There’s a good chance you already have a tool from the Stanley Black & Decker family in your toolkit. They’re household names, quality, reliable tools, and we wanted to hear more about the manufacturing process behind them. Antonio Hill, Head of Manufacturing Digital Solutions, Global Supply Chain at Stanley Black & Decker, joins Manufacturing Happy Hour to talk about his career, the challenges of managing supply chains, the impact of Industry 4.0, and what lean manufacturing means to hi...
Sep 20, 2022•49 min•Ep. 108
“A platform for communities to invest in their best and brightest” …that’s how this week’s guest describes the company he works for. Sounds great, right? We invited Cole Shearer, Vice President – Skills Accelerator at gener8tor, to join Manufacturing Happy Hour this week. In this episode, he outlines his career to date, what he does at gener8tor, and provides some top tips for startup founders. Cole explains the struggles of the talent shortage in the cybersecurity space and breaks down how the ...
Sep 13, 2022•35 min•Ep. 107
We haven’t covered imaging and vision much on Manufacturing Happy Hour, so we thought it was time that changed. This week, we are talking to Greg Hollows, Vice President, Product Strategy at Edmund Optics, who discusses his various roles at Edmund Optics, where he has worked for over two decades. He also looks at the ways imaging has changed since he got started and provides some unmissable advice on succeeding in the industry. Greg gives us so much food for thought in this episode. It’s one you...
Sep 06, 2022•35 min•Ep. 106
It’s no secret that we’re big fans of robots and what they can bring to the manufacturing world here on Manufacturing Happy Hour. So, we invited fellow robot enthusiast Nate Brazelle, VP of Sales and Marketing at KUKA, onto the show to share his predictions on robots in the future of the industry, where they fit in now, and why they could be the answer to the labor shortage. Nate explains how he first took a step into the world of robotics and shares the challenges and realities of working with ...
Aug 30, 2022•30 min•Ep. 105
If you already thought that the 5-day work week was one day too long, then this episode will rock your boat. This week, we’re chatting with Joe Sanok, author of Thursday is the New Friday, and he offers a practical breakdown of how the 4-day work week would fit into a manufacturing setting. Before we dive into all that, Joe tells us about his professional background and then offers a brief but detailed history of the 5-day work week (and a bit about the concept of time). We also hear a step-by-s...
Aug 23, 2022•43 min•Ep. 104
The worlds of robotics and automation have been picking up speed for some time now. But the pandemic has only fast-tracked the need for the next generation of talent to wield these tools. Organizations such as Illuminate STEM are leading the way for young blood to gain knowledge and fly the flag for robotics for decades to come. Terrence Southern, Founder, CEO & Executive Director at Illuminate STEM, joins this episode to explain how he taught budding robotics workers, how he started his com...
Aug 16, 2022•40 min•Ep. 103
It’s not every day you get to record a podcast episode in Berlin, so when Florian Pestoni told me he’d be in Berlin at the same time as me, we had to meet up to record an interview. In this special live episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour, we step out of the studio and into the beer garden to discuss what chronic care for robots looks like. Florian is the Co-Founder & CEO of InOrbit, a Silicon Valley-based startup that helps companies managing fleets of robots streamline their robotic operat...
Aug 09, 2022•33 min•Ep. 102
We're taking a break this week for summer vacation! Sort of. Actually, we have a bonus episode for you that's all about a summer vacation-esque topic: Industrial Tourism. Until this week, I thought "industrial tourism" was a term I made up, but it turns out it's actually a well-documented practice. From brewery tours to visiting upcycled, decommissioned factories, industrial tourism actually covers a lot of ground. In this episode, I share 3 examples of my own industrial tourism experiences from...
Aug 02, 2022•11 min
Brennen Dugger is the President & Founder of Blue Collar Automation, specializing in industrial automation, controls integration, and robotics. Brennen and I recently met at A3's Automate conference when the robot at his booth served me a beer. Obviously, he was perfect for Manufacturing Happy Hour! In this episode, Brennen explains the motivation behind his move from the factory floor to the office of a company founder. He also shares the reason why collaborative robots are practically fron...
Jul 26, 2022•32 min•Ep. 101
We’ve just hit our milestone episode! The big 100, so it makes perfect sense to mark the occasion with a special episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour. While Manufacturing Happy Hour has been around for over 5 years, over the course of 75+ videos and over 130 episodes, we’re choosing to label this one Episode 100 (even if it is closer to 200 episodes at this point). In this episode, we’ll recount 10 of the most memorable moments from the past 5 years, but they might not be the moments you expect. ...
Jul 19, 2022•26 min•Ep. 100
If you’re in the manufacturing industry or just an avid social media user, then you’ve probably come across Loupe and some of the amazing feats they’ve been pulling off. Loupe is a Portland, Oregon-based jack-of-all-trades automation outfit that’s responsible for some amazing unboxing videos and viral videos of their robotic dog Spot from Boston Dynamics. They are definitely a group that’s dialed into the art of social media for manufacturing. With a mission as unique as revolutionizing the auto...
Jul 12, 2022•42 min•Ep. 99
Recently, we had an opportunity to attend an extremely unique manufacturing event in Columbus, NE. Columbus is a small, rural town and it's the exact type of spot where manufacturing events should be taking place. Communities like this across the Great Plains, the Midwest, and the United States in general, are where manufacturing and manufacturing jobs can change people's lives. This event was called Manufacturing Nebraska's Future, and it was all about showcasing the trends, opportunities, and ...
Jul 05, 2022•43 min•Ep. 98
Our guests this week are Kathy Miller and Shannon Karels. Both of these women have racked up decades of experience in manufacturing and operations, and now they're the duo that leads OPSisters where they focus on advising operations through coaching, training, and speaking. Beyond that, they've also distilled some of the best lessons in their book "Steel Toes and Stilettos," and we're going to be learning quite a bit from them today as well. Tune in to this episode to hear the origin story behin...
Jun 28, 2022•39 min•Ep. 97
We’re back for 5 more interviews with leaders in Robotics, Automation, and Artificial Intelligence. These conversations all took place in Pittsburgh at Cascadia Connect 2022 with investors, ecosystem leaders, high growth companies, and other movers and shakers in this industry. This was truly a unique event designed to bring all of these different players together, and Cascadia Capital deserves a big shoutout for bringing us all together. Part 1 was largely focused on robotics clusters and acade...
Jun 24, 2022•52 min
Have you ever been in a room full of growth companies, investors, academics, entrepreneurs, and technologist all working together to advance the industry? It’s rare to get all of these players in a tech ecosystem together in one place, but that’s just what Cascadia Capital did at Cascadia Connect 2022 in Pittsburgh, PA. With such a range of leaders in Robotics, Automation, and Artificial Intelligence across the industrial world, we had the opportunity to sit down with 10 of these individuals to ...
Jun 21, 2022•1 hr 3 min
Welcome to another episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour recorded in front of a LIVE audience. A couple of months ago at IME West in Anaheim, we had a chance to sit down with Jerry Perez, FANUC America's Executive Director of Global Accounts. FANUC is one of the biggest names in industrial robotics in the world, so as you can probably guess, this is a very robot-centric conversation. In this episode, Jerry shares some insights on the role of the global pandemic in creating that shift from automoti...
Jun 14, 2022•40 min•Ep. 96
Willemijn Schneyder and her team are changing the game for post-sales support. Willemijn is the CEO and proud Founder of SwipeGuide, a next-generation instruction software that provides an intuitive way to create enhanced-reality work instructions. So how is this creating a revolution? Well, you're going to hear about that in this week’s show. Before venturing out into the world of entrepreneurship, Willemijn was in marketing, e-commerce, and, more recently, new product development. She was no s...
Jun 07, 2022•35 min•Ep. 95
Scot Lindemann has seen a thing or two when it comes to robotics. The guy has over 30 years of engineering and leadership in this space, from his long tenure with JR Automation to where he is now as the CEO of Mission Design and Automation, a Western Michigan-based robotics integrator and automation company. It's only appropriate that he take us through the world of robotics, "then and now," in today's episode. Today, Scot shares his story and what it was like formally entering the field of robo...
May 31, 2022•40 min•Ep. 94
Rachele Focardi is a generational diversity expert, international speaker, author, and Founder of XYZ at Work. We've talked about attracting the next generation to the workforce on this show quite a bit, but today is probably our most holistic conversation to date when it comes to all of the generations in the workforce and the wonderful things each generation brings to the table. In this episode, Rachele explains why generational diversity is such a key issue across industries and how it has a ...
May 24, 2022•50 min•Ep. 93
Are you ready for 2022's biggest automation event in North America? Automate 2022 is right around the corner. Hosted by A3 - The Association for Advancing Automation - Automate is bringing together over 500 exhibitors and thousands of attendees for the ultimate networking, education, and technology event. The event takes place in Detroit, MI June 6-9 and you can register for FREE at https://manufacturinghappyhour.com/Automate2022 . In this preview episode, Alex Shikany - A3's VP of Membership &a...
May 17, 2022•23 min
The future is digital, and the manufacturing industry is no exception. Jerry Foster, the CTO of Plex, is one of the select visionaries who jumped on the ‘digitization’ bandwagon quite early in the game. Plex is a company that paved the way for business enterprise software in the cloud through a smart manufacturing platform that connects people, systems, machines, and supply chains. Jerry joins Manufacturing Happy Hour to share the company’s unconventional origin story and to break down some of t...
May 10, 2022•45 min•Ep. 92
Divya Thadani leads PPG’s strategy and business development for the company's architectural coatings business in the US and Canada. But her impact doesn’t end there. She’s made her mark as a diversity, equality, and inclusion champion at PPG. In this episode, Divya shares some insights from her childhood and how growing up in an entrepreneurial family influenced her life. She explains what she believes is causing the skill shortage gap in the manufacturing industry and how we can make these role...
May 03, 2022•33 min•Ep. 91
What goes on behind the scenes at some of the top theme parks in the country? A whole lot of custom scenic design, courtesy of 3dx Scenic, a L!VE company that creates immersive 3D expressive designs. Mark Rosenzweig, 3dx’s Senior Account Executive, joins the show to give some insight into what it’s like being part of a team that creates models for theme parks, exhibits, and more. In this episode, Mark breaks down some of 3dx Scenic’s most exciting projects and the challenges that came along with...
Apr 26, 2022•43 min•Ep. 90
Roman Piszcz is the Founder and CEO of Quotebeam, a new company that's reducing friction in the purchasing process and building a marketplace for automation parts, quotes, and collaboration. But before Roman became an entrepreneur, he was leading a team at Apple, and that’s where this week’s story begins… Roman joined Apple back in 2016 and worked there for nearly five years as part of the iPhone product operations team. As it is with most entrepreneurs, his company was borne out of a particular...
Apr 19, 2022•44 min•Ep. 89
Sharad Chadha is the CEO of Sprecher Brewing Company and through hard work, risk-taking, and out-of-the-box thinking, he’s living the American dream. Originally an engineering major, Sharad topped that with an MBA and used his skill and business acumen to rise through the ranks at renowned companies like GE Healthcare, Electrolux, and Samsung. Now he’s pouring all his business acumen into running Sprecher, Wisconsin’s first craft brewery. In this episode, Sharad gives us some insights into his d...
Apr 12, 2022•39 min•Ep. 88
Working on first-generation products and new product development is no walk in the park. But, Milo Werner, General Partner at The Engine, joined the "Build Better 2022" virtual conference to share her wealth of experience. Milo joined Tesla in 2007 at a critical stage in the company's trajectory, where she led new product introduction launching the Model S and Model X powertrains. In addition to Tesla, Milo ran new product introduction at Fitbit, launching four factories in China and transitioni...
Apr 05, 2022•49 min•Ep. 87
If you can’t tell from the title, there’s a lot of variety in this week’s episode. Michael Wrinch is the President and CEO of Hedgehog Technologies, an engineering consulting firm based in British Columbia that specializes in electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, and risk management. From rides and attractions to projects that impact sustainability, Hedgehog’s motto is fitting: “We make complex visions a practical reality.” In this episode, Mike gives a little background on why his com...
Mar 29, 2022•41 min•Ep. 86
We talk a lot about ways manufacturers can save money and grow their business on Manufacturing Happy Hour...digital transformation, process optimization, all of that. Sometimes it makes sense to talk about the basics. While tax credits aren't necessarily "sexy," they can impact your balance sheet. Today we're focusing specifically on the Employee Retention Credit. So how's this credit work? To answer that, we're bring back Josh Fox, CEO of Bottom Line Concepts, who appeared on Episode 15 of the ...
Mar 25, 2022•13 min
Sarah Boisvert has a long history in the manufacturing world. She started her career in lasers which fed into 3D printing, and now she's helping close the skills gap as the Founder of both the Fab Lab Hub and the New Collar Network. In this episode, Sarah delves into the inspiration behind the New Collar Movement and how it’s impacted her career since then. She also explains the thinking behind Fab Labs and gives some insights into the programs offered, digital badges awarded, and unique teachin...
Mar 22, 2022•42 min•Ep. 85
Jay Douglass has been around robotics and technology for a long time. After a long history with Carnegie Mellon, he’s now the COO of the ARM Institute. This organization is creating a nationwide group of elite manufacturing, academic, technology, and government organizations that share the common mission of a robust U.S. manufacturing ecosystem, impacting everything from the US economy in general, all the way to national defense. In this episode, Jay gives us a peek behind the scenes of what hap...
Mar 15, 2022•44 min•Ep. 84
