Developing Qualified Manufacturing Employees

On a recent trip to Austria, I met with people from companies such as EMCO Maier, Swarovski, Tyrolit, MIBA, and Brisker, only to hear the same message over and over – that apprenticeships and training programs are extremely important.

All five of these companies have one thing in common – their belief in apprenticeship programs. While Swarovski operates its own apprenticeship program, the other companies take advantage of state or county run programs. These programs – whether publically or privately funded – typically take 3-1/2 years.

During their middle-school years, many children in Europe have the opportunity to visit different manufacturing facilities, where they (usually 10 to 12 years of age) are able to observe the skills that are needed for a career in manufacturing, either as a CAD/CAM programmer, toolmaker, working with electronics, in a chemical lab, or in the production environment.

On average, Swarovski will receive 150 applicants per year – the average applicant being 13 to 14 years of age. Of the 150 applicants, Swarovski will usually accept 50, compared to Berufsschule – a county run facility in Hallein, Austria, which has an enrollment between 1,800 and 1,900 students.

Berufsschule, with an average student age of 16-1/2, is one of 12 trade schools in the greater Salzburg area. An advantage to having so many schools located within one area is that it offers the schools the opportunity to exchange students between programs, depending on the number of students per program and their location.

The students that attend Swarovski’s apprenticeship program will take classes in the classroom for their first two years, followed by 1-1/2 years of training in different departments throughout the corporation, typically followed by six months of military service.

While in Swarovski’s apprenticeship program, students will receive a monthly stipend. Typically, a first year student will receive €500 ($700), a second year student €600 ($850), third year €900 ($1,275) and €1,200 ($1,700) for the last half year (this is typical in most European programs).

According to Patrick Welge, president, EMCO Maier Corp. USA, roughly 90% of all manufacturing companies in Europe, with more than 25 employees, have a direct or indirect apprenticeship program. Many of these facilities – such as Swarovski – train their employees on EMCO Maier machine tools, which are specifically designed for training applications. These machine tools have the ability to easily exchange control-systems, having the ability to be switched from a Fanuc to a Siemens, a Heidenhain, or an Emcotronic, giving the student the opportunity to learn several different control systems.

Approximately 40% of all Austrian teenagers enter an apprenticeship training program upon completion of their compulsory education1. Compared to the 31.2% of the student who failed to graduate in the United States in 2007, these students are able to find something that they enjoy at an early age, giving them the confidence to excel at their desired craft.


Change is Occurring
Compared to the United States, Europe seems to have things going in the right direction with their dual education system, academia combined with apprenticeships.  However, companies such as Haas Automation Inc., MAG IAS LLC, and DMG / Mori Seiki USA – along with others – are doing their part to help revitalize the negative perception of manufacturing in the United States.

Gene Haas, president and founder of Haas Automation, developed the Haas Technical Education Center (HTEC). HTEC includes 986 educational institutions made up of high schools, vocational schools, career centers, community colleges, colleges, and universities throughout the United States and Canada.

MAG recently created a partnership with Gateway Community College in Park Hills, KY, where MAG provides on-the-job training with related classroom instruction via an apprenticeship program that was created in 2007 – they currently have six other collaborations with major universities in the southern Ohio area.

Another example is DMG / Mori Seiki USA. According to Rod Jones, chief learning officer, DMG / Mori Seiki University, “Over the past five years, DMG / Mori Seiki University has grown by more than 6,000%. In 2006, we had an enrollment of approximately 160 students. In 2010, we will have an enrollment of more than 10,500 students – approximately 90% of those students will be attending classes on-line.”

During the past five years, the DMG / Mori Seiki University has increased their staff to 10 instructors, with 10 CNC machines for training purposes.

According to Jones, more than 50 students attended a recent open house so they could see what machine tools are, how they work, and to have the chance to learn various fields that support these operations.

“During an earlier event, the parents and counselors were so amazed that careers like this existed, we actually stayed several hours past the scheduled end of the open house answering questions from both parents and counselors," Jones says.


Changing the Perception
“Manufacturing needs to change its image. As a rule, gone are the nasty, filthy, grungy facilities that appear in many of the old time photos. Today’s shops are generally well lit, and a safe place to work,” says Barry Knight, machine tool instructor, Heritage High School, Rogers, AR.

Knight feels that educating the public will create a positive image of manufacturing, which will help with the funding of programs like the one at Heritage. With 55 students enrolled in a two hour class (equal to 110 students for accounting purposes), Knight is given a yearly budget of $3,750, which breaks down to $34 per student. Adding the $3,750 to the fact that Heritage has not purchased a new piece of machinery in more than 13 years, the perception is that manufacturing is just not important.

According to Knight, two things need to take place. Manufacturers and machine shops need to get involved in the local education process, and counselors need to change their perspective.

“Counselors are under pressure to insure that all students have their core subjects done prior to their senior year, which limits the amount of exposure they can have in developing their manufacturing job skills,” Knight says.


Needed Support
That is where a lot of the problems originate, according to Clement Fucci, manufacturing technology department chairperson, Westfield Voc-Tech High School, Westfield, MA.

“Guidance counselors and parents need more exposure to the opportunities in manufacturing and other trades that do not require a four year degree, many of these trades produce well paying, secure jobs,” according to Clement, also a graduate from Westfield Voc-Tech High School.

Westfield Voc-Tech High School has an enrolment of approximately 50 students, with 12 to 15 students graduating each year and Fucci has seen the benefits of a specialized education first-hand. Thru the co-op program, where 100% of the students are placed in a co-op job during their senior year, the majority of those jobs lead to full time employment immediately following graduation.

WVTHS teaches students in grades 9-12. One week is spent in the shop and the next week is spent on traditional curriculum. The shop at WVTHS consists of traditional/manual mills and lathes as well as six newly-acquired Doosan CNC machine tools from ABLE Machine Tools Sales, Inc. and Doosan Infracore Machine Tools. The shop is also equipped with a Fanuc EDM and Tesa quality control equipment, including a CMM.

Fucci looks at the future in aerospace manufacturing as cautiously optimistic, saying, “The future looks bright, but my concern is in finding a qualified workforce here in the United States. I believe that a paradigm shift needs to take place early in our educational system. One that will allow parents and students to make an informed decision as to the opportunities and acceptance for employment that does not include a four-year college degree.”

When asked about the success of his program, Fucci gives most of the credit to the more than 40 manufacturing facilities within the immediate area.

“Our local manufacturing companies are our lifeline to what the needs are in the precision machining industry. We have 15 members, mostly from those companies, that form our Program Advisory Committee which collectively meet four times a year. Our Program Advisory Committee works closely with our elected officials to promote precision manufacturing and instill how important it is to the local economy and the tax base it provides to our city. This makes it easier to justify spending monies on staff and supplies within our department,” Fucci explains.

Getting the latest in technology to keep the students current would not be possible without outside involvement. Grants from Siemens, along with a $294,000 grant from Congressman John W. Olver for new CNC machine tools supplied by ABLE Machine Tools Sales, Inc. and Doosan Infracore Machine Tools, have helped make this possible. WVTHS has also partnered with the Western Massachusetts Chapter of the National Tooling and Machining Associate (NTMA) for their assistance. Sandvik Coromant has donated a $5,000 tooling package. WVTHS also holds an annual golf tournament fundraiser. Proceeds from the last tournament were used to purchase the Tesa CMM.

He also admits that without receiving funds through local city bonding projects, donations from precision manufacturing companies, and grants from federal and private institutions, none of this would be possible. Several local manufacturing businesses have put up matching funds for the purchase of machining centers.

“A collaborative effort, on behalf of our Program Advisory Committee, to educate local politicians on the importance of precision manufacturing in our city is an ongoing process. Partnering with the local chapter of the National Tooling and Machining Association (NTMA) produced a $295,000 grant from our congressman for new machine tool technology,” Fucci States.


The Future
An excellent example of a young person who has taken advantage of a program that was available to him is Chase Roloson. Roloson spent three years in his local high school Precision Machining Program, in Salisbury, MD. When asked about who influenced him in his decision to pursue a career in manufacturing, Roloson comments that his interests were peeked during a shop tour when he was 15.

With more than three years of machining education behind him, Roloson tested his skills against some of the best in his region in the Skills U.S.A. Competition with the support of companies like Gibbs & Associates, CNC Software Inc, The L.S. Starrett Co., and Haas Automation Inc.

Although Greg Chambers, president, Oberg Industries, and director of compliance, NIMS, believes that the companies offering training to their employees are doing an excellent job, he feels the companies that do not offer training are hurting the industry by poaching skilled workers from the companies investing in training.

“This will result in problems down the road, since most companies that do not conduct training are robbing people from their own supply chain,” Chambers explains.

He also believes that the United States could learn a few things from Europe in regards to apprenticeships and training.

“The main objective should be how to incentivize companies that develop talent through an apprenticeship program. The United States needs a long term vision regarding the future of American manufacturing and the value it brings to the table,” Chambers says.

Taking to heart the thoughts and concerns of Jones, Knight, and Fucci, together with a look at European tradition, training must come first. With the support of local communities, governments, industry leaders, and groups such as NIMS and NTMA, the future could be very bright.


Doosan Infracore Machine Tool Sales Inc.
Pinebrook, NJ
infracoremt.com

EMCO Maier Corp.
Columbus, OH
emcomaier-usa.com

DMG / Mori Seiki USA
Hoffman Estate, IL
dmgmoriseikiusa.com

MAG IAS LLC
Erlanger, KY
mag-ias.com

Haas Automation Inc.
Oxnard, CA
haascnc.com

DMG / Mori Seiki University
Hoffman Estate, IL
dmgmoriseikiusa.com/education-on-demand

NIMS
Fairfax, VA
nims-skills.org

NTMA
Independence, OH
ntma.org

Heritage High School
Rogers, AR
rogers.k12.ar.us

Westfield Voc-Tech High School
Westfield, MA
wvths.com