I’ve argued, along with Harry Moser and others, for a new industrial policy that picks U.S. manufacturing “to win.” As contrarian a view this was a decade ago, there’s consensus today that we should do just that.
The list of desired outcomes reads like an economic manifesto:
Protecting key domestic manufacturing industries and nurturing new or reimagined sectors — like semiconductors
Providing incentives to localize manufacturing supply chains from offshore outposts, via new investments in domestic supply chains, or both
Accelerating the pace of automation in small manufacturers to overcome workforce shortages but more, to improve their global competitiveness
Aligning underutilized economic zones — including rural economies — with high-potential manufacturing opportunities
There’s more, but the big takeaway is that “free trade” is dead. The staggering loss of middle-class jobs, the transfer of wealth and expertise and infrastructure to offshore outposts, today underscores the hard lesson that nothing was free about free trade. Time to complete the policy scaffolding to protect and subsidize U.S. manufacturing.
Here are suggestions to update the protectionist playbook in light of recent events:
Work to roll back the value of the dollar
As tariffs or BATs (border adjusted tax) are used to level the domestic playing field, we should also work to improve the competitiveness of U.S. companies manufacturing at offshore locations in support of local consumers. America’s stalwart dollar is a problem. As the Wall Street Journal’s Bob Tita notes, “For U.S. manufacturers operating overseas factories, their sales in foreign currencies are worth less in dollars now because of the unfavorable exchange rates caused by the strengthening dollar.”
The fix is straightforward: jettison “market-based” thinking and intervene to manage the value of the dollar. Robert Blecker of the Economic Policy Institute outlines the path forward: “The dollar has not fallen compared to the currencies of the developing nations that now account for more than half of the U.S. trade deficit. Some of these nations, especially China, maintain fixed exchange rates and intervene heavily to prevent the type of market-driven adjustment that is now occurring between the dollar and the euro. As a result, relying on financial markets to bring the dollar down is not enough. More active management of the dollar’s decline including cooperation with major U.S. trading partners and action to end foreign manipulation of currency value is vital to ensure that the dollar falls in a comprehensive and sustainable fashion.”
Focus grants and loan programs on uptooling small manufacturers
Economic development can be a miasma of local and regional assistance for business that lacks focus or operates at cross-purposes. Whatever the case, well intentioned efforts often fall flat.
There should be no confusion today about what U.S. manufacturers need from development funding: targeted manufacturing-related grants, awards, and loan programs that facilitate automation and tech-fueled upgrades. Full stop. Uptooling U.S. manufacturers today achieves a rare trifecta of outcomes: improved processes that result in better products, relief from a tight labor market, but also workforce development, as technology attracts a new generation of employees.
Tap in to manufacturing’s nerd appeal
As the “tech wreck” leaves STEM grads uncertain about a career in tech, manufacturing is today poised to fill the career void for this wave of nerdy talent. The timing couldn’t be better. Investments in technology provide manufacturers with a calling card for talent that’s long eluded them.
But the latest wave of technology layoffs this fall has been met by a tepid response from manufacturing brands and associations who otherwise should be coordinating a full-blown recruiting campaign to attract this generation of STEM talent.
At its core, the dissonance between what should be done and what is being done can be chalked up to what Glenn Plagens, CEO of Colorado MEP Manufacturer’s Edge, called the need for “community players coming together again to determine what the next steps are.” In other words, the ongoing challenge of developing a more connected manufacturing community.
Nevertheless, developments today are trending toward alignment. If a concerted national campaign that emanates from Washington D.C. is a bridge too far, coordinated local efforts that highlight manufacturing’s tech stars is an important next step.
It’s a straightforward tactic that, in addition to the others, will work to protect U.S. manufacturing at this important time.
https://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/containers.jpeg427640Bart Taylorhttps://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.pngBart Taylor2023-06-16 18:58:572023-08-10 09:10:46Free trade is dead. For manufacturing, good riddance
The 2023 Colorado Manufacturing Awards (CMAs) honored top-level companies in a variety of fields: craft food and beverage, consumer products, high-tech, and heavy industry. The awards ceremony emphasized the accomplishments — and importance — of leadership by women within manufacturing fields.
When Bart Taylor, who served as the event’s emcee, founded CMA co-sponsor CompanyWeek a decade ago, he took a risk that people would want to read stories about manufacturing — and that manufacturers would want their stories told to a like-minded audience.
Taylor noted how the landscape has changed since the pandemic: “Today, manufacturing is a national security imperative,” he said — a point affirmed by several CMA winners. Taylor has now teamed up with Texas-based Sustainment, in order to “showcase your capabilities” within an online manufacturing directory, he told the audience.
Similarly, event co-sponsor Manufacturer’s Edge is “part of a national movement to map the manufacturing supply-chain ecosystem,” in order to support and grow it, said CEO Glenn Plagens.
Sharing a vision for growing their Colorado industries, nominees came from locations across the state to participate: Grand Junction, Fort Collins, Buena Vista, and the site of the awards ceremony itself, Golden. Within videos prepared for the event, previous CMA winners provided observations on domestic manufacturing, noting recent supply-chain snags and labor shortages. Representatives from co-sponsors JPMorgan Chase and Moss Adams were on hand to announce some of the winners and highlight their companies’ services
Accepting the award on Hertz’s behalf, Hertz’s longtime friend and Holidaily COO Laura Ukowich recalled their panic after discovering — gulp! — Hertz needed to go gluten-free and stop drinking the beer made by their employer MillerCoors. “How do we go to tailgates?!” Ukowich recalls them thinking. Instead of giving up beer, Hertz opened a gluten-free brewery, instead. Not only that, Hertz is “dedicated to giving back to her community and mentoring young women in the brewing and manufacturing industries,” noted Amy Olson, the vice chair of the Colorado chapter of Women In Manufacturing, who announced the nominees in the category. (Where was Hertz during all this? Being a dedicated mom, attending her daughter’s state final soccer game.)
This Denver brand nationally distributes its meat and sausage products within both retail and food service channels. And its upcoming centennial is definitely on the minds of the family business. “I get chills and tingles through my body when I think about that,” said Melodie Polidori Harris, noting how her great-grandmother came from Italy and started the Polidori family sausage business in (what’s now) Denver’s LoHi neighborhood in 1925.
After Polidori Harris expressed her excitement and surprise over winning, she noted her primary motivation for attending the event: “I came here to support Bart [Taylor of CompanyWeek] and the amazing work that he does for Colorado manufacturers.”
Craft Food and Beverage Contract Manufacturer of the Year
COO Adam Cioth said about the Colorado family business, “When we were little kids, we always dreamed of having something that we could do together.” Today, those siblings and their wives manufacture nationally-distributed energy, protein, and nutrition bars for about 20 different customers, utilizing cutting-edge technology at their 100,000 square feet of space in Longmont. “We love being here,” said Cioth about the state, citing Colorado’s central location, its labor force, and its high-tech and manufacturing ecosystems. “We can’t imagine being anywhere else.”
This Colorado Springs company has innovated X-ray imaging technology, replacing glass with a much lighter foil substrate on its panels. The U.S. Department of Defense finds that eminently useful, as do other medical and manufacturing concerns. CEO Lindsay Pack said about dpiX’s CMA victory, “Thank you so much for acknowledging the contribution that we’re making here in Colorado—as well as to the United States.”
If a major aerospace manufacturer needs a component, Blue Line Engineering is ready to take the call. At its Colorado Springs facility, the company performs research and development all the way through final manufacturing. “Our products are used on the James Webb Space Telescope in four different places,” noted founder and CEO Greg Ames, who likens that technology for laypeople to “exquisite guitar pickups.” And Ames also drew a comparison of his company’s corporate culture to that of a theater company, with everyone lending their talents to bring about big results — which in Blue Line’s case “are so helpful for science, for defense, for commerce and industry.”
Planning communities and constructing modular homes for the “workforce segment” of the market wasn’t something CEO Charlie Chupp had ever envisioned doing, given his previous manufacturing background. However, Chupp began asking himself, “How do we bring manufacturing concepts into construction?” Today, modular homes built by Fading West in Buena Vista are being shipped to communities, desperate to house and retain their workers, all across the state.
Consumer Product Contract Manufacturer of the Year
President Mark Huebner runs a dye sublimation print house that also assembles a variety of garments: golf polos, team uniforms, and ski bibs are just some of the products coming out of his active contract manufacturing business. As the grandson of WWII German immigrants “who love this country dearly” and the son of a military combat service member, Huebner said, “They instilled in me the importance of making things in America.”
As a manufacturing business over a hundred years old, Munro has made a variety of water pumps in Grand Junction since the early ’70s. Company president Katie Munro Powell highlighted the importance of local manufacturers in her acceptance speech: “Our companies are foundational job providers, are foundational industries for our state — and so incredibly important. And I feel very proud to be part of that.” (Munro Powell was also a contender within the Colorado Manufacturing Woman of the Year category.)
Company chairman Bob Walker discussed how his family’s business began after his parents courageously transitioned from farming to building golf cars. Nowadays, the Fort Collins company manufactures commercial riding mowers. But given how its top markets are in the Northeast, and its important components originate in the Midwest, why not relocate? “We don’t want to be somewhere else,” affirmed Walker. “We want to be here in Colorado.” Besides keeping company jobs in the state, Walker discussed how a multitude of ancillary businesses — like truck drivers — directly benefit from the company’s local manufacturing, as well.
Industrial & Equipment Contract Manufacturer of the Year
This Louisville company melds robotics with AI in order to create automation systems which sort recyclable material — technology now in use throughout the world. The company’s business development director Rob Writz said, “It is a really exciting time to be in recycling.” He pointed out how the Colorado legislature has now placed the burden for recycling on packaging producers, rather than taxpayers — a Canadian-style initiative which has seen “recycling rates of 70 to 85 percent.” Writz added, “Colorado is about to be a leader in this space in the United States. So, get ready: You all will be a big part of this.”
Yoss, who transitioned from a 36-year career at Lockheed Martin to overseeing the Industry 4.0 Center of Excellence at Metropolitan State University of Denver, has both manufacturers and students in mind with his current work. Yoss invited the gathered manufacturers over to MSU Denver to learn more about “digital twins and augmented reality, and how you can use that at your workplace. And then, take a student with you back to your home shop to implement it, so that they then wind up getting a job and, hopefully, have a nice, long, rewarding career like I did.”
Nominations for the 2024 Colorado Manufacturing Awards will open in late 2023.
When we sit around a dinner table — or a campfire — with family and friends, food and drink made by local businesses enhance our lives. Tasty beer and wine. The fixings for flavorful meals — as well as the healthy snacks we reach for in between them.
The Colorado brands within the Craft Food & Beverage category at the 2023 Colorado Manufacturing Awards are forging pathways, developing desirable goods, and promoting sustainability. They stress good relationships with their workers.
Some represent Colorado from coast to coast: Denver’s Polidori Sausage can be found in grocery stores across the country.
Others have responded to unique challenges at home. Perhaps, the most extreme case of overcoming adversity would go to Aspen Peak Cellars, which lost one location to fire and then had its next building destroyed by a runaway truck. Yet, the married couple who operate the Bailey winery, Marcel and Julie Flukiger, still approach their business joyfully.
Speaking of family meals, many of the businesses in this category are — or began as — family businesses. For example, Matt Davis started Packaging Express with his father, before buying the Colorado Springs business outright himself.
As Sanitas Brewing Company CEO Michael Memsic notes, many people are choosing to live, work, and raise families in Colorado out of an appreciation for the state’s amenities — not because they’re forced by circumstances to reside here. “I think that you end up with a culture of people who are happier,” says Memsic..
Here’s the secret ingredient behind Marcel and Julie Flukiger’s success at marrying Colorado, Washington, and California grapes into their award-winning blends: This husband-and-wife team utilizes the palates they developed as chefs (they met working at the Brown Palace) to create balanced wines that pair spectacularly with food, says Marcel.
Not only does their winery serve award-winning vino, it offers a gustatory experience, as well. In the late winter, there’s snowshoeing followed by an authentic Swiss-style fondue. (Marcel originally hails from Switzerland.) Naturally, they had a wine recommendation for the 1,300 visitors who partook at this weekend seasonal event: their crisp, dry Pinot Gris–selected for the 2022 Governor’s Cup Collection–complements the creaminess of the cheese. It also pairs well with the seafood dishes they prepare for diners, sometimes at three course Colorado Wine Club meals.
Instead of snowshoeing, summertime visitors can sit with bare feet alongside the adjacent river, enjoying red selections which won platinum at the Great American International Wine Competition. The Flukigers employ a special crusher machine to create super-fine “sand” for their riverside “beach” from the winery’s retired bottles, while also sustainably cleaning and reusing 25 percent of the ones in their tasting room.
A beloved boon to the town of Bailey, Marcel invites visitors to take a “trip to the hills — and leave with a pleasant memory.” And also with bottles of their wines — primarily sold direct-to-consumer.
Matt Davis’ company serves as an asset for food and beverage companies in Colorado, making the cardboard boxes, often with branded printing on the outside, which meet their specific shipping and delivery needs — whether that’s sending-off containers of yogurt to stores inside boxes with protective dividers or getting a boxed pie from a pizzeria to a customer on their couch. Packaging Express makes attractive holders in which a selection of whiskey bottles fit into their own slots, as well as those folding cartons for six packs of bottled beer. The company also produces catering boxes.
“Anybody and everybody who puts something in a box is a potential customer,” says Davis. That goes for the makers of fishing rods, skis, snowboards, and bicycles, as well.
Davis describes his 94,000 square-foot facility in Colorado Springs as a “boutique plant.” And it recently made a major investment in a Swedish machine that can create 500 boxes per minute, with three-color printing on them. “It’s the fastest one in the state,” says Davis.
The process of making “millions” of boxes per year results in tons of cardboard scraps. Last year, the company sent over 600,000 pounds to a recycling plant. As Davis notes, “A typical box is 58 percent recycled.”
Caremont Foods, which once co-manufactured a variety of healthy snacks, now exclusively makes energy, protein, and nutrition bars for around 20 different clients. The narrower focus has translated into massive growth. “In the last 2.5 years, we’ve almost tripled our production volumes,” says CEO Alex Cioth. In addition to adding a few new customers, the company’s existing clients have experienced booming business, as well.
To meet the increased volume of orders, the company now utilizes a couple of different IT programs which help, for instance, manage inventory and track production (one being Redzone). “Because when you grow that much, you can’t do things the same way as you did them before,” notes Cioth.
The company also went from 50,000 square feet divided between two buildings in Longmont to four — although Cioth says it will be down to three by the end of the year, totaling 130,000 square feet. The production facility is filled with mixing equipment, extruders, and enrobing equipment — the latter making Claremont Foods still one of the few contract manufacturers able to coat a bar with pure chocolate. At least a hundred different flavors of bars are produced, spread between its clients’ orders, necessitating hundreds of different ingredients.
It’s a family business: In addition to Cioth as CEO, his wife is the controller and one of his brothers is chief operating officer. And employees have increased from 85 to 185, with the company providing health insurance and 401 (k) plans. “We’re always striving to be a high-quality workplace where people who are outstanding can thrive,” says Cioth.
CEO Michael Memsic has seen the frontier for his brewing company — and it’s in Englewood, Colorado. That’s where Boulder-based Sanitas is in the process of completing its second taproom location, expected to open up by June 2023. Although the Front Range of Colorado is jam-packed with breweries, Memsic describes Englewood as a “beer desert” in an area where many young families are moving due to affordable housing.
The expansion reflects a change in the craft beer business, which has experienced phenomenal growth over the past two decades. When Memsic co-founded Sanitas in 2013, the plan was “to become a regional player, and to fill semis full of cans and ship them all over the country.” But nowadays, worthy craft beer crowds store shelves, both locally and nationally.
But Memsic observes about taprooms, “They’re drivers of community. The margins are great. And they help us become a more profitable business and they give us a path for growth.” Although there will be a small R&D brewery on the premises, much of the beer will be coming from its Boulder location. There will also be a coffee shop and a food vendor on site, allowing people to socialize on Sanitas’ outdoor patio — something it’s already well-known for at its Boulder location.
While store shelves may be getting crowded, Sanitas still has retail and tap accounts at about 450 outlets along the Front Range served by its majority-owned Brewer’s Star Distributors.
“It’s been really fun to combine all of our passions together to solve multiple problems,” says Jane Barden about Farm to Summit, the instant food company she co-founded with her partner in marriage, Louise Barton.
First off, flavor-wise, there was the problem of less-than-satisfactory backpacking meals made by some other brands — which was something Barton noted during her extensive field trips as a Forest Service employee.
For Barden, who grew up on a Michigan farm, there remains the issue of perfectly-nutritious produce going to waste since food stores won’t accept vegetables which display “blemishes.” Nationally, the annual total of unused produce totals billions of pounds. And there’s also the issue of truly sustainable packaging that’s safe for the environment.
Today, Farm to Summit dehydrates vegetable ingredients and prepares its meals at its Durango facility. It works with regional farms to obtain the produce — such as the bell pepper, green beans, kale, chard, spinach, carrots, onion that go into its Thai Red Curry. And it packages its ready-to-eat meals — just add hot water for the recommended amount of time — in “omnidegradable” packaging, which decomposes without the need for composting first.
The brand has been winning over customers locally, as well as in additional states, since its first products became commercially available about a couple years ago. Several outdoor gear stores across the US carry the brand. And Barden says about Durango, “The community here is not only a perfect demographic for what we’re producing and marketing, but the town itself has just been incredibly supportive.”
As a longstanding family business, Polidori Sausage is a couple of years shy of celebrating its centennial. And the company has boomed ever since Vice President Melodie Polidori Harris’ Sicilian great-grandmother made her first Italian sausages at the family’s Denver grocery and market.
Today, Polidori Sausage prepares about 70 different products, with sales taking place in 24 states — from New York to California.
While the brand’s Italian sausages and best-selling chorizo can be readily found at King Soopers, Safeway and “boutique grocery stores” in Colorado, about 75 percent of the business consists of food service accounts nationally. That includes “stadiums and arenas, hotels, restaurants, university campuses, ski areas,” says Polidori Harris. The company has partnerships with Ball Arena, the CU Buffaloes, and the Colorado Rockies, as well as having its own branded concession stand at Coors Field.
Since 2016, the company has worked out of a modern 15,000-square-foot facility. But now, Polidori Harris says, “We’re out of space so we need to move again” sometime in the next three to five years.
The company emphasizes quality assurance and food safety, as well as worker appreciation: Polidori Sausage has profit-shared with its employees about five years now.
Polidori Harris says her great grandmother remains a spiritual guide on the company through all its changes. “She’s beaming down. And she is so incredibly humbled, like we are. And she’s very proud,” says Polidori Harris.
Manufacturing’s enduring relationship with America’s defense establishment has again reached a pivotal moment. Against the backdrop of recovering supply chains, cyber threats, and a ground war in Europe, today a crisis in attracting qualified, capable suppliers into the defense ecosystem threatens to substantially degrade America’s ability to arm and sustain its service branches and allies.
But this perfect storm has awakened the beast. Those charged with developing and maintaining the sprawling, trillion-dollar defense ecosystem seem clear-eyed about the challenge. The National Defense Logistics Agency’s (NDIA) recent Vital Signs report —Posturing the U.S. Industrial Base for Great Power Competition — begins with this gloomy assessment:
“There is a mismatch between what our national strategies aim to achieve and how our defense industrial base is postured.”
It’s downhill from there.
“Key industrial readiness indicators for great power competition are going in the wrong direction,” the report concludes, citing lower budgets and less predictability in how dollars are allocated.
But the report makes clear the Department of Defense’s (DoD) seminal challenge: industrial readiness measured by participation in the defense supply chain. The numbers are eye-opening:
Fewer People. In 1985, the U.S. had 3 million workers in the defense industry. By 2021, the U.S. only had 1.1 million workers in the sector.
Fewer Companies. In the last five years, the defense ecosystem has lost a net 17,045 companies, and the Department of Defense estimates the number of small businesses participating in the defense industrial base has declined by over 40 percent in the last decade.
There’s also consensus for what’s needed to reverse the trend: make it easier for small manufacturers to participate in defense contracting. Full stop.
NDIA member surveys drive home the point: companies make it clear that it’s “easier to work with non-government customers than DoD,” and, that “defense companies find it harder to do business with DoD than other federal customers.”
And if perception is reality, companies don’t see the situation improving:
If part of the solution is understanding the problem, mission accomplished. That said, what’s the path forward?
“I don’t think there are any silver bullets here,” says Sustainment president and retired Brigadier General Chris Hill. (Read more from Chris Hill in Part I of this series.) Hill’s job today is, in part, to help the government tap the untapped potential of small- and medium-sized manufacturers.
“For companies, the truth is that they’re going to have to put more into it the first three to five years than they’re going to get out of it,” Hill says. “That’s a tough order for somebody to do. Even given the scale of the challenge, the Defense Department is not going to come knocking on their door.”
Hill’s thinking is shaped by several years managing the largest repair station in the DoD and United States Air Force at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex. And for every step companies can take to improve their operational posture relating to DoD opportunities, many more must be taken at the federal level.
“What we’re really talking about here is a whole-government approach to supporting SMMs,” adds Hill. “This is bigger than just the DoD, and there are more tentacles [within the federal government] that may be better positioned to support this. For example, it’s not really the DoD’s sole job to support small business — that’s the role of the [Small Business Administration centers]. MEPs, [which are NIST-sponsored manufacturing extension partners], are out there supporting manufacturing through the Department of Commerce in more of a functional role. All that is to say that I think the imperative is to knit together the disparate government resources to help SMMs.”
And to reform others. One significant change currently underway is the relaunch of the national network of PTACs — Procurement Technical Assistance Centers — to the APEX Accelerator network. Lori Haozous is program manager at the Arizona APEX Accelerator and is already seeing an improvement in the program’s ability to partner with appropriate resources to better serve SMMs, along the lines of Hill’s suggestion.
“Going to the DoD Office of Small Business (OSB) program gives us more flexibility,” says Hazous. “Now, I can partner with the Arizona Commerce Authority and have autonomy in creating programs to fit Arizona companies.” (Illinois manufacturers can find more information on local PTACs through the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO). California manufacturers find your local PTAC here.)
She continues, “Today, we need to increase participation in the Defense supply chain. And I know we have clients we can get involved. We can now do what’s necessary to find the resources to get these clients up to that level — or refer them to a reliable resource partner that can help in this area. It’s just educating them and letting them know that we’re here to help them through those parts that they are unsure of or they think is a barrier for them.”
In the end, defense contractors will decide who’s qualified and who’s not, and it would seem that any meaningful reform would include primes and tier-ones that ultimately control the DoD supply chain. They’re on Hazous’ radar — but not yet engaged. “We actually don’t have those strong relationships, yet. I know that moving forward, we need to incorporate these voices to discover processes or whatever requirements our clients need. That’s where we’re headed.”
It’s good news for an ecosystem that needs it. Sustainment’s Hill sees another precedent that bodes well. “There are organizations like the National Security Council, for example, that coordinate these whole-government approaches,” he says.
But as we await the systemic, overarching change in how the government does business, industry has a responsibility as well.
“There has to be some sort of meeting in the middle,” says Hill. “The nation recognizes that we have a gap. We’ve heard about it the last two years since COVID, and through the supply chain woes, inflation, and now geopolitical trade, tariffs, and all the different instruments that are putting pressure on supply chains.”
How, then, to meet a calling that private business has met for years? “The companies I worked with that are successful, they hustle,” says Hill. “That’s how they get it done. Just like every SMM in the country, does. They work their tail off trying to be competitive, agile, and build relationships.”
There’s an indication that in the future, they’ll be rewarded by more receptive DoD suitors. We’ll explore more changes being contemplated at their level in Part III of the series.
The Arizona APEX Accelerator program (formerly Arizona PTAC) is hosted by Maricopa Community Colleges and funded in part by the DoD Office of Small Business Programs (formerly under the Defense Logistic Agency).
https://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.png00Bart Taylorhttps://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.pngBart Taylor2023-04-17 21:38:142023-04-17 21:38:14Why manufacturers should reconsider Department of Defense business, Part II in a series
Today I’m pleased to welcome Illinois manufactures to the inaugural edition of the IL Manufacturing Report. This digital publication is about you: the companies and people reimagining one America’s most important industrial outposts.
For us, Illinois is now part of a regional network of Manufacturing Reports that includes Arizona, California, Colorado, Texas, and Utah. Which means Illinois is our first publishing foray into America’s historic industrial heartland.
It’s exciting — having everything to do with the stories we’re about to tell.
We’re manufacturing geeks — we’ve written in-depth features on more than 2,000 companies across the West since 2013. We predicted a domestic manufacturing comeback in 2013, and since then have followed America’s manufacturing revival through the stories of family-owned companies; of entrepreneurs reinventing manufacturing industries in aerospace, bioscience, craft food, brewing, and distilling; of companies moving production back onshore, because today, “Made in America” matters more than ever.
We’re fascinated by the prospect of showcasing your background and character, but more, to publicize your collective attributes.
The fact is that economic developers, elected officials, and other business leaders have again embraced manufacturing — and are working harder than ever to attract it. Today, we’re helping states communicate the virtues of manufacturing by shining a light on their most valuable asset — you.
In every edition of the IL Manufacturing Report, we’ll profile several Illinois companies across a mix of industries — always focusing first on small and middle-market manufacturers (SMMs). Why? We believe they’re the backbone of U.S. manufacturing.
In each story, we ask company leaders about challenges, opportunities and needs shaping their business trajectory. It’s our editorial “secret sauce.” It’s why you’ll continue reading: Regardless of the industry you’re in or products you make, as a SMM, you share the same workforce challenge; innovative products or processes are critical to your future; and you’re working out a digital roadmap for your company.
You’re also working to optimize, grow, or build out a more capable supply chain. Or, you’re a supplier for an OEM or brand that is. Today we’re part of Sustainment — a national supply-chain portal and software platform that will help you find buyers or manage your supplier network.
We’re here to help, to work with Illinois’ world-class manufacturing ecosystem and add value by reporting on you and connecting your company with resources and new business partners.
Reach out to me with questions — or to have your company featured. There are NEVER any fees to write about your company.
We’ll publish every two weeks, so buckle up. We’re excited to be part of your journey.
https://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.png00Bart Taylorhttps://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.pngBart Taylor2023-04-07 20:28:142023-08-10 09:10:53Welcome to the IL Manufacturing Report!
The finalist group has taken shape for the 2023 Colorado Manufacturing Awards, and this year’s roster of nominees and finalists again represent Colorado and CMA alumni with distinction.
The CMAs were founded in 2016 to showcase manufacturing like it hadn’t been seen before — a mix of makers and manufacturers and dreamers and doers across a range of industries. As we celebrate the 2023 Finalist class (ten winners from six categories will emerge this year), here’s a few highlights from seven prior years — years in which so much has happened to amplify the importance of U.S. manufacturing and the companies we recognize.
The CMAs have done their part. The list of past winners is a Colorado Manufacturing Hall of Fame.
The program has always been about small and medium manufacturers, and the early events were marked by genuine appreciation among companies for the opportunity to meet manufacturers from other industries — a cacophony of “I didn’t know you made that here” — a halo that carries on to today.
The inaugural 2016 event brought together beer makers (Ska Brewing won the first Beer & Brewing CMA) with medical device OEMs (Mountainside Medical) and aerospace contract manufacturers (Faustson Tool). Companies in eight industries overall joined together in the same room, at the same time. There was palpable curiosity and collegiality. Ross Reels and RK began storied CMA runs.
In 2017, Marcia Coulson was awarded the first Colorado Manufacturing Woman of the Year CMA, a class that was, for me, also defined by deft technicians in nanoscience (Forge Nano – a finalist this year), 3D printing (Aleph Objects), brewing (Crooked Stave), and food (MycoTechnology).
2020 was the first of two consecutive virtual COVID-era CMAs — and was memorable for profound commentary as companies navigated wretched conditions that were especially onerous for small businesses. Nevertheless, entire teams from Dry Dock Brewing in Aurora, Meier Skis in Denver, and StickerGiant in Longmont accepted CMAs. Littleton’s Carboy Winery won the first CMA Winery of the Year.
We tried twice to celebrate in person in 2021, but finally succumbed to the inevitability of meeting virtually to recognize another standout class — a reality that didn’t faze Steamboat’s Moots, who tapped off its 40th anniversary celebration with the Consumer Brand CMA. 2021 was notable for its compelling mix of established industry standouts — like Sundyne and Encore Electric — alongside up-and-coming brands led by ambitious entrepreneurs at Storm King Distilling in Montrose, City Star Brewing in Berthoud, and Titan Robotics in Colorado Springs.
Back in person and on stage in 2022, the assembled crowd seemed to revel in being together, but also in celebrating significant accomplishments. It was a stellar class — driven home by fun and compelling speeches from Karen Hertz (Holidaily), Tim Fry (Mountain Racing Products), Patrice Matysiewski (Sauvage Spectrum), Diana Hall (ActiveArmor), Meghan Marsden (Veil Intimates), and generally, every winner.
Here we go, 2023.
This year is already distinguished by the Finalist class (judges will select one winner from each of five categories) including national and global standouts like Windsor’s Walker Manufacturing, Colorado Springs’ dpiX, Thorton’s Forge Nano, and Grand Junction’s Leitner-Poma. RK is looking to become the first three-time CMA winner. This list is longer — and equally compelling.
As we recognize past winners, it’s important to say again that every CMA nominee is valued, and every second taken to submit a nomination is appreciated. The CMAs have always been about the entire community. ALL manufacturing is mission-critical: innovation, ethos, ideas, energy — all flow freely across manufacturing industries.
https://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.png00Bart Taylorhttps://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.pngBart Taylor2023-03-28 16:54:212023-03-28 16:54:212023 CMA Finalists: Thoughts on a fabulous class, and a look back at past CMAs
Buena Vista’s Fading West is modeling growth by meeting the acute need for affordable housing, and as more and more pre-manufactured homes leave its mountain factory, people benefit and great things happen — as they also do at Denver’s mission-driven Mile High WorkShop, a second-chance employment engine that puts light assembly and manufacturing work at the center of people’s lives in support of needy OEMs and brands.
Golden’s Supertramp Campers is doing overland campers right, crafting innovative and eye-opening composite shells — light, strong, and clearly the future. Pueblo’s Boreas Campers is a worthy adversary, fattening up this fast-growth outdoor industry category for CMA judges to sort out.
One of Colorado’s most iconic consumer brands, Denver’s Topo Designs has aptly navigated obstacles that litter the path for gear and apparel brands, and more growth beckons. Another Denver standout, HookFish Manufacturing continues to fill the acute need many apparel brands have for regional contract manufacturing. Louisville’s Quicksilver Scientific just doesn’t seem to slow down, tapping the global boom in health and beauty commerce.
Craft Food & Beverage Manufacturer of the Year
Boulder’s Claremont Foods is a leader among a superlative batch of co-manufacturers that continue to catalyze growth for Colorado’s signature industry. Denver’s Polidori Sausage builds on incredible products and deep ties to the community to sustain success. Boulder denizen Sanitas Brewing Company is widening its community gaze with a key expansion into Englewood.
In Bailey, Aspen Peak Cellars‘ wines are recent Governor’s Cup winners, but the story only starts with wine. Durango’s upstart Farm to Summit is perfecting “gourmet dehydrated meals sustainably.” And Colorado’s cornucopia of food and beverage brands couldn’t go to market without key partners in the supply chain like Colorado Springs-based Packaging Express.
One measure of manufacturing’s improbable decade-long comeback is the list of Colorado Manufacturing Awards (CMA) past finalists and winners, from the inaugural event in 2016 to last year. Today it’s a roster of recognizable companies and brands that collectively, has become a national model for manufacturing’s new industrial mix.
Colorado companies and people continue to shine. In this 8th annual CMA program, manufacturers were nominated in four broad industry categories that at once capture Colorado’s distinctive diversity, but at the same time recognize both sides of the supply chain — contractor and supplier.
Here then, are the list of finalists in two categories: Technology Manufacturing and Industrial & Equipment Manufacturing. Two winners will emerge from each category, a Manufacturer of the Year and Contract Manufacturer of the Year.
In the next CO Mfg. Report, we’ll showcase finalists in Consumer Manufacturing and Craft Food & Beverage Manufacturing, Colorado Manufacturing Woman of the Year finalists, and Colorado Manufacturing Advocate of the Year finalists.
Industrial & Equipment Manufacturing | Finalists
Windsor’s Walker Manufacturing inspires a passion for its products reserved for a select group of American companies. The quiet company stays focused on customers and employees, but the loyalty and enthusiasm for its bulletproof mowers speaks volumes. Grand Junction’s Munro Companiesmanufactures and assembles professional-grade valves and other irrigation equipment, but also is an important anchor in the Western Slope’s underpublicized industrial sector. It also includes GJ’s ski-lift icon Leitner-Poma, a company known for its rugged mountain-based solutions even as it eyes growth in urban transportation systems.
Denver’s LTM Plastics is transforming injection molding into a high-tech affair, with outcomes that promise to improve U.S. global competitiveness. Louisville’s AMP Robotics is utilizing AI at scale in equipment that sorts and processes millions of disparate recyclable products and pieces to improve the “global recycling system.” Denver’s RK Mission Critical taps a history of regional infrastructure contributions to build more sustainable modular building solutions to crypto-mining and other growth industries.
Technology Manufacturing | Finalists
Colorado Springs-based Blue Line Engineering is a key contributor in Lockheed Martin’s aerospace supply chain and a standout player in Colorado’s rich ecosystem. Neighboring dpiX gives the Springs two standout finalists, and the global leader in a-Si technology is also a semiconductor foundry and rising star in America’s industry push. Loveland’s Vergent Products is a design-to-manufacturing contract specialist with multi-industry ties and a growing regional facility footprint.
Thornton’s nanoscience standout Forge Nano continues its rapid global rise providing key materials at microscale for a cross-section of industrial clients. Also in Thornton, Intrex Aerospace is bringing advanced machining and fabricating acumen to aerospace OEMs alongside standouts like Blue Line Engineering. And Berthoud’s Ursa Major Technologies‘ rocket engines hold promise in resetting America’s lagging global position in propulsion systems for space launch and emerging hypersonic defense systems.
View the Finalists in Consumer Product and Craft Food & Beverage Manufacturing here>>
Join us on the afternoon of Thursday May 11 for the CMA Gala & Winners Reveal to celebrate one of America’s most compelling manufacturing outposts.
America’s defense supply chain is at a crossroads. On one hand, business is booming for defense contractors. On the other, U.S. manufacturing is straining to meet current demands in a trillion-dollar industry that’s certain to ask more and more from domestic suppliers.
We’re on the cusp of a new golden age of advanced manufacturing — or at a breaking point.
Perhaps no person is more qualified to parse the possible outcomes than retired Air Force General Chris Hill. In his “last job with the government”, Hill was commander of the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex, the largest repair station in the Department of Defense (DoD) and United States Air Force, managing a multi-million dollar budget to procure parts and services in support of four DoD product groups: aircraft, aircraft components, and aircraft and weapons systems software — in addition to being the only Air Force depot that repaired engines within the “organic defense industrial base.”
What Hill experienced was eye-opening. “The scope of the challenge in that job, specifically with material availability in engines alone in the 2019 to 2020 period, was about a $200 million impact to production — because we couldn’t get parts,” he explains. “The hardest jobs fell to supply chain leaders.”
Cue the breaking-point narrative.
“When I think about the biggest challenge in the Department of Defense,” Hill continues, “I think about the Defense Logistics Agency. And I think about what they face as a challenge in getting their mission done, which is essentially providing supplies, everything from construction materials to machine parts to uniforms and food. In the last 10 years, they’ve seen a 40 percent decline in the number of small and medium-sized businesses that are participating in their marketplace. And they see a churn in their domestic supplier base of about 25 percent a year in small and medium-sized businesses. And that is a significant concern for them.”
Hill has crossed the street to work on the challenge — to the private sector. Today he’s president and general manager/Federal and Defense, for Sustainment, the upstart technology and software platform efforting to optimize the manufacturing supply chain around the needs of small and medium-sized manufacturers (SMMs) — including the ecosystem of suppliers and contractors directly supporting America’s defense industrial base.
Why stay in the game? “I think there’s a compelling, urgent national need to get more small and medium-sized businesses into the marketplace,” answers Hill.
The need — and challenge — is real. America’s manufacturing supply chain is a small business ecosystem. SMMs constitute 98.9 percent of manufacturers and employ 70.3 percent of manufacturing employees in the U.S. In 2022, small businesses were awarded about 25 percent of all DoD prime contracts.
But when it once was a given that small manufacturers were a renewable resource, years of offshoring and devaluing of the American industry have diminished the community of companies stepping up and into industry supply chains. Moreover, the rules have changed for SMMs, and the perception among SMMs is that defense business is hard — hard to land, hard to sustain, hard to tool up to meet technical thresholds and process requirements.
For SMMs, it’s a maddening paradox. As much as the DoD needs SMMs, and is legislatively required to hire them, the system seems rigged for larger companies able to initiate and support DoD work.
The dissonance for SMMs was evident to Hill. “I have to say straight up that doing business with the government is not easy. I mean, it’s administratively cumbersome. The workforce is organized in a way that isn’t always a mirror to industry. And the nomenclature, the lexicon, the language are confusing. I found since retiring that the government and commercial industry used the same words to describe different things and different words to describe the same things. And that lends itself to be confusing. I think that also contributes to why it’s hard to do business with the government today.”
But Hill’s appreciation for small business runs deep, shaped by his experience in hiring, retaining, and managing SMMs.
“Since I retired [from the military], I worked for a $37 million dollar manufacturer, and I worked for a $37 billion dollar manufacturer,” he recounts. “I saw a $37 million dollar company compete head-to-head with Tier Two OEMs. And they did great. As a matter of fact, they could do things that those OEMs couldn’t do, because they were agile, hungry, and didn’t have to cover broad G&A costs of a larger firm. Most importantly, they delivered on their promises — quality products, on time. So, effectively, competition priced the small and medium-sized business into the market.”
“I also think there’s a gap between what’s available on the market and what’s presented to the DoD. I mean, I was at a small manufacturer in December with the Assistant Secretary of Defense [Deborah[ Rosenblum, who leads industrial base policy for the Department of Defense. And she came to visit this vendor, specifically, because they were a small sized manufacturer, and they provide a capability that’s one-of-a-kind in the nation. And she came by to see what was happening, what they were doing, and all the different products that they made. And to say ‘thank you’ for participating in this market. We need to work harder to uncover this type of capability.”
Hill’s messaging to SMMs? “I would suggest that the nation’s national defense is worth their time. We’re working to generate interest and connect a capability and capacity in a marketplace with opportunities. That’s why I joined the Sustainment team. I think that this company is doing a lot to get after it.”
In part two, we’ll talk with Chris Hill about specific opportunities and how SMMs can more effectively engage the DoD ecosystem.
https://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.png00Bart Taylorhttps://mfginsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MFG-INSIDER-word-logo2.pngBart Taylor2023-01-29 17:19:502023-01-29 17:19:50Why manufacturers should reconsider Department of Defense business
By most any measure, 2022 was a transformational year for manufacturing. Here’s an early look at storylines shaping the coming year.
1. 2023 is the year of the semiconductor supply chain — who builds a roadmap that wins?
Arizona and Texas were among big winners in the semiconductor factory sweepstakes. But manufacturing communities across the U.S. anticipate a lift from the semiconductor surge. Who best navigates the opportunity?
We know a pile of money is about to be spent through the CHIPS & Science Act — it’s worth reviewing the scale of the plans. And we know the basics — money for community colleges and universities to train machinists and engineers, incentives to develop expertise and support for companies operating in a new semiconductor supply chain.
But what types of companies? In what roles? And where? How will semiconductor factories transform local manufacturing ecosystems in AZ, TX, NY, and OH? How should Colorado, Utah, California, or Washington position for growth? Should new coalitions or clusters be formed to support regional prosperity? Who does that? What companies participate, and how?
We don’t seem to know a lot about how semiconductor supply chains will evolve to sustain an industry of this size. 2023 will provide the roadmap.
2. More engineers will be hired in manufacturing than ever before (who’s counting?)
Manufacturing has long been seen as the “dirty end” of engineering. In 2023 that officially changes.
Tech jobs in manufacturing are about to become the big thing. Fueled by the semiconductor boom and uncertainty in the tech economy, more engineers will be hired in manufacturing than ever before.
3. 2023 will be a rough year for outdoor industry superpowers.
The retirement of VF Corp.’s CEO Steve Rendle portends a year of change in the outdoor industry.
Analysts have sloughed-off the Rendle retirement talk and have instead pointed to “worsening fundamentals” at VF as the reason for the change. In other words, the business is in trouble.
But it’s arguable that the entire industry is in trouble — and at a crossroads. The lofty ambitions and brand promises of its leading companies are running headlong into the messy realities of global operations — like decoupling with China.
If demand continues to weaken, companies may in fact seize the moment to make fundamental changes to better align operations with the professed mission of its leaders. 2023 could be a wild ride.
4. EV infrastructure and the Great Leap forward.
As heady an opportunity the semiconductor supply chain seems to be, don’t sleep on EV’s value chain. The electric vehicle market is forecast to grow about 20 percent year-over-year, and by 2028 to be a half-trillion dollar global market.
The West is already home to superstar brands in vehicle, component, and EV infrastructure manufacturing, and the latter may be the top growth opportunity. California’s Beam Global is only one innovator helping nervous drivers overcome “charging anxiety” as they take to the road.
Celebrate Tesla, but invest in the companies and visionaries transforming the transportation ecosystem into an EV-compatible network.
5. Musk’s distractions will diminish his manufacturing influence. Sadly.
At the time, Musk was waging pitched battles against the likes of Ford, GM, and NASA to overcome decades of entrenched resistance. The outcomes were as spectacular as the fury of the early standoffs.
Musk’s adversaries today are journalists and politicians. Get in line, brother.
There will be no equivalent payoff at Twitter. Taking sides in the public square poses risks for his car business, for one. More, the distraction will limit Elon Musk’s ability to lead the manufacturing revolution.
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Thanks to all of you, our loyal readers, for a fantastic year. An exciting 2023 awaits us all.
