October 27, 2023 – “I think I want to be a plumber because plumbing seems like a big puzzle,” says 17-year-old Ella, who I met at a National Manufacturing Day event sponsored by MSC Industrial Supply Co. in Knoxville, Tenn. Ella is a tiny, timid girl hiding behind glasses and blazing blue hair. It’s an ah-hah moment for me. “Oh, you like puzzles?” I respond. “Manufacturing is an infinite number of puzzles waiting to be solved.” Now I have her attention.
Puzzles come up again later that day when someone asks me, “What exactly does IACMI – The Composites Institute do?” The short answer is we convene, connect, and catalyze, but what does that mean? Celebrating Manufacturing Day in multiple locations this month has given me a fresh perspective. I picture what IACMI is trying to accomplish as a large puzzle, except this puzzle has pieces that are constantly evolving.
CONVENE:
Building relationships starts with showing up. IACMI convenes the larger composites community during our annual Members Meeting, our Working Groups convene quarterly, and we convene at many events throughout the year— like this week at CAMX2023 in Atlanta. In the last month alone, IACMI staff has traveled to Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Washington DC to meet with our current partners, explore new opportunities, and attend outreach events.
One example is Indiana Industry Day hosted by the Composites Manufacturing and Simulation Center at Purdue University. The goal was to invite large to small companies doing business or wanting to do business in Indiana so they could understand the capabilities and technologies happening at Purdue. What are those needs industry has that our partner Purdue can help research and develop? Seeing a large-scale additive machine 3D printing parts or standing next to a giant tube that’s going to be part of the largest science experiment in the world makes their innovations tangible and very exciting.
Another place we’ve convened recently is the White House. Joannie Harmon, IACMI’s VP of Workforce Development, is a representative from one of the three Manufacturing USA institutes selected for a Manufacturing Sprint round table discussion. How do we move the needle on filling the enormous skills gap to revitalize U.S. manufacturing? IACMI has a seat at the table for these discussions, offering best practices and solutions that could influence government policy and initiatives.
CONNECT:
Once we’ve convened, it’s easier to make the connections. Take the story of Lynsey Baxter and Nicole Balog for example. Lynsey is an application engineer for a small, woman-owned chemical company called MITO Material Solutions, an IACMI member. They make hybrid additives for resins that improve performance in a wide variety of composite products. They’ve been successful at demonstrating material, cost, and carbon emission savings in making golf clubs, bicycles, baseball bats, fishing rods, and skis. Getting to tour MITO’s testing lab and clean room in Indiana recently was very cool.
The next day I sat down with Purdue PhD student Nicole in West Lafayette, IN and asked her what her dream job would be. “I think research, designing, or production of skis would be it for me. I’m a big skier, so working on something I interact with every day would be huge.” Of course, I immediately think of MITO, which is less than an hour away. I introduce Lynsey and Nicole and smile as they chat enthusiastically. Maybe Nicole will pursue a job there or maybe she’ll discover what an incredible mentor and role model Haley Keith, MITO’s CEO, could be for her. Time will tell.
We all look back at seemingly small connections that shape the course of our careers. It can be tough for small companies to attract the up-and-coming talent in the composites industry, and likewise knowing which companies are out there can be daunting for the next-generation workforce. As a mom, I’ve seen that struggle with my own son. Having a little help connecting the dots can make a big difference.
CATALYZE:
The third critical part of what we do is catalyze, which means to start or accelerate something. It’s the spark that when we provide the right elements and conditions becomes a fire. It’s what IACMI is doing by leading workforce programs like America’s Cutting Edge (ACE). What started just three years ago by University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UT) professor Dr. Tony Schmitz now provides training to thousands of people in all 50 states. By making it cost-free, CNC machining training is accessible to anyone from high school students to retired veterans.
It only takes a few minutes talking with Jacob Montrose, a Purdue grad student who teaches a CNC class, to see that spark of interest. When he realizes we could give him the curriculum for students to machine components of a functioning air engine and that there are other courses in composites, metrology, and cybersecurity—all at no cost–his eyes are dancing at the opportunities.
I see the same excitement with a teacher from Karns High School in Tennessee, when he realizes he can use ACE to satisfy a graduation requirement for hundreds of his students. “You mean my kids can learn about cutting-edge technology instead of reading a 15-year-old textbook? Let’s do this!” shouts Brock Webster.
WORKING THE PUZZLE:
This brings us back to Ella, a junior at Karns, who returns to talk to me three times to dig a little deeper into this manufacturing puzzle. So, I tell her about the online and in-person training with ACE and explain that she can choose from several locations within 20 miles. This is her chance to explore if CNC machining is a fit for her. What does she have to lose? It might just be the puzzle she’s been searching for all along.
There are days when our puzzle feels too big to solve or frustrating that there are too many pieces that keep changing. That’s the nature of workforce development. But when I meet Lynsey, Nicole, Jacob, Brock, and Ella, the puzzle’s picture becomes clear. With each conversation…at every event we attend…we’re stoking the spark of possibility.
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Margaret Slattery is the Communications Manager for IACMI but prefers the title, Chief Storyteller. She loves hearing, writing, and sharing the stories that are impacting one of America’s largest engines for economic growth: manufacturing. And yes, she enjoys puzzles too!