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Manufacturing: The Future

Machine Tool Technology & Engineering Technology

This just in: The manufacturing floor is not what it used to be. These days, employees work in teams. Robots handle a range of tasks. Computers are key tools for welders, tool and die makers, and sheet metal workers. Scanning technologies enable workers to pinpoint inefficiencies and track processes. In short, manufacturers are working smarter and leaner than ever before.

“The way we operate has changed dramatically,” says Peter McGillivray, president of Dynamic Engineering Inc., a Coon Rapids-based company that designs and makes plastic molds for industrial applications. “Our productivity gains have been significant, so it takes a different mindset and a different skill set to work here.”

To succeed, entry-level employees—many of whom McGillivray hires from Saint Paul College’s technical training programs—must understand the foundations of their trade, have razor-sharp technical skills, be computer-literate, and have the ability to work as part of a production team. “The computer drives a lot of what we do,” says McGillivray, “but the thought processes that the worker puts into it are really important.”

Preparing workers for new manufacturing environments shapes several of the trades programs offered at Saint Paul College. With up-to-date skills, the College’s graduates are finding eager employers among the state’s top manufacturing firms, such as 3M, Remmele Engineering, Wilson Tool International, and Schwing America. More than 85 percent of those completing degree or certificate programs in the manufacturing areas find jobs almost immediately, instructors say, and some manufacturers have even hired workers and then sent them to the College for training. And despite the widely publicized challenges of the last few years, the latest research shows that the manufacturing sector is on its way back.

Step 1: Learn the new trends

Pressures from global competitors and advances in computer and other manufacturing technologies have prompted manufacturers to perk up efficiency through processes such as lean manufacturing, world-class manufacturing, or the Six Sigma quality-management methodology. These systems usually involve breaking the manufacturing process into steps and reconfiguring it to create greater flexibility and improved work flow. The techniques help companies reduce cost and compete more effectively in world markets, says Darryl Jarombek, human resources manager at Remmele Engineering, a New Brighton-based contract manufacturer working in the medical device, aerospace, semiconductor, defense, and custom equipment industries.

Remmele started out as a machine shop, but as manufacturing became more complex, the company’s work has followed suit. “We operate at the top of the pyramid in terms of complexity and precision,” says Jarombek. “Typically we’re manufacturing the most complicated aspects of complex parts.”

As a result, the company seeks highly skilled workers with a mastery of manufacturing technologies and a commitment to continuous learning and improvement. Many of its entry-level employees are hired from Saint Paul College. The company uses computer-assisted numerical control (CNC) tools for manufacturing precision metal parts, a specialty training provided by the College. The manufacturing process often begins with an electronic computer-aided design file, rather than blueprints. “Our employees need to be able to go to a customer’s Web site, find the proper file, bring it in, and interrogate it to understand the requirements and features of the parts. Typically, these are complicated parts,” says Jarombek.

Students trained to work in lean manufacturing environments such as at Remmele must have a variety of skills, says Dick Wold, an instructor in Saint Paul College’s manufacturing/ machine tool technology program. They need basic manufacturing skills, computer skills, communication skills, and a knowledge of manufacturing processes that will enable them to move easily into cutting-edge factories. The machine tool program teaches students to make dies and molds using traditional methods, as well as to operate CNC machinery using computer-aided design files.

“We teach the basics first. Before we move students into programming and other more complex tasks they have to have a good foundation,” Wold says, adding that by the time most students complete the program in 15 months or two years, they can operate in most high-tech manufacturing environments.

The College also produces Engineering Technology AAS graduates who have programming skills and the hands-on experience to make them immediately productive employees.

“We find that students from Saint Paul College have the right preparation,” says Jarombek. “But the shelf-life of any technology is getting shorter and shorter. There is a mandate that people have continuous life-long learning. Some of that may be on the job; but more of our ambitious employees are going back to school on their own to build their skills.”

Step 2: Get the right training

Because of the constant change in manufacturing, Saint Paul College maintains close ties with Twin Cities employers, says Richard Pooley, dean of technical and trade programs at the College. Technical programs have boards of advisors made up of industry leaders. These advisors inform the College on industry trends and advances in technology. Because of this close connection with employers, “the realities of the workplace are mirrored in our training,” she says.

Several programs teach lean manufacturing specifically and all technical programs focus students on working on projects similar to those they would find in the workplace. In a recent sheet metal class, for example, several students worked with blueprints and hand-operated equipment to build a piece of duct work similar to the kind they might make on the job. Other students used computer-aided drafting (CAD) programs to create a design and program a computer-controlled plasma cutting machine to cut the design from a metal sheet. “We like to have the students learn how to do things by hand first,” says Carl Zitzer, an instructor in the College’s sheet metal program. The hand work helps students develop their abilities to transform a two-dimensional drawing into a useful, threedimensional object. “Later they will move to auto-CAD drawing and other computer applications,” he adds.

Zitzer, who has more than 20 years of experience as a sheet metal worker, including installing the ductwork in such Minnesota landmarks as Target Center in Minneapolis and the Mall of America’s Camp Snoopy, believes this combination of hands-on and computer training prepares students for a variety of job-related work. Most of Zitzer’s students complete the nine-month sheet metal program, then spend a year’s apprenticeship with an employer such as Chuck Albers, a 1977 graduate of Saint Paul College who owns St. Paul-based Albers Sheet Metal. “The apprentices come in with a good foundation of knowledge that they can develop on the job,” says Albers. “The construction industry is not about building widgets. Out on the site, every job is a new situation with a new owner and new subcontractors. That’s why you need people who are aware of their surroundings and who can be self-starters.”

Step 3: Look beyond the nuts and bolts

Communication skills also matter more in lean manufacturing environments, as does flexibility and a willingness to take on new challenges. “When I first started, communication skills involved saying ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ Most projects would be done from start to finish by one person,” says McGillivray. “Now all our work is done in teams. The ability to communicate is important.”

So is flexibility, particularly in lean manufacturing environments where workers must understand the processes involved in making a product. Students in the College’s welding program, for example, learn a wide range of techniques to increase their employability and their ability to be flexible on the job. “We try to give them a manufacturing background so if things are slow in one area, they can make it in another,” says Rick Dahlstrom, a College welding instructor.

The close relationship between businesses and Saint Paul College instructors has benefits for both parties. For instance, Dahlstrom recently developed a special training session for design engineers at 3M. “They are used to engineering parts, but they didn’t always understand why welds came back defective or why the design didn’t work,” says Dahlstrom. So he created a basic welding program for engineers. The engineers learned how to do typical manufacturing welds—and discovered it wasn’t easy. The training helped them understand the challenges in putting together a part, and how design changes can improve the manufacturing process and reduce defects.

“I’m greedy for the information the companies have about how things are changing in industry and what kinds of equipment they are using,” Dahlstrom says, “but they need employees and they want students to know how to use the latest techniques. The more students know when they begin working, the better employees they will be 10 or 20 years from now.”

Despite the technological advances and manufacturing environment changes, one reward remains constant: the joy of building something useful. Dahlstrom, who occasionally teaches classes for high school students as well, says it’s surprising how quickly students discover whether they have the talent for technical or trade work. “Some realize they just don’t like it, but for others, they like making things,” he says.

“We try to get these young people making things they can see and hold early on in the training,” adds Zitzer. “Working in construction or in industry, it’s rewarding at the end of the day to say, ‘Hey, I built this.’”

Mary Lahr Schier is a Northfield-based business journalist.