Manufacturing Happy Hour

Manufacturing has been collecting skills for centuries, and the list keeps growing.
Chris takes Manufacturing Happy Hour to Revere Electric’s Executive Forum at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) for a live conversation about what the factory of the future needs in the plant and in the workforce. Joining him are Michael Cvelbar and Phil Bush of Rockwell Automation, Joe Hamann of the Connected Systems Institute (CSI), and Ryan Schneeberger of Revere Electric Supply.
Joe and Phil look at how new people get job-ready through student hackathons and a veteran training program. Ryan and Michael cover the other side, keeping people on the floor and giving operators more to do once they’re there. Students learn where AI adds value, while manufacturers want to see the return before they invest. And a room full of manufacturers toasts every time they say “digital twin.”
In this episode, find out:
Why Michael says manufacturers need backup plans when disruption hits
How Rockwell is preparing operators to troubleshoot their own equipment
Why manufacturers say new engineering graduates can take years to reach full productivity
How Rockwell’s Academy of Advanced Manufacturing trains military veterans as controls technicians
What flexible automation can do for a customer and why manufacturers stay cautious on AI until the ROI is clear
How Phil, Joe, Ryan and Michael describe their factory of the future when the audience asks

Enjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!
Tweetable Quotes:
“We want to hire on attitude and aptitude and culture fit, and we want to train on skills and capabilities.” - Phil Bush, Global Competency Programs Manager at Rockwell Automation
“Get started. Try something, right? Start small, learn from it. It’s probably not going to be perfect, but you’ll be better the next time.” - Joe Hamann, Executive Director at Connected Systems Institute
“The digitization that’s required, it’s business critical. It’s mission critical now. It’s no longer, ‘Hey, we’re going to go pilot this and see if this works.’ You need it, and it needs to be scaled across the enterprise.” - Michael Cvelbar, Director of Operations at Rockwell Automation

Links & mentions:
Rockwell Automation is a global leader in industrial automation and digital transformation, headquartered in Milwaukee.
Revere Electric Supply is a fourth-generation, family-owned electrical distributor serving industrial and construction customers across Illinois and southern Wisconsin, and a presenting partner of this live event.
Connected Systems Institute is a center of excellence at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, hosting this episode and developing manufacturing specialists through education, lab facilities, and research with industry partners.
Husco is a Waukesha, Wisconsin manufacturer of hydraulic and electro-hydraulic controls for off-highway and automotive equipment.
Fathom Digital Manufacturing offers more than 25 advanced manufacturing technologies under one roof, from CNC machining to injection molding.

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.

Manufacturing has a lot to gain from AI, and a lot to lose by waiting.
Recorded at mHUB in Chicago’s West Loop during IMTS (International Manufacturing Technology Show), Chris sits down with Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD Redzone, to talk about what AI could mean for an industry facing 500,000 open manufacturing jobs and a growing need to do more with the people it already has.
They also look at what happens when systems of record become systems of action, and how that changes the way manufacturers respond to problems on the shop floor.
In this episode, find out:
How a career that started on a Honda engine line shaped Sanjay's view of manufacturing as managing constraints
Why manufacturers don't need to replace their existing technology before putting AI to work
How AI can turn a system of record into a system of action on the factory floor
What QAD Redzone learned after giving line leads an AI agent before bringing their supervisors into the conversation
Why some manufacturers are willing to set aside 5-7% of their IT budget for AI
How a month of 24/7 bug fixing, complete with its own t-shirts, helped QAD Redzone rebuild customer trust

Enjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!
Tweetable Quotes:
"The role of AI is not to replace the human being. The role of AI is to make that human being, that talent, 3 to 4x more powerful." - Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD Redzone
"Manufacturing is a show-me world. It is not a tell-me world." - Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD Redzone
"Nobody in manufacturing is sitting there waiting for somebody to give them AI. They only want it if it impacts their outcomes." - Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD Redzone

Links & mentions:
STÄUBLI is a leading manufacturer of quick connector systems, covering connection needs for all types of fluids, gases, and electrical power.
QAD Redzone is the manufacturing AI platform built for the mid-market, bringing AI into the ERP and the workflow where decisions get made.
mHUB is a Chicago hard tech platform that brings young companies together with networks of entrepreneurs, advisors, and capital.

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.

RVs are homes that go 60 miles an hour. That changes everything about what goes inside them.
Chris sits down with Sean Petterson, CEO of Supersede, a company combining recycling and manufacturing in an unexpected way - turning recycled plastic into structural building materials. Supersede started with boats, where wood has an obvious problem - boats get wet!
From there, the company moved into RVs, where the materials face constant movement and thermal cycling, on a production line that can build an entire RV in a couple of hours.
Sean also explains the thinking behind Supersede's manufacturing model, including why he'd rather build 10 smaller plants than one big one.
In this episode, find out:
How running production lines in mirrored pairs cuts the distance operators walk across the floor
Why an RV, built to go 60 miles an hour, is a harder test for a material than a house that never moves
How Supersede built its own ERP with zero software developers, piecing it together through Slack, Jira, and GitHub instead
How a pre-sold capacity threshold - already dropping fast - decides when Supersede builds its next plant
How embedding machine vision and LiDAR on the line replaces a QA machine that would otherwise cost far more
Why Sean thinks manufacturers who didn't start using AI a year ago are already a decade behind

Enjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!
Tweetable Quotes:
"If you hadn't gotten on the AI bus 12 months ago, you're a decade behind." - Sean Petterson, CEO of Supersede
“A big contributor to those inefficiencies is, frankly, just legacy that gets embedded.” - Sean Petterson, CEO of Supersede
“In manufacturing, things can move slow, and we just have the unique benefit of making sure that we're investing effectively, but very efficiently.” - Sean Petterson, CEO of Supersede

Links & mentions:
Supersede is a manufacturing company turning recycled plastic into structural building materials, starting with its Marine Board product for the marine and RV industries.
Harmoni is a factory orchestration platform that connects what's happening on your shop floor with the systems you already use, from your machines and operators to your ERP, giving your team one real-time view of production.
PTC's Industrial Newsletter - a quick hit of clarity on how design, manufacturing, and service data can work together for manufacturing leaders looking to modernize.

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.

There's a lot more coming out of Iowa than corn.
Chris heads to Des Moines for a live conversation with four guests who each know Iowa manufacturing a little differently.
Dominique Hain and Cami Schaefer share how Women in Manufacturing Iowa grew to over 900 members in three years. Denny Williams and Denise Hill take it from there, discussing automation, hiring, and just how deep Iowa's farm roots run through its factories.
The conversation also uncovers some of the products many people may not know are made in Iowa, including Winnebago RVs.
In this episode, find out:
What makes a state better known for agriculture become one of the country's stronger manufacturing bases
How Iowa's farming communities are shaping who gets hired at companies like Weiler
Which surprising products are actually made in Iowa, from butter braids to basketball hoops
Why so many Iowa manufacturers trace back to a farmer solving a problem for himself, then his neighbors
How Co-Line is using robots and cobots to boost throughput without cutting its workforce
Why finding qualified operators is harder than finding corn in rural Iowa

Enjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!
Tweetable Quotes:
"I love Des Moines because it's almost like a well-kept secret of Iowa, or of the US." - Cami Schaefer, Executive Operations Assistant at BrownWinick
"We launched our chapter only three years ago, and we're already over 900 members strong, which is absolutely incredible." - Dominique Hain, Industry Account Manager at Rockwell Automation
"With that strong work ethic and farming background, we like to hire young farm kids who know how to work on equipment. They're not afraid to roll up their sleeves and get dirty." - Denise Hill, Senior Human Resources Manager at Weiler

Links & mentions:
Dominique Hain - Industry Account Manager at Rockwell Automation
Denny Williams - Sales/Estimating at Co-Line Manufacturing
Denise Hill - Senior Human Resources Manager at Weiler
Cami Schaefer - Executive Operations Assistant at BrownWinick
Fathom Digital Manufacturing, offering more than 25 advanced manufacturing technologies under one roof, from CNC machining to injection molding.
PTC's Industrial Newsletter, a quick hit of clarity on how design, manufacturing, and service data can work together for manufacturing leaders looking to modernize.

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.

You can count on Philly to bring the energy!
Recorded live in King of Prussia at the final stop of the Northeast leg of the All-American Manufacturing Summer Tour, this episode features the loudest, most engaged crowd Chris has had on the show yet.
Ashley, Brett, and Matt open the show with a look at what makes the Philadelphia manufacturing ecosystem tick, and why collaboration, not competition, might be the region's biggest advantage.
Hannah and Greg then join Matt to talk workforce development, and some of the most creative approaches to the talent shortage you'll hear on the show all year.
In this episode, find out:
What inspired one shop owner to build a group where members share equipment, knowledge, and even trade secrets with people who'd traditionally be seen as competitors
Why locating a machine shop in the heart of Philadelphia, despite the traffic, parking, and wage tax, turned out to be a competitive advantage
How a youth basketball nonprofit ended up building a skilled trades program for teenagers who don't want to go to college
Why the region's defense industry is driving serious demand for skilled manufacturing workers
What convinced a group of manufacturing leaders that hiring from a more diverse talent pool is a genuine business advantage, not just the right thing to do
What it really takes to change how an entire generation sees a career in the trades

Enjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!
Tweetable Quotes:
"That's a competitive advantage for us when we're hiring from a diverse group. Our spindles are running more." - Matt Bruner, President & Co-Founder at American Precision Works
"What makes Philadelphia great is that now we have that willingness to change. Philly is really spearheading that campaign to make manufacturing and the collaboration between all of us more open" - Ashley Watkins, Sales & Marketing Manager at JBM Technologies
"I don't hide any of my prints when we do the group meetings. I'm not afraid of anyone coming in and stealing my work." - Brett Lister, Youth Basketball, Business Owner at B&B Dynamic Machining

Links & mentions:
Ashley Watkins - Sales & Marketing Manager at JBM Technologies
Matt Bruner - President & Co-Founder at American Precision Works
Gregory Thomson - Director of Skilled Building Trades at Philadelphia
Brett Lister - Youth Basketball, Business Owner at B&B Dynamic Machining
Hannah McGarry - Director at Workforce Engagement
CliftonLarsonAllen, presenting partner for the All-American Manufacturing Summer Tour, offering industry-focused wealth advisory, outsourcing, audit, tax, and consulting services.
MaintainX, presenting partner for the tour, helping frontline teams streamline maintenance, standard operating procedures, and more from a mobile device.
NTMA (New Jersey/Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Tooling and Machining Association), a local partner organization supporting manufacturers with resources, events, and a national network.

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.