 26th, 2020

At the Made in America trade show last October, I stopped by the booth of Prairie State College in Chicago Heights, IL and met Craig Schmidt. V. P. of Community and Economic Development and Jim Kvedaras, Consultant. They were at the show to publicize the launch of their new Mobile Training Center (MTC) program that will provide innovative ways to train and retain workers and minimize workplace interruptions. Craig told me, “We recently received an Economic Development Administration (EDA) grant to create the MTC.  We used that grant and matching college funds to build two mobile training centers that can be moved at will to bring hands-on training to a company site.”

Last week, I checked back with Craig and Jim to see how the program was going.  He said they have been identifying manufacturers that would benefit from the program and will start the program at Ford Motor Company’s Stamping plant the week of March 16.  They have additional companies lined up.

He explained, “By using the MTCs, employers save the time and expense of sending employees off site to locations for industrial skills training, and workers will not be inconvenienced by having to commute to a community college campus or other location for training. We’ve been offering training in manufacturing skills about 41 of the 60 years since the College opened in 1958. Today, manufacturers need new ways to address the skills gap and retain their workers to be competitive in the global economy. Mobile training can provide some of those ways, and our local manufacturers wanted the training to be brought to them.”

“We’re the first in the area to have these,” he said. “Larger companies that operate three shifts around the clock will be able to provide equal and training opportunities to employees.  It’s all focused on advanced manufacturing. The top priority is to upskill current employees.”

He explained, “The MTCs are two 53 ft. highway truck trailers that are temperature controlled, Wi-Fi enabled, and handicap accessible.  The MTCs can come on demand, so that training doesn’t have to be confined to whatever facilities an employer can make available without shutting down production lines. The MTCs can be moved to other plant locations, providing training opportunities for more employees, and then moved to other employers.  Employers can work with the college to design a training curriculum based on their goals, while minimizing production downtime while the training takes place.”

Craig provided me with a brochure that explained that one trailer is a welding unit and the other is a manufacturing unit.  The welding trailer is “equipped with eight multiprocess welding stations and two virtual reality/augmented Arc welding simulation.” Students will learn “welding setup, operation, and troubleshooting using Miller multiprocess welders.”

The manufacturing unit is described as being equipped with the following equipment:

  • “Emco machines
  • Haas simulators,
  • Manual mill/lathe Combo machining centers
  • ABB Robotic operations for operation and troubleshooting
  • 3D printing capabilities”

The students will learn “PLC and electronics operation and troubleshooting using Siemens and Allen Bradley components” and be trained on “all CNC industry controls that are common to the market.”

The brochure states that MTCs offer:

  • “On-site, hands-on training using current technology
  • Customizable curriculum, including classroom instruction and practical application
  • Training that can be applied toward a college degree or as professional development
  • Lab exercises designed to enhance employee competence and performance”

The benefits to employers are described as:

  • “Minimize loss of production time and travel expenses
  • Increase engagement, efficiency, and retention
  • Maintain a competitive edge
  • Increase safety performance by uniform adherence to industry standards
  • Reduce the manufacturing skills gap”

Craig said, “We are also seeking company sponsorships to assist in offsetting the College’s match of the grant.  The College intends to put a portion of the sponsorship back into the community to promote manufacturing jobs to youth and train individuals who may not have easy access to education.”

I thanked Craig and Jim for the information and said that I hoped to see them at this year’s Made in America trade show in Detroit.  To learn more about the Prairie State College Mobile Training Center program, visit https://prairiestate.edu/MTC, call (708) 709-7722, or email mtc@prairiestate.edu.

When I browsed the College website, I learned that it also has a Department of Corporate and Continuing Education, which offers customized programs that are delivered either to company facilities or on their campus. Besides the typical business topics of business ethics, business writing, customer service, Secrets of Selling, and time management, the College also offers training in computer software and employee development topics.  The latter includes such topics as coaching and mentoring, leadership, and team building.

I was particularly pleased that the College offers training in Lean on such subjects as 5S Workplace Organization, Continuous Improvement, Six Sigma, and Total Productive Maintenance because becoming a Lean enterprise is key to being competitive in the global marketplace. 

All across the country, Community Colleges are taking the lead in providing education and training in the skills needed by today’s manufacturers.  What is still needed is more high schools restoring hands-on skills training at the high school level.  Let’s restore the “shop classes,” such as wood shop and machine shop and start mentoring middle school age children on the importance of choosing STEM careers. STEM careers include manufacturing because nearly all manufacturing today is based on advanced technology.

FAME Develops World Class Manufacturing Technical Talent

Tuesday, February 4th, 2020

Over the past several years, I’ve written nearly 30 articles about programs that address the shortage of skilled manufacturing workers. Last Friday, I had the pleasure of being connected by a friend to interview Dennis Dio Parker, who heads up the Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME). The purpose of FAME “is to be the driving force for developing global-best technical talent for manufacturing and other employers of technical workers.  FAME strives to be a powerful conduit between industry and education.”

Dennis told me that according to the 2018 Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute Skills Gap and Future of Work study. “The Fourth Industrial Revolution is transforming the world of work through artificial intelligence, advanced robotics, automation, analytics, and the Internet of Things. Despite common fears, these technologies are likely to create more jobs than they replace—as illustrated by the tight labor conditions in the US and global manufacturing industry.”

While there was a shortage of about 500,000 unfilled jobs in 2018 due to the skills gap of manufacturing workers, the “study reveals that the skills gap may leave an estimated 2.4 million positions unfilled between 2018 and 2028, with a potential economic impact of 2.5 trillion.” The reason why 2028 is a watershed year for the age of workers is because the last of the Baby Boom generation (1946-1964) and the first of Generation X (1961-1981) would be starting to retire.

Dennis explained that the FAME Advanced Manufacturing Technician Program was an outgrowth of training that Toyota Motor North America provided for employees when they built their new manufacturing plant for vehicles in Georgetown, KY in 1987.  Dennis was one of the first 13 trainers hired to start the training in 1987 and he is the last one still working of the original 13 as he transitions to support transfer of the program after The Manufacturing Institute and Toyota Motor North America announced a partnership to hand-over operation and stewardship of FAME in September 2019.

Dennis added, “Toyota had the advantage of having a culture of continuous improvement, and we continually improve the program. The original vision was to have the training program set up at eight locations where Toyota has a manufacturing presence in North America. We wanted to have other manufacturers as partners in these regions to create a pool of skilled workers for all.  Part of our goal was to help solve the problem of the lack of skilled workers, but the problem is too big and endemic for one program to solve.  There are a lot of good programs, but FAME is different from the others in the way it is structured. This is an employer-led program, not an education-led program.”

When I asked how the training expanded out of Toyota, he said, “In 2005, Ernie Richardson and I made a proposal to Keith Bird, Kentucky Community Technical College Chancellor and Jim Kerley, BCTC President to build a new community college in Georgetown to introduce a new education program. The new campus design was established at NAPSC in 2006 and began operation with the first students in 2007.

With the campus in place, we completed development of the Advanced Manufacturing Technician program establishing an employer group to participate in it. I contacted Ken Carroll, then V. P. of the Kentucky Association of Manufacturers, and worked with him to develop an employer collaborative to support the AMT program. We held the first discussions with other companies in 2008 – 2009, and by October we had formed an organization and elected officers. The first name was the Bluegrass Manufacturing Development Collaboration. (B-MDC)”

He explained why the program stalled, saying, “The Great Recession hit full force in 2009, and we decided to be inactive until business conditions improved. However, Toyota began the first AMT training class in August 2010 at the new campus. By 2011, business conditions had improved to the point that Ken and I decided that it was time to restart the B-MDC. On September 29, 2011, the group met again. We had invited a number of special guests to help relaunch the effort, including Jennifer McNelly, president of the Manufacturing Institute; Wil James, president of Toyota’s Kentucky plant; Dr. Vince Bertram, national president of Project Lead the Way; and Dr. Stanley Chase, a national expert on educational collaboration with business and industry. Since that meeting, the employers group supporting the AMT Program has been in continuous operation.”

Continuing, he said, “Other companies sponsored their first students in the AMT Program with the class of 2012 when 3M, Central Motor Wheel Manufacturing, and GR Spring added their students. In March of 2013 the re-born B-MDC elected new officers, installing Terry McMichael of 3M as President and Danette Wilder of SealingLife as Vice President.”

When I asked how the name was changed to FAME, he said, “The West Virginia Toyota plant started the AMT Program with their college and in close partnership with the West Virginia Manufacturers Association (WVMA). When West Virginia governor announced the start of the AMT Program, he also announced “WV FAME” as the name for the future group of manufacturers which would support AMT in West Virginia.  The “FAME” name was immediately recognized as a powerful promotional identifier for the whole Advanced Manufacturing Career Pathways effort, and with permission of the WVMA, we adopted FAME as the name for North American use, and the B-MDC voted to change the name of the group to KY FAME.”

He added, “On January 14, 2014, Governor Steve Beshear announced the formal incorporation of KY FAME as a state-wide organization with a state board of directors to guide it and direct support of the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development. The Kentucky Community and Technical College System adopted AMT as a state-wide degree track, available anywhere that a local FAME chapter formed. a KY FAME chapter.

Dennis expressed that the results of the training were so compelling that the FAME sites became a destination for educators and educational researchers, business and industry, and news organizations. The AMT programs in Kentucky began contributing to research and study efforts, and had over 1000 visitors from across the U.S. and six foreign nations.  It was judged by many national educators and workforce leaders to be the best 2-year technical program in the U.S.  

He said, “The results of the program and the publicity fueled the growth beyond what Toyota ever expected. It became more than what Toyota could effectively support.  Toyota wanted to maintain what they had, but wanted to establish it on a long-term basis. This is what led to the program being transitioned to management by The Manufacturing Institute. In order to help make this transition successful, I am now on assignment by Toyota for the next few years to manage the transition.”

Dennis explained, “There are currently 403 participating companies at 34 community college campuses and four universities in 13 states, and the numbers are growing every year. The reason for the success is that the employer, not the student, is the number one customer and the profoundly higher outcomes of FAME AMT graduates compared to traditional graduates.  The program incorporates the six professional behaviors, the seven essential behaviors, and the five professional practices, all soft skills, in addition to the manufacturing core exercises that are based on five Lean manufacturing practices.  As a result, the program provides globally competitive technicians that support the success of U. S. manufacturing. The program is a core pipeline for students to continue to Advanced Manufacturing Business and Advanced Manufacturing Engineer degrees. In the AMT program, students go to school three days a week, and work for their sponsoring manufacturer two days a week.  The students are paid for their work, and the student makes enough to pay their tuition, so they can graduate without any student debt.”

He elaborated on future strategies by saying, “We want to proactively change the equation for technical career pathways.  We have been partnering with Project Lead the Way (PLTW) to engage PreK-12 students in the career pathway because they have a comprehensive, seamless, and coordinated PreK -12 program nationwide.  Toyota and others are already providing plant tours to high school students in PLTW programs.  Currently, the PLTW national office supports FAME with development or material and other engagement activities and FAME supports the PLTW national office with PR and involvement with activities on a regional basis.

We also partner with the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE) because they focus on encouraging young woman and minorities to choose STEM careers.  Their “Make the Future” program, developed at our request, is connecting girls to manufacturing.”

I told him this topic is dear to my heart as I have been a woman in manufacturing since starting as an engineering secretary at age 18. I concluded the interview by saying it was a pleasure to learn about FAME and hope that it will expand westward in the future all the way to California where I live.

Unique Maker Skills Academy launches in California

Tuesday, June 25th, 2019

On June 11th 2019,  I received a press release announcing the launch of the Vocademy Maker Skills Academy (MSA)a one-of-a-kind, hands-on skills training program. This intensive program covers many of the vocational, career, and soft skills that are no longer taught in our schools. The kinds of skills thousands of employers are seeking. The program is available to anyone over the age of 16, with no prerequisites, transcripts, or GPA requirements.  The first ten-student MSA team starts July 8th, so enrollment is now open.

It is well documented that there is a massive skills gap in traditional and advanced manufacturing in America today. In past articles, I’ve mentioned that an estimated one to two million good-paying manufacturing jobs are going unfilled due to a lack of people with the right skills. There are also thousands of young adult makers looking for effective alternatives to college. The press release states: “An ideal solution has not existed …until today. This truly unique type program addresses the desperate needs of thousands of employers.”

In 2016, I wrote an article about Vocademy when it was essentially a traditional makerspace open to the public and beginning to offer skills training classes to high school students during the day. During that visit, founder and president Gene Sherman told me, “I started Vocademy because I had witnessed the demise of hands-on skills teaching in this country over the past 20 years. Schools have done away with these critical classes that taught practical life skills like woodworking and metal shop. These were the classes where people learned how to use tools and technology and develop the mindsets necessary to create new and amazing things.

When I saw ‘makerspaces’ springing up, I wanted to combine that type space with teaching the kinds of skills that were previously taught in ‘shop’ classes. I wanted to create a place for those who want to use their hands, in addition to their minds ? makers, inventors, and dreamers. I believe that if our country loses its ability to make and build things, we will have lost what made America great.

I wanted to provide access to these tools, but with proper and practical instruction on how to use them correctly and safely. I wanted a place that teaches the most state-of-the-art manufacturing techniques, not just traditional shop skills. I wanted to teach these important skills without the bureaucracy of academia because many more Americans should have the same opportunity to innovate, collaborate, learn, and create their dreams.”

 I visited Vocademy, located in Riverside, CA, on June 20th and interviewed Gene to find out more about the transformation from a makerspace to a skills discovery and training center.  Gene said, “Employers today are looking for those with a breadth of hands-on and soft skills. They want generalists and not specialists because the economy and workplace are changing at a rapid pace.  We have created the Maker Skills Academy to meet the needs of a career-centric workforce. Our goals are to teach real world skills, get our students career ready, and show them the amazing opportunities in the world of making. We’re looking forward to changing lives and creating the makers of the future. The program only takes six-months to complete. We do this by including over 90 fundamental classes in real-world subjects,” such as:

  • 3D Printing and Computer Aided Design
  • Laser Cutting and Engraving
  • Sewing and Textiles
  • Plastics, Vacuum forming, and Composites
  • Costume, Prop, 3D Papercraft, and Model Making
  • Fundamental Electronics, Soldering, Raspberry Pi and Arduino.
  • Robotics, Automation, and Hardware Programming.
  • Machine Shop Basics and CNC machining
  • Welding, Fabrication, and assembly
  • Wood Working.
  • Hand Tools, Power Tools, and support equipment 
  • Life and career soft skills for manufacturing, engineering, entrepreneurship and many other jobs

He emphasized that “by including the soft skills classes employers are seeking, the Maker Skills Academy is the perfect way to prepare for jobs in advanced manufacturing and other maker careers.

And unlike any other training programs or schools, MSA students will also have access to using our equipment every single evening to practice their skills, collaborate, create amazing resumes, and build capstone projects.”

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As Gene led me on a tour of their facility, he explained, “Classes have minimal theory or history and lean heavily toward hands-on, practical skills learning. There are only eight to ten students per MSA team. We have a high instructor-to-student ratio for effective and intimate learning of skills. Our modern facility has over $500,000 of traditional and state-of-the-art manufacturing equipment.

During the tour, I saw that Gene had upgraded the 3D printing lab with all industrial machines rather than the hobby-type machines previously in the lab.  He had also upgraded to industrial sewing machines from the home-type machines he had previously, and there were now two cutting machines in the laser workroom. There were two new park bench projects in the fabrication workroom that the students had built themselves to utilize their metal fab and woodworking skills. He showed me the Little Free Libraries projects that are being placed in front of homes in neighborhoods, which are the capstone projects for the woodworking class.

Gene said that the Maker Skills Academy is perfect for those looking for:

  • a unique alternative to college, with real job and life skills
  • an ideal learning program to explore a multitude of maker skills
  • an effective pre-engineering program before entering university
  • an intensive course in maker skills for entrepreneurs or inventors
  • a set of job skills that will make STEM or maker careers future-proof

The website provides the following description of what is included in the Maker Space Academy program:

  • Six months of subjects and classes designed by industry experts and based on real-world needs of companies.
  • All raw materials, tools, and supplies the student will need for the classes in this program.
  • Six months of maker lab access with use of all equipment the student has been trained to use. 7-days-a-week, 5-10pm.
  • A Vocademy Maker Academy work shirt, basic measuring and hands tool set, a shop apron, and safety glasses.
  • An incredibly creative environment, surrounded by other makers, students, and engineers.
  • An Intellectual Property (IP) free facility. Student developed products or inventions are the property of the student.
  • A unique learning experience for anyone seeking to become more valuable to the world.
  • To develop an amazing set of skills for a career, personal enrichment, or for entering engineering schools.
  • Student graduates will receive Vocademy Certificates of Completion for every subject completed.
  • The opportunity to collaborate and work on your projects or ideas using modern and traditional industrial equipment.
  • To create an incredible resume full of projects, practical skills, and hands-on experience.

I asked what was expected of students, and Gene replied, “There are no mid-terms or finals. Students must commit to classes, self-guided learning, and the creation of projects. They sign a Commitment Pledge to put forth their best effort to ensure a successful learning experience. Students must be willing to continue self-guided depth learning and skills practice during maker lab hours and personal time. And, students are expected to complete a final capstone project for their maker portfolio/resume either solo or as part of a team.”

When I asked what his future goal is, he said, I want the Maker Skills Academy to be the choice of manufacturers for training employees, both existing and those being hired.  I want the MSA to be considered as the “Olympic training center” for manufacturing skills. I envision local manufacturers becoming partners with Vocademy for their employee training.”

I told him that I hope he realizes his goal because programs like his would go a long way in solving the skills gap and attracting the next generation of manufacturing workers.  It is critical that we get back to being a nation of “makers” as manufacturing is the foundation of the middle class, and our middle class has been shrinking for the last 30 years as we moved more and more manufacturing offshore.   

How the STE@M™ Mentoring Program Helps Students Focus on Manufacturing Careers

Tuesday, November 13th, 2018

MFG Day gets better every year and is inspiring youth to pursue careers in manufacturing. In California, Governor Brown even proclaimed the month of October as the Manufacturing Awareness and Appreciation month. However, MFG Day only occurs once a year.  How can we help keep students focused on pursuing careers in manufacturing throughout the year?

 

One way is the STE@M™ Mentoring Program developed by Cari Lyn Vinci of InVINCIble Enterprises to train educators and youth leaders so they can motivate the next generation of students. InVINCIble Enterprises’ award-winning STE@M™ Mentoring Program is based on the book, Playbook for Teens,. about which I have written previously.

Through the STE@M™ Mentoring Program, teens learn how an interest in STEM subjects translates to opportunities in STEM careers. The Program helps students answer two age-old questions:

  • “Why do I have to learn that?” and
  • “What am I going to do when I grow up?”

The Program is used in middle and high schools as an after school, pull-out during class time, lunch-time, or club activity. The Program takes a group of students through 8 – 24 sessions (called Master Minds) focused around STEAM topics with local guest speakers. Master Minds are paired with POWER skills like public speaking, leadership, critical thinking, communication and collaboration. Students visualize being CEO’s of their lives, contributing to society as business owners, leaders, and workers in STEM industries.

The program incorporates team building and a reflection process, and students discuss how to apply what they are learning to their own lives. Students experience real networking opportunities and mentoring from adults and from each other. The outcome is that students create their own Playbook for Success with one of four goals after high school:

  • Community College or Trade School
  • 4-year or advanced degree
  • Military
  • Apprenticeship or an alternative goal that includes education

The program concludes with a Celebration that involves students presenting their own Playbook for Success while letting parents, educators, and peers know what help they need to achieve their chosen goals.

In an email to his educator network, Gary Page, Education Programs Consultant for the Career Technical Education Leadership Office in Sacramento, wrote “The STE@M™ Mentoring Program provides professional development training and resources to implement a guided, well-articulated career education program. Because the program reflects the Community College’s STRONG Workforce standards, Vinci was recognized by the California Chancellor’s Office as a STRONG Workforce Champion.”

The STE@M™ Mentoring Program supports:

  • New World of Work – 21st Century Skills
  • STRONG Workforce Initiative
  • California Guided Pathways
  • Common Core and Career Technical Education (CTE) Model Curriculum Standards
  • CA After School Network Quality Standards
  • National Career Development Guidelines.
  • California Department of Education Standards/California Common Core ELA Standards

Through Professional Development of educators and professionals, this award-winning Program is being introduced to students in schools and by non-profits who serve middle schools and teens throughout California. This training is within the California After School Network Power of Discovery System.

When I interviewed Ms. Vinci last week, she said, “We started to facilitate Professional Trainings on the STE@M™ Mentoring Program in August 2016. These were sponsored by the Small Business, Deputy Sector Navigators Doing What Matters grant from the Chancellors Office. Trainings have taken place in Fresno, Merced, Monterey, Mt. Shasta College/Eureka, Oceanside, Sacramento, San Diego, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, Stockton, Ventura, and Woodland.

When educators implement the program, they reach 15-25 students in each “MasterMind” session. As a result, we have impacted over 7,000 students, parents, and teachers.

In addition to the California Chancellor’s Office STRONG Workforce Champion recognition, we have been acknowledged by the National Association of Women Business Owners with their Visionary Award; by Soroptimist with a RUBY award; and Program of Excellence from the Woodland School Board & the Yolo County Office of Education.”

She explained, “We are partnering with PRO Youth and Families non-profit organization in Sacramento for a proposal to train 300 Educators in 29 counties, spanning seven regions in the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA), which would impact over 6,000 youth.

We also have a media partnership with Diversity in STEAM Magazine. When we are invited to speak at conferences, meetings, and trainings, we provide a complimentary hard copy of the magazine and a free 1-year digital subscription. www.diversitycomm.net/inVINCIbleEnterprises

Diversity in STEAM Magazine (DISM) is dedicated to the advancement of all minorities, women and K-12 students within STEM. DISM provides and informs cutting edge concepts and is the link between the qualified students, career and business candidates, educational institutions, corporate America, and the federal government.”

In conclusion, Ms. Vinci said, “We are connecting the dots in the Woodland School District – where we piloted the STE@M™ Mentoring Program in 2016. This past August, the California After School Network (ASES) coordinators and their tutors were trained to bring the STE@M™ Mentoring Program to their 5th and 6th grade students. The goal is to bridge the gap and keep students motivated about STEAM careers as they transition from middle school to high school to an education after high school.”

Ms. Vinci explained that the training is a full day and includes:

  • Printed curriculum materials
  • Professional Development Training Guide for 8 – 24 session STE@M™ Mentoring Program with detailed Lesson Plans, Student Handouts & Teacher Resources
  • Planning checklists for MasterMinds and Celebration
  • Print Playbook for Teens
  • All Educators receive Playbooks for their first group of students
  • Digital Access to:
    • PowerPoint presentations for all sessions + Celebration
    • PDF version of Training Guide
    • Additional Resources & Updates
  •  Implementation Support:
    • Educators receive on-going phone support and one mid-point virtual coaching session.
  • Guidance to personalize the Program for their sites
  • Assistance identifying guest speakers and phone mentors
  • Invitation to STE@M™ Mentoring Program LinkedIn Group and Facebook

The most recent STE@M™ Mentoring Program PD Training was held in October in Ventura.  Gayla Jurevich, the Small Business & Entrepreneurship DSN with the California Community College STRONG Workforce, sponsored the event for educators from Kern, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara & Ventura Counties. Jeff Hamlin, the STEAM Hub Lead for Expanded Learning at the Ventura County STEM Network was the other co-host.

After the event, Ms. Jurevich said: “What I love about the STE@M™ Mentoring Program is that it reinforces the STRONG Workforce Goals and encourages girls who have an interest in STEM subjects to visualize the possibilities. Instead of losing interest in middle school (which many girls do) the program encourages them to continue on a pathway to a STEAM career.”

Jeff Hamlin commented: “Ventura County is excited to bring the STE@M™ Mentoring Program to our After-School Program because it raises the bar of quality of our programs, plus it aligns with the California After School Quality standards.

Research tells us that kids are deciding as early as 5th grade if they like science or math. That decision closes the door to future career opportunities in the growing STEM industries. For that reason, it’s important that students see the potential early. Also, the program incorporates 21st Century skills like communication, collaboration & critical thinking. These skills are beneficial for students regardless of their future career choices.”

Here’s what Paisley, an 8th grade student at Twelve Bridges STEAM Middle School, Lincoln, CA, said at her group’s Celebration, “I plan to have a career in sports medicine. I know this is right for me for me because it fits all the parts of the Career Sweet Spot™ that I read about in my Playbook for Teens. Sports Medicine will use my talent for science; it fits my outgoing personality to help patients; the market outlook shows potential for growth, I have a passion for helping people; and the investment in my education shows promise because sports medicine is a growth industry.” (To see how students are benefitting from the STE@M™ Mentoring Program, please watch their transformation in these videos)

Here’s what Ted Ruiz, a one parent of one of the girls who went through the mentoring program held in Woodland in 2017 wrote, “As a parent of a teenage girl I want to make sure my daughter has every opportunity to succeed. When I learned my daughter was invited to participate in the Play Book For Teens /STE@M mentoring program I thought it would be a great way for her to be exposed to new career paths. At the completion of the program I realized the program was much more than simply learning about STE@M.

The girls in this program learned soft skills that are not provided in any other setting. The networking, researching, interviews, camaraderie, and interactions learned through the program are not taught in our current “teach for the test” educational setting. The girls who participated are years ahead of their peers when it comes to soft skills. Not every girl will be a rocket scientist or doctor, but every girl will need to know how to interact with strangers, present themselves professionally, and collaborate to be successful in life. As a parent I wish programs like this were mandated for all student.”

Ms. Vinci will be presenting at a Pre-conference workshop on November 28, 2018, “Building an Equitable 21st Century Workforce – Starting Early & Nurturing the Pipeline from K-12 to Careers from 1:00 – 2:30 PM; “Peek into the future – get an understanding of why and how the workplace has changed and where it is headed. This TED-talk panel discussion encompasses points of view from educators and business people on the important tools and practicality of building a STRONG workforce.”  This pre-conference session is the day prior to the California Perkins Joint Special Population Annual CTE Equity and Access Conference November 29-30, 2018 in Sacramento, CA.

Can you imagine what our schools and communities would be like if all students had such clarity of purpose for their future careers?  Ms. Vinci has the goal of expanding this mentoring program across the country. This type of mentoring program would go a long way towards filling the pipeline of workers needed in the manufacturing industry as well as other STEM industries.

MFG Day Motivates Youth to Pursue a Career in Manufacturing

Tuesday, October 23rd, 2018

Since 2012, thousands of manufacturers around the country open their doors to inspire and recruit the next generation of manufacturers on Manufacturing Day (MFG Day), which was held this year on Friday, October 5th.

MFG Day is produced by the National Association of Manufacturers and the Manufacturing Institute. MFG DAY had ambitious goals: “to change public perception of manufacturing, inspire students to pursue manufacturing careers, and strengthen the future of manufacturing by avoiding the talent shortage on the horizon.” According to the MFG Day website, “We wanted to correct the idea that manufacturing involved repetitive, unskilled tasks that happened in dark, dirty factories — a ridiculous idea to anyone who has actually worked in manufacturing — and show people what manufacturing really looks like.”

Those of us in the industry know that today’s manufacturing jobs are high skilled, and take place in clean, well-lit, technologically advanced facilities. The problem was that there was no way to know whether perceptions were changing until Deloitte became a sponsor of MFG DAY in 2015 and conducted surveys of attendees.

The results of the survey of 2015 showed:

  • 81% of students emerged “more convinced that manufacturing provides careers that are interesting and rewarding.”
  • 62% of students were “more motivated to pursue a career in manufacturing”

The 2016 survey results showed that the percentages rose to 84% and 64% respectively.

The 2016 Deloitte report said, “Projections indicate that roughly 600,000 people attended MFG DAY events in 2016 and that 267,000 of them were students. That means that nearly 225,000 students walked away from their MFG DAY 2016 event with a more positive perception of manufacturing, according to Deloitte’s findings…. Based on the 267,000-student attendance figure, that’s potentially 171,000 new members of a next-generation manufacturing workforce.”

The Deloitte surveys showed that “71 percent of student attendees both years said that they “were more likely to tell friends, family, parents, or colleagues about manufacturing after attending an event,” meaning that they weren’t just convinced — they were inspired.”

This year, the MFG Day website listed 2,739 events planned across the country. In California, there were events planned at more than 250 locations throughout the state. The CMTC October 9th newsletter stated, “This year, CMTC and its California’s Manufacturing Network were much more active in sponsoring, organizing and coordinating events statewide. CMTC was also very committed in pairing up schools wishing to attend Manufacturing Day events with manufacturers and other organizations hosting open houses, career fairs, and expos. CMTC and its California’s Manufacturing Network’s efforts directly resulted in over 50 schools attending these events. At these events, students received first-hand exposure about today’s manufacturing technologies in industries that employ highly-skilled and well-paid individuals while offering exciting, rewarding, innovative work environments.”

Since I moved up to Hemet, CA in September, I attended events in Riverside County instead of San Diego County.  There were five events in the city of Riverside, one in Menifee, one Murrieta, one in Perris, and one in Redlands.  This is in comparison to my former home county of San Diego with 22 in the city of San Diego, three each in Carlsbad and San Marcos, two in El Cajon, and one each in Chula Vista, Oceanside, and Vista.

I attended only three events in Riverside County because they were located so far apart, and most of the events were held in the same time period between 10 AM and 2 PM. I began my day by attending the event in Menifee at Mt. San Jacinto College to introduce their new Makerspace to students.  The auditorium was nearly filled with students form Santa Rosa Academy where a panel of business professionals and professors shared the value of their education to their careers.  The event was sponsored by the City of Menifee, the Menifee Valley Chamber of Commerce, and CMTC. The audience was welcomed by Major Bill Zimmerman and Tony LoPiccolo, Executive Director of the Chamber.

Fortunately, I was able to get a private tour of the MakerSpace by Hal Edghill, the MakerSpace specialist, before the students had finished listening to the panelists. The MakerSpace has 15 inexpensive 3D printers and two more advanced 3D printers for students to use for their projects, as well as a small laser cutter/engraver. Mr. Edghill said the MakerSpace just opened in August, so this is the first semester it is available for students to use for projects.

There were so many students that they were divided into four groups for their tour.  Afterward, the students enjoyed pizza and soda before returning to school.

I then drove up to Riverside for a tour of Aleph Group, Inc. (AGI). AGI builds custom bloodmobiles, mobile medical and dental clinics, container hospitals, emergency command vehicles, mobile command centers, and specialty trailers, modular units, and vehicles.  Founder and President/CEO Jales De Mello conducted the tour personally, and we saw four projects in various stages of construction.  One bloodmobile was completed, ready to ship to Saudi Arabia.  Another nearly completed project was a mobile medical/dental clinic being built for a northern California Indian reservation.  The largest project under construction was a modular clinic.

Mr. de Mello said, “I started the company in 2001 with the goal of “making a positive on people’s lives. Our mobile health clinics are custom designed from the ‘ground-up,’ and are fully equipped for turnkey operation. Sizes range from 28 ft. up to 50 ft., and all of our vehicles and units are 100% wood-free construction, so as to eliminate all possibilities of bacteria and fungus growth associated with the use of wood products. The all-aluminum construction is lighter weight, has greater performance and longevity, and improves fire safety.” He believes that “his industry and its leaders must take a proactive approach in solving the needs of mankind.”

Next, I drove to Phenix Technology, Inc., which manufactures high quality fire helmets and other fire safety products and collectibles.  I arrived early for my 2:00 PM tour, so while the formal tour of manufacturing was being conducted, I had the pleasure of getting a private tour of their collectible museum of fire helmets from around the world and memorabilia related to fireman and fire stations. Museum tours are available upon request.

Phenix Technology, Inc was founded in 1972 by Former California State Fire Marshall, Ronnie Coleman and former Assistant Chief of the California State Fire Training Division, Ray Russell to make higher quality fire helmets. Four decades later, Phenix is still a family business who continues to proudly manufacture in the USA, and Mr. Coleman and Mr. Russell “are still there and available to answer any questions you might have about firefighter head protection.”

Tyler Meyer conducted the formal tour, and I saw three different styles of fire helmets being made in the production area.  Tyler said they have gone through Lean training and greatly improved their productivity and reduced lead times.  He said, “We can now make up to 20 helmets per hour instead of four.  Our lead times for most of our products, except for handmade leather helmets. went from 6 weeks to 6 hours in some cases. Our sales went up 51%, and our Net Operating Income went up 1600%+. We reduced our inventory by over $100,000, and our inventory turns are almost unmeasurable as we do everything just in time. We haven’t had any significant price increases in three years though our COGS increased as much as 30% because our controllable costs are down.”

He referred me to their Director of Global Operations, Angel Sanchez, Jr., who emailed me that “it is more important to talk about how Lean has created a culture of continuous improvement and total employee engagement. How Monday is most of our people’s favorite day of the week, not Friday. How we have learned that Lean is about creating a mindset where you see waste in everything and how everyone works together to eliminate it. If you are encouraging people to start a Lean journey, the focus has to be on the pillars of Lean, not the metrics.”

I was happy to get another example of the difference a Lean transformation can make in company performance and how important it is for American companies to become Lean enterprises to help rebuild American manufacturing.

I encourage more manufacturers to plan to participate in MFG Day in 2019.  Open your company to a tour.  Invite the families of your employees.  Invite your customers.  Invite the students of local high schools.  Invite your elected officials.  Many of them have never been in a manufacturing plant.  Let’s make 2019 the most successful MFG Day to date.

 

Training for Skills and Lean are Important to San Marcos Region Companies

Wednesday, July 11th, 2018

My time in San Marcos, Texas included visits to more traditional companies, such as Mensor. On my first day, we met with Jason Otto, President of Mensor. He told me that he has been with the company for more than two decades, starting as an engineer, before moving up the management chain as product manager, director of sales, and other positions before becoming President.

He said, “Mensor was started in Houston in 1968 by Jerry Fruit and a small group of engineers from Texas Instruments. Jerry had an idea for designing and manufacturing precision pressure measuring and pressure calibration instruments and systems. The company shipped their first product, a quartz manometer for the aerospace industry, in 1970 and most of the company’s business was government contracts.

The company relocated to San Marcos in 1978, but in 1981, our building caught fire and burned to the ground. The company kept going with the help of vendors and customers while a new 26,000 sq. ft. building was built on the same site in only five months.  The employees kept their jobs by actually working to help build the new building.

Otto explained, “We acquired our control line of products from Texas Instruments and introduced new controller products in 1983, 1992, and 1997. We introduced a Quartz Pressure Calibrator in 2001, and the modern CPC6000 Automated Pressure Calibrator in 2004.

In 2006, we were acquired by WIKA Alexander Wiegand SE & Co. KG, a very large privately held company in Germany, with a U. S. facility in Lawrenceville, Ga. It was time for the owners of the company to “cash out,” and it was a smooth transition.

Our core competency is pressure sensor accuracy, and it is a very niche market.  It is tricky to hire talent, so we have to hire from competitors, as well as engineering graduates.  Texas State University, Texas A &M, and the University of Texas in San Antonio and Austin have provided many of our new engineers.  We also need calibration lab technicians, people skilled in technical assembly, as well as machinists for our in-house machine shop. We haven’t had any trouble hiring machinists.

I asked if the company has been through training in Lean Six Sigma, and he said, “Our Lean training started after our acquisition by WIKA. We currently have two Lean Six Sigma Black Belts, who do about 6 -8 kaizen events per year.  We practice 5S and use QCSD boards for visual management of teams. We put together cross functional teams, use cellular assembly, and have a vendor qualification program. We have never outsourced any of our manufacturing overseas, but we have customers in China and Malaysia. We use the WIKA global sales team, but use manufacturers reps to sell into Mexico and the maquilas because it is a long sales cycle. WIKA has 48 locations around the world, and as part of the WIKA Calibration Line, we represent about 6 percent of the company’s business.”

Next, we met with John Malik, General Manager of Altra Couplings in San Marcos. Malik said, “I grew up working in my dad’s auto parts store. I have been with the company since I graduated with an engineering degree and have survived three sets of company owners.  The company was started in Houston and moved to San Marcos in the early 1980s. We were sold to TH Woods in 1990, and then sold to ATR Inc. in 2007, whose corporate headquarters is located in Santa Ana, Calif. ATR has 28 plants and production facilities around the world, with seven locations in the U. S. We have about 120 employees currently.”

Malik explained, “We are a leading global designer, producer and marketer of a wide range of mechanical power transmission components. Our products control and transmit power and torque in virtually any industrial application involving movement and are sold in more than 70 countries worldwide in industries including: energy, general industrial, material handling, metals, mining, specialty machinery, transportation, and turf and garden. Our portfolio of products includes clutches, brakes, couplings, as well as gearing and power transmission components. However, we don’t do any high-volume couplings for the automotive industry.

When I asked about Lean, he said, “We have a team of company employees who have helped us become lean, and the productive gains are essential. It really comes down to asset utilization of people assets and capital assets.  You want to keep them adding value continuously. The approach we have taken is a value stream approach to our products. We go narrow and deep in an area and develop it, and then move on to another area.”

Malik added, “We have even implemented Lean Accounting.  I spent a lot of time with engineers to understand the true costs. We have some good decision rules for the “make or buy” decision process.  Our biggest promoter is our CFO, but our Lean program goes all the way to the top.”

I asked what Altra’s biggest problem is, and Malik responded, “Finding new employees. This is an area that doesn’t have a long tradition in manufacturing. People don’t know what manufacturing looks like, and the mind set for years has been getting a college degree rather than vocational training.   There are never enough trained applicants, so we train our own workers. We now have second and third generation workers. It is a lot about how we treat people and the opportunities for growth.”

He added, “We make all our own castings in our Erie, Penn. plant and buy the forgings we need.  We have three manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and have a plant in the U.K. We bought a company in Germany and have a plant in China.  That plant makes some parts for us, and we make some parts for them.  We also have a small facility in Brazil in order to have local content and avoid the high tariffs.”

On my last day in San Marcos, we visited CFAN, which was formed in 1993, as a 50/50 Joint Venture between GE Aviation and Saffron (SNECMA) of France. The partnership was created to introduce composite fan blades in a GE90 engine that powers the Boeing 777.  CFAN has leveraged the success of this product to introduce additional fan blades on the GEnx engines that power the Boeing 787 and Boeing 747-8.

We met with Mo Mattocks, who is the President and Plant Manager for CFAN. He is responsible for all plant operations including over 500 employees executing product delivery, quality, and productivity, as well as plant financial results and personnel safety. Mattocks said, “I am originally from New York, but graduated for the University of Michigan and Georgia Tech. I have worked for GE for 21 years and previously worked at the GE Aviation in Kansas City and Atlanta.”

He explained, ”CFAN successfully transferred the composite fan blade manufacturing process from the laboratory to the shop floor and delivered the first production GE90-94B fan blade in September 1994.  At first, our quality level was only about 80 percent, so there were a lot of rejects. We kept improving our processes using the widely recognized Six-Sigma methodology, focusing on eliminating defects and reducing variation in shop floor. Over the years, we kept improving our processes, so that our scrap rate is down to only about 1 percent.

In 2001, we started production of the composite fan blade for the GE90-115B growth engine. The GEnx1B fan blade was introduced to production in 2005 and the GEnx2B in 2007. In 2016, we started to make fan blades for the GE9nx, which had its first test flight last week. We are an approved FAA repair station for the GE90 and GEnx fan blades fan.  We have doubled our volume since 2009 and have produced more than 20,000 composite fan blades at our plant. We produce about 165 fan blades per week, and each fan blade takes about 340 hours. We expanded the plant from 160,000 sq. ft. to 275,000 sq. ft., and the whole plant is temperature controlled to keep the composite material from “curing” on hot days.”

I told Mr. Mattocks that in the past, I sold composite parts as a sales rep for a company located in Post Falls, Idaho so am familiar with the painstaking production methods used for pre-preg layup composite parts. When we walked the plant floor to see the whole production cycle from start to finish, I could see how meticulous the hand layup process is for these very critically dimensioned fan blades. It would be too tedious to describe the whole production process from start-to-finish, but the number of steps it takes to produce a finished fan blade was mind-boggling.

My last stop before leaving the San Marcos region to spend the weekend with my nephew and his family at their nearby ranch was to RSI Inc., located in Kyle, Texas. We met with President Harish Malkani, who founded the company in 1983. Malkani is originally from India where he earned a B.S. (Chemistry) from the University of Poona. He also received a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of California at Berkeley and a Graduate Degree in Marketing from the University of California at Berkeley. He was employed with Ray Chem Corp. from 1969 to 1983.

While RSI’s website describes the company as distributor stocking and supplying standard mil-spec products including, but not limited to high-speed interconnect solutions and a wide range of electro-mechanical components, Malkani said, “I started the company as a distributor but over the years we became a value-added manufacturer. I can’t tell you about all of the defense and military programs for which we have used our expertise to provide solutions to the government and defense contractors because they were classified programs. We specialize in providing RFI/EMI solutions. We have done work for BAE, Lockheed, Raytheon, Aerojet, and other Department of Defense prime contractors.  We are a Silver certified supplier for Boeing. We also do work for companies in the energy, industrial, transportation, and the oil and gas industries.”

When we toured the shop floor, I could see that the company has the manufacturing, assembly, and test equipment to produce custom assemblies and systems for a variety of applications.

Malkani noted, “Our biggest problem is getting qualified workers.  I have hired from Texas State University, but I need more help in finding people with technical skills who are not engineers.  We are going to train some teachers at the local high school in our technology.”

He was assured by Dr. Cara DiMattina-Ryan, Director of Existing Business & Workforce Development at the Greater San Marcos Partnership (GSMP) that they would help him get connected to the local programs at the Austin Community College’s local Hays Campus.

Since finding technical skilled workers is critical to all of the companies I visited, I was happy that my hosts arranged for me to have lunch the first day with Dr. Hector Aguilar, who is the Executive Dean of Austin Community College’s Continuing Education division. He said, “Maintaining a talented and productive workforce in a growing local economy requires a commitment to employee development. ACC meets the training needs of businesses by partnering with them to tailor a custom learning curriculum that can be delivered on-site to employees. We have seven campuses in the western Austin region and have about 60,000 students enrolled.  Each community college in the Texas system specializes in training for the types of industries in their area. Houston specializes in oil and gas. Austin specializes in semiconductor, aeronautical, and sensor industries, and San Antonio specializes in training for automotive. “

He explained, “The Texas Workforce Commission is responsible for helping companies get training for their employees, and Texas pays for the training. Samsung was the first large manufacturing company for which we provided training when they came to the region. They received a grant of $3 million for the training. Samsung came up with 12 techniques to be taught in an around the clock program under a three-year program (24-hours a day, seven days a week).  The original 12 topics became 63 topics, and we trained 1,530 employees in the three years. We had to hire specialists in industries and then cross-train each one so they could teach multiple topics. We did a pre-test and post-test for students. The average pre-test score is 20 percent, and the average post-test score is 85 percent.

He added, “Under our Workforce Solutions Rural Capital Area, training for future employees is provided for free.  For example, when EPIC Piping bought an existing facility in San Marcos in 2014, they needed to hire new employees. They do specialized welding of pipes. GSMP came to us to help set up training for new employees.”

I was informed by Ashley Gossen, Vice President of Marketing & Communications for GSMP that underemployment is high in the region – a selling point for companies looking for talent. She said that the greater San Marcos region has more than 5,400 workers with bachelor or graduate degrees working in jobs that don’t require them.

It is obvious that the San Marcos region has a great deal to offer startup, existing, and transplant manufacturers: a good business climate, low taxes, skilled workers, and the educational facilities and programs to train new workers.

 

Los Angeles NTMA Training Centers to Celebrate 50 Year Anniversary in early 2018

Wednesday, January 24th, 2018

Last month, I had the opportunity to take a tour of the NTMA Training Centers in Santa Fe Springs, which was founded “to address the ever-increasing need for machinists to replace their retiring workforce.”

I met with J.R. Ragaisis, Exec. Director of Education and Training, and Carey Knutson, Exec. Director of Accounting and H.R. Carey emailed me info on the historical background of the Training Centers.  From the written history, I learned that Seymour Lehrer and Del Molinari led the charge to develop the Center in 1968 with the backing of the National Association organization. Members of the Southern California Tool & Die Association (later known as the Los Angeles NTMA) generously donated machining equipment and made a donation of $4,800 to get the Training Center started. This means that on February 1, 2018, the Center will celebrate its 50th anniversary!

I really liked that the goal of the Training Centers was “to transition tax-takers into tax-payers, by training them for a career in machining.”  J.R. Ragaisis, said, “The Training Centers was a step toward creating something unheard of at the time: to develop specialized training by industry for industry.”

It was amazing to me that the training program and school survived several recessions in the last 50 years and that no other centers were ever established in other parts of the country. J.R. said, “We have been contacted by others to set up other training centers in their areas, but nothing ever materialized.”

As he gave our group the tour, JR said, “In 1999, we set up a second training center in Ontario, (also in Southern California.); currently, the NTMA Training Centers have two state-of- the-art campuses with fully equipped machine shops, modern computer labs, and all the supplies and materials needed to train for machining. Both campuses are designed to emulate actual machine shops; we have machine tools and equipment leading industry employers use while accommodating students with spacious work stations and ample break areas indoors and outdoors.”

The Santa Fe Springs facility is a two-story building with classrooms, offices, and a large meeting room upstairs, and all of the machining equipment downstairs.  J. R. said that both training centers have many training programs available to service individuals and the manufacturing community ranging from entry level training to advanced programs for existing employees. Some of the training can be funded by what manufacturers have already paid into the Employment Training Fund through their employment taxes.  The NTMA Centers are currently on their 35th contract from the Employment Training Panel of California. For a nominal $250 in-kind contribution from employers for books, and tapping into their paid tax assessments, we will train your workforce to enhance and enrich your productivity.”

He explained that in the basic Machinist Training program, students learn the set up and operation of conventional machining equipment such as grinders, mills, lathes, drill presses, and saws. Instruction time is divided between classroom, computer lab, and shop, providing a unique blend of practical theory and hands-on experience. Instruction includes; quality control and inspection procedures, shop theory, precision measuring instruments, mathematics, blueprint reading, and basic CNC operations. Upon graduation, students may find entry-level machinist employment as an operator of a lathe, mill, grinder, drill press, etc. in the machining and tooling industry. In addition, our machinist classes are usually about 15 students per session, of which we run 3 sessions per day.”

I told him that for more than 70 years, the only place to get machinist training was in San Diego at San Diego City College, where most of the students were grabbed up as fast as they graduated by companies like Solar Turbines. Now, we also have the MiraCosta Technical Career Center in Carlsbad.  Since I have always represented machine shops as a manufacturer’s sales rep., I know there has been a shortage of CNC lathe operators for more than 20 years in the San Diego area.

I asked if the classes incorporate any training in Lean Manufacturing, and he said, “We emphasize 5S + 1 of Lean, in which the +1 stands for “Safety.” We teach safety first, and all the students are trained on the safety protocol for each piece of equipment from a hack saw to a CNC machine. Meaning, students have to sign off on what they learned before they can use any of the equipment.”

J.R. provided me information on what kinds of advanced training they provide for existing manufacturing employees:

Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) – This course is designed to provide students with the principles and practices in the operation of a CMM.

Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) software package called MastercamThis course bundles theoretical knowledge that the students bring into the course applying a computer-generated graphic of manufactured components for machining. The course is designed for machinists who have no computer aided manufacturing background.

Computerized Numerical Control (CNC)This course develops the skills to perform fundamental operations of CNC Mills/CNC Lathes, emphasizing on the basic operation of the machinery, process, and shop safety. The course is designed for machinists who have no CNC machining background.

Inspection This course develops the skills to perform fundamental inspection techniques, emphasizing on third angle projection of blueprints and applying basic concepts of inspection techniques through the use of indicators, micrometers, optical comparator, and the CMM. The course is designed for individuals who have no inspection experience

I asked J.R. if they provide any training for veterans, and he said, “We provide training in the machining, tooling and manufacturing industry for all veterans, who have or are serving in any branch of the U.S Military.  We recognize the unique situation that veterans may face transitioning and readjusting into their life out of the military. We do everything possible to assist them in the transition while enrolled in our programs.” The website states: “There are Veteran Education Benefits available to you if:

  • You have served in the military
  •  Currently serving in the military
  •  You are an eligible dependent of a veteran
  •  You are a spouse of a veteran receiving benefits”

J.R. said, “We start new classes every few weeks, and a class just started on December 6th, and another class will start January 29th.  We have a modular program of five modules, and each module is six weeks in length. It takes students seven months to complete all of the modules, and they graduate with certification as an entry level machinist with an 86% job placement rate for graduates. We are currently in a transition mode; for the first time in years, we need more students to keep up with the demand.  Manufacturers are calling us to find out when we will have new graduates, instead of us calling them to fill job openings.

After visiting this training center, I recommend that other NTMA chapters around the country reconsider establishing a training center in their region.  They could partner with their local community college on training programs as well as apprenticeship programs. They could also partner with their local SME chapter (formerly the Society of Manufacturing Engineers) because SME is heavily involved in partnering with high schools for training in manufacturing skills.  NTMA wouldn’t have to start from scratch because SME’s ToolingU has modular curriculum available for use in the training programs.

We need more collaboration between industry associations and educational institutions at the high school and college level if we are going to solve the skills gap and attract the next generation of manufacturing workers.

North Carolina Prepares for the Future through Training and Redevelopment

Tuesday, November 14th, 2017

At the TEDx San Diego event on Saturday, October 14th, Dr. Mary Walshok, Associate Vice Chancellor for Public Programs and Dean of Extension at the University of California, San Diego, gave a short talk in which she said we need to add HEART to STEM.  She coined the acronym HEART meaning Hands-on, Engaged, Applied, Relevant Training whereas STEM means Science, Technology, Engineering & Math.

She said too many educators don’t realize the need for the hands-on workers, such as machinists, welders, plumbers, electricians, etc. Too many parents are focused on their children getting a college education, which is why we have millions of unfilled jobs requiring hands-on training. She recommended combining HEART and STEM to be more competitive as a country in the global economy.

Fortunately, there are more and more cities, regions, and states that have awakened to this problem and are doing something about it.  Charleston, South Carolina and the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina are among the problem-solving regions.

After visiting the Guilford Technical Community College aviation training center that I wrote about in my last article, my hosts took me to visit one of the companies involved in the apprenticeship program, Machine Specialties Inc., where we met with Rob and Tammy Simmons, President and Executive Vice President of the company.

Rob said, “The company was founded by Carlos Black in 1969 after he moved to the U.S. from Argentina where he had apprenticed as a machinist. I started in 1980, and we were primarily a small machine shop supporting the textile industry. In 1990, we expanded into screw machine parts. We got our first government contract in 1995. I became part owner in 1998, and we moved into a new building in 2003. We expanded into doing large parts like aircraft landing gear and added in-house anodizing and chem film. We bought this building in 2009 with all of office equipment. We added a large laser cutting machine in 2009, and now have two lasers. Then, we bought two large multi axis WFL machines to be able to machine Titanium. We are open 24/7, but our weekend shift works three days. We are AS9100 Certified for aerospace, ISO 9001 for commercial, and ISO 13485 for medical parts.

I bought the company in 2005, and today, we are a leading contract machining and metal finishing specialist that designs and manufactures parts for many different industries including the aerospace, military, and medical industry. We plan to grow to be a $50 million-dollar company by 2020.”

He added, “We realized that we had a problem because about 15% of our employees will be old enough to retire within the next five years. So, we need to train new workers to take their place.”

Tammy said, “We were one of the first six companies to work with Guilford County Schools in starting a new apprenticeship program in the fall of 2016 for those interested in the advanced manufacturing field. Students will undergo a three to four-year program where they can receive an associate’s degree in Manufacturing Technology, a journeymen certificate as a machinist or welder, have their school paid for, and then end up with a manufacturing job.

About 50 students, juniors and seniors, applied for the program, and 27 students were selected to start the program initially.  This year we are up to 20 companies participating in the apprenticeship program.  During the summer, the students took classes for six weeks and then worked full-time for six weeks.

The students who are seniors when they start the program, spend half the day at school and then the other half working at our company. The students who applied as seniors and then graduate, go to school one day a week at GTCC to pursue their associate’s degree in manufacturing technology and then spend four days working.  GAP pays students hourly wage while on the job and when they sit in class at community college. I think it’s important to note that apprentices are paid while they are in class earning their degree because I don’t know of any other programs that do this. We also pay the students for their tuition and books while at GTCC.”

Afterward, Vice President Bob Schumacher gave us a tour of the plant, where we met three of their apprentices, two young men and one young woman.  One of the young men had graduated from high school before starting the program in the summer, and two are seniors this year. The young woman knew she wanted to be a welder when she started the program because her family have been employed in the manufacturing industry.

Then, we drove to Browns Summit, near Greensboro, to visit ABCO Automation, where we met with Brad Kemmerer, President   and CEO, and Jack Walsh, EVP Sales and Marketing.  Mr. Kemmerer said, “We build custom automation equipment and are a FANUC and KUKA robot integrator. Our company was started in 1977 by Graham Ricks, but we converted to an ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) in 1998. We started working with Coca Cola in the beginning to build electrical control systems and custom packaging equipment.  We designed the system that McDonalds uses to pump the syrup into their restaurants.

He explained, “In the late 1980s, we began to diversify our customer base by building custom equipment for a broader range of manufacturers. We began to go beyond packaging projects into manufacturing assembly, material handling, and inspection equipment. Now, our customer base is very diversified — all of the typical industries represented in North Carolina — Aerospace, Automotive, Chemical, Food & Beverage, Electronics, Healthcare, Pharmaceutical, Tobacco. Most of our customers have 25-30 plants around the world, and the average price of a system is $1 million.”

He added, “We have 150 employees, but added 23 employees in the last six months and 40 in the last 18 months.  We need to build a supply of future workers if we want to continue to grow. We have supported the robotics competition, For Inspiration & Recognition of Science & Technology (FIRST). For two weekends in January, we host more than 60 students from six local high school robotics teams to help them kick-start their FIRST Robotics Competition. After learning the theme of the competition, each team has just six weeks to design, build, and ship the robot to the FIRST national competition. We provide guidance from our mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, and project managers to assist students, their mentors, and coaches.

When we heard about the Guilford Apprenticeship Partners (GAP) program, we hosted the meetings and helped with the high schools. We currently have four apprentice students learning the skills of an electrician, mechanic, fabricator, and machinist. Two are first year apprentices and two are second year apprentices. We believe this a win-win for all—we supplement our current manufacturing team, and the students gain paid on the job experience while earning a college education.”

By this time, it was late afternoon, so we headed back to Greensboro to enjoy dinner at Natty Green’s Kitchen + Market, which is a combination micro-brewery, farm-to-market restaurant, and store located in a redeveloped textile mill.  Natty Green’s is in one of the buildings of Revolution Mill, a 45-acre historic textile campus that brings apartments, restaurants, events, history, and innovation together as the “Place of Choice to Live, Work and Create in Greensboro.”

Nick Piornack, Business Development Manager, gave us a tour of two of the former textile mill buildings — one that has been re-purposed for offices and studio space, and the other as an apartment building.  Between two of the apartment building is an outside event space where one of the finalists of The Voice was performing.  There is one classic building yet to be redeveloped on the property.

From the website, I learned that Revolution Mill is “a historic textile mill campus encompassing the Revolution Mill and Olympic Mill sites, with adjacent land connected by North Buffalo Creek. Located just north of downtown Greensboro, Revolution began operations as the South’s first large flannel mill in 1899 and for decades anchored a thriving community of workers and craftspeople. The facility included over 640,000 feet of working space before the textile industry decline led to its closure in 1982. For the next few decades, limited sections of Revolution were renovated into office space, while other parts of the property fell into disuse and disrepair. In 2012 Self-Help assumed ownership of Revolution Mill and is completing the property’s transformation into a mixed-use development…Self-Help is a development credit union and lender headquartered in Durham, NC.”

After the tour, we met with co-founder, Kayne Fisher, of Natty Green’s Kitchen + Market, who gave us a behind the scene tour of the restaurant. Mr. Fisher told us that he had dreamed of owning his own chop house and neighborhood market since childhood. So, when the opportunity to open a restaurant in the Carpenter’s Shop at Revolution Mill came around, his brain-child came to life. The market included a butcher’s counter where you could buy cuts of meat the restaurant used in its menu. As a non-beer drinker, I actually enjoyed tasting a beer that had chocolate in it. Besides the usual steak, chicken, hamburgers, and salads, the menu offered pork chops, lamb chops, and braised brisket, the latter being my choice. All of our diners were delicious.

At the end of a very fully day, it felt good to have seen the results of the redevelopment of an important industrial region with new industries, the re-purposing of old textile plants, and the creation of an apprenticeship program to foster the development of the next generation of manufacturing workers.