Innovation and Technology

How can manufacturers recruit and retain employees amid a skills gap that leaves hundreds of thousands of manufacturing jobs unfilled every month? ALOM Technologies Corporation—a global supply chain management services and solutions provider based in Fremont, California—has an answer: focus aggressively on company culture.

The results are in and ALOM’s program is a remarkable success, leading to workforce and revenue growth for the company over the past few years. This achievement led ALOM to be named a finalist for the Manufacturing Leadership Awards, given every year by the Manufacturing Leadership Council (the NAM’s digital transformation division). Here’s a sneak peek into how they did it.

The program: After being named an essential business in 2020 due to its medical supply chain infrastructure, ALOM turbocharged its existing culture program, called DOING—which stands for Development, Opportunity, INclusion and Growth—to support staff recruitment and retention in a challenging labor market.

• The program had existed since 2018 and was based on ALOM’s longstanding cultivation of values-driven purpose. When the company expanded it during the pandemic, it enabled ALOM to build a higher performing team across multiple locations.

The details: ALOM has employed several strategies for reinforcing its cultural values, aiming to instill a sense of purpose and belonging in job candidates and veteran staff alike. These include:

• Showcasing their commitment to diversity, inclusion and sustainability both inside the organization and in recruitment efforts;
• Redefining the ALOM People Team mission and structure to emphasize staff development over compliance;
• Working to address employee wellness through stress and mental health education and resources; and
• Instituting a staff development online portal called ALOM University that empowers rapid onboarding, training and advancement.

The results: The program has been an extraordinary success, helping to increase ALOM’s workforce and strengthen the company’s bottom line at the same time. In 2021 alone, the company achieved:

• 70% workforce growth;
• 60% revenue growth;
• A 6% decrease in employee attrition for 2021, as compared to 2018; and
• A 65% reduction in recruitment days to fill open positions.

Looking ahead: ALOM isn’t done yet. This year, the company is working on a digital transformation effort, called DOING DX, designed to make all of ALOM’s tech systems and business processes more efficient and effective.

• It will focus on staff recruiting, performance management, supplier management and evaluation, team building, mentoring and much more.

The last word: “When I started ALOM 26 years ago, I was determined to build a supply chain company that did right by everyone,” said President and CEO Hannah Kain.

• “This has become the foundation of ALOM’s corporate culture. We believe in using the supply chain to help the world be a better place—for the environment and for every person, supplier and company. Experiencing our values in action instills a sense of pride and belonging in our staff that helps us attract, build and retain an exceptionally talented team.”

Get involved: Want to learn more about this successful workforce effort, as well as a whole host of other innovations by leading manufacturers? Join the MLC for its Rethink summit in Marco Island, Florida, on June 26–28. Sign up here.

As manufacturers confront an ever-expanding list of cybersecurity threats, the NAM is mustering the leading cybersecurity minds in the sector to fight back. Since March 2021, it has been gathering chief information security officers from a large range of companies to discuss their shared challenges and the strategies that have worked against them.

Recently, a group of these cyber leaders met at the NAM’s D.C. headquarters to exchange their latest updates. Here is a sneak peek inside this meeting, where the future of the industry’s cyber defenses was being shaped.

On the agenda: The discussion covered both IT and OT technology and the interdependence between the two that requires a careful but not restrictive cyber strategy.

• Beyond the technology itself, the CISOs also detailed how they present their progress to their boards, including their metrics for success.

Zeroing in: Cyber training for employees was a particular focus for the group, as manufacturers work to educate their workforces about these threats.

• Though most cyber training is directed at IT personnel, there are more and more plant floor workers who also use computers and must receive security training, the CISOs noted.
• It is best to embed training into the overall asset care process, recommended one leader, so it becomes a long-term priority.
• In addition, role-based training ensures all bases are covered, including contractors, according to another CISO.

Guest speaker: The meeting also featured an appearance from a congressional adviser on cybersecurity, who detailed what policymakers are planning.

• Emily Burdick, professional staff member to the majority on the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection, explained how the subcommittee is working to oversee the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s two roles: overseeing critical infrastructure and monitoring federal networks.

Government priorities: Congress is focusing on four key priorities for the year, Burdick said. These include:

• Monitoring CISA’s soon-to-be-proposed rule on cyber-incident reporting (on track for a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in March 2024, with the final rule expected by September 2025); this proposed rule would require covered entities to report cyber incidents within 72 hours and needs clarification around “covered entities” and the timing of incident reporting;
• Measuring CISA’s effectiveness as a sector risk management agency and as the national risk coordinator;
• Improving private-sector partnerships through the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative and other processes; and
• Strengthening the national cyber workforce.

What they’re saying: The CISOs in attendance told the NAM how much they valued these high-level discussions.

• “While we often cross paths with fellow CISOs at trade shows and other industry events, it is important for us to gather in small groups and share what we are experiencing in an intimate, off-the-record setting so we can speak openly and honestly about challenges and potential solutions,” said Beth Schulte, CISO of Louisiana-Pacific Corporation.
• “I was able to share some tips with the other CISOs based on my experience and came away with tangible actions and takeaways to both implement immediately and research further after hearing recommendations from peers,” she continued.

Get involved: The NAM’s CISO group is working on industry benchmarks that will be shared with other manufacturers, so the industry can raise its defenses across the board. These benchmarks will help other CISOs evaluate their own practices and keep their boards and executives informed about industry standards.

• If you’d like to weigh in on your company’s activities, please take the short survey here.

Where can you “race to the future” in a mobile, immersive manufacturing experience, try your hand at cutting-edge technology and get free career advice from top professionals? At a Creators Wanted stop, of course.

Participants at last week’s Creators Wanted stops in Marysville and Columbus, Ohio, did all this and more.

Two stops, one week: The Honda Heritage Center was the site of two days of educational fun last Wednesday and Thursday, after which the Creators Wanted Tour continued on to the COSI Science Festival in Columbus, Ohio’s largest STEM event, on Saturday.

• The stops were the 15th and 16th, respectively, on Creators Wanted’s nationwide tour, an initiative of the NAM and its 501(c)3 workforce development and education affiliate, the Manufacturing Institute.
• The tour aims to shore up the manufacturing workforce by 600,000 workers, increase the number of students enrolling in technical and vocational schools or reskilling programs by 25% and boost the positive perception of the industry among parents from 27% to 50%—all by 2025.
• Nearly 1,000 kids and adults came through the Creators Wanted immersive experience during its three days in Ohio, and 35,000 students and career mentors signed up to learn more about modern manufacturing careers, increasing the network to 1.2 million nationwide.

Sites to behold: More than 300 students from central Ohio schools toured the Honda Heritage Center on Wednesday and Thursday.

• Students learned about the American Honda Motor Company’s rich history of innovation, beginning in 1959, and toured the Honda Technical Development Center, where Honda associates advance their skills in high-tech manufacturing.
• Tour sponsor FactoryFix was on hand, too, helping students explore pathways to manufacturing careers through information handouts and in-person Q&As with company representatives.

Theme-park lines: At COSI, the Creators Wanted experience had the festival buzzing, with attendees lining up to take their turn. More than 675 kids and adults moved through the unit in just six hours.

• “We built this experience to excite future creators and their career mentors like parents,” said NAM Managing Vice President of Brand Strategy Chrys Kefalas, who was onsite with the tour. “I’m not sure anyone fully anticipated how much of an attraction we’d be with the immersive experience—it’s a huge draw.”

A big commitment: Tour-stop host Honda—which has been instrumental in the launch and continuation of Creators Wanted—announced that it will increase its overall commitment to the Creators Wanted campaign to $2.25 million through 2025.

• “Creators Wanted is a great opportunity to showcase what the modern manufacturing environment is like and what the career opportunities are,” said American Honda Motor Company Executive Vice President Bob Nelson. “And there are many career opportunities for everyone.”
• “Honda’s incredible support and leadership has empowered our innovative campaign to thrive—to inspire students, to positively affect parents and teachers and, now with Creators Connect, to change even more lives,” said NAM President and CEO and MI Chairman of the Board Jay Timmons.
• Sara Tracey, managing director of workforce services for the Ohio Manufacturers’ Association, which participated in the events, added, “There are so many opportunities [in manufacturing] for people, regardless of what their interests are.”

“Build the future”: At both the Honda Heritage Center and COSI, there was plenty for participants to do as well as see.

• Students, parents and other attendees from local communities got the chance to use some of the latest items produced by manufacturers. These included Honda’s virtual-reality paint simulator and Honda’s safety car interactive display, as well as the many hands-on manufacturing challenges in the Creators Wanted mobile experience.
• “Know that there is a place for you in manufacturing to put whatever your skills and interests and passions are to work to build the future,” said MI President and Executive Director Carolyn Lee.

A great place to work: Many Honda associates—eager to share their positive experiences—participated in the week’s events, too, and had great things to say about modern manufacturing careers while on the ground at COSI.

• “I don’t think people realize how complex a vehicle is,” said one participating Honda associate. “The work and the people behind it, and the effort it takes to bring it to market—I can’t express how much fun that really is.”
• Said another, “I like that every day is a little bit different.” 

Behind the scenes: Interested in seeing how the Creators Wanted activation at COSI unfolded? Check out the NAM’s Instagram story from this weekend here.

Why would a company give away its “secret sauce” recipe for success? In Toyota’s case, the answer’s easy: because it’s the right thing to do, according to Jamie Bonini, president of the Toyota Production System Support Center, Inc.

How it all began: The TSSC, which last year celebrated its 30th anniversary, is a nonprofit organization founded by the auto manufacturer in 1992 to help other companies improve their manufacturing processes using the proprietary Toyota Production System.

• “In the early ’90s, companies would come visit our factory in Georgetown, Kentucky, for tours and asked, ‘How do you [manufacture] in the U.S. competitively?’ We said, ‘It’s TPS.’”
• TPS is Toyota’s lean-manufacturing system, based on the Japanese philosophies of jidoka (which can be roughly translated as “automation with a human touch”) and “Just-in-Time,” which refers to producing “only what is needed for the next process in a continuous flow.”
• Toyota said yes to the growing number of requests from outside the company to share TPS principles, and soon developed an entire center devoted to TPS teaching.

The substance: TSSC, which is subsidized by Toyota, provides companies with the training needed to implement TPS principles, which help boost efficiency, product quality and workplace safety—while reducing costs and lead times.

• “TPS emphasizes the elimination of waste, continuous improvement and respect for people,” Bonini said.

The meaning of lean: TSSC has many long-term clients, some of which have been with the nonprofit for most of its three decades. The reason: TPS isn’t a one-and-done, single-size system that can be superimposed on all organizations the same way, Bonini said.

• “‘Lean’ has come to mean different things to different people,” he continued. “But this is what we mean by a Toyota production system: an organization-wide culture of highly engaged people who are solving problems and innovating to drive performance.”
• “When we work with a company, [our solution is] customized; it’s highly situational. What we’re trying to build in an organization is a culture. And to build it, it has to be nurtured, fortified. That’s why we like these longer-term engagements.”

Who’s involved: TSSC has worked with a wide range of companies in many industries, as well as with nonprofits and even governments. This year, the TSSC is working with approximately 50 companies and organizations, about 30 of which are nonprofits.

• The nonprofits are not charged for the consultations. “It’s completely free for them, but they have got to put a lot of hard work into it,” Bonini said.
• Meanwhile, the companies are charged a fee that doesn’t cover all of Toyota’s costs. Toyota donates its time, labor and transportation expenditures, according to Bonini.

The working relationship: Given the bespoke nature of TSSC’s consultations with companies, the work varies from client to client. It may consist of monthly visits, onsite consulting for specific projects or regular remote check-ins and discussions.

• Whatever the client needs from TPS, it requires the TSSC team’s touch. “We have worked with companies that have studied lean manufacturing for many years, and six or nine months in, they’ll say, ‘Wow, Jamie, TPS is very different from what I read.’ You really need to experience it. It’s like learning to swim or ride a bicycle,” said Bonini.

Future plans: TSSC isn’t slowing down after 30 years. It recently began hosting TPS-focused Toyota plant tours, and it has big plans for them.

• It offers half-day tours, because “we want to make TPS very understandable in a short time,” Bonini said. However, TSSC is “also likely to develop an enhanced, two-day tour. On the second day, [tour participants] would talk to us about their particular business and structure and get tailored advice.”

The last word: “A lot of companies look at lean operations as installing a collection of tools: visual management, daily huddles,” Bonini said. “In fact, the tools are part of the system, not the system. Our goal is to help companies understand that the really important thing is the tool users.”

Few C-suite job descriptions include being smeared with baked goods, but for Pella’s Joher Akolawala, getting a pie in the face last November was just another day in the life—and another step toward broadening the diversity, equity and inclusion conversation among employees.

Dessert for diversity: “The main event at our Day of Giving was a livestream of executives doing a pie-baking competition,” explained Pella Senior Digital Talent Brand Strategist Kolbie Creger, who leads a DE&I-related employee committee at the Iowa-based window and door manufacturer. Pella’s Go Beyond for a Cause committee focuses on rallying team members around DE&I efforts within their walls and communities through education and engagement opportunities.

• “Team members donated [money] into each executive’s pie tin, and the one with the most money in their bucket got a pie in the face. It ended up being our CFO [Akolawala], who was a great sport about it.”

“Fun raising”: So, what do pies have to do with diversity? Pella’s 2021 “Pie in the Face” and other activities during the company’s first annual Day of Giving raised $17,000 in 24 hours for diversity-focused education efforts for partner philanthropies, including the nonprofit organization Facing History and Ourselves, Creger said.

• Team members on Pella factory floors nationwide got in on the fun, with each manufacturing site getting to “pie” department managers, bid on auction items and compete to raise money for DE&I efforts.
• In total, across myriad fundraising efforts, Pella donated more than $90,000 to DE&I initiatives in 2021.

“GIVE IT UP”: Last year, Creger’s team, the Go Beyond Committee, which is currently at work organizing 2022’s dedicated, daylong DE&I effort, asked Pella employees to each give up a small daily “guilty pleasure” purchase of their choice.

• “It could be a coffee, a fast-food meal or an [overpriced] Diet Coke,” Creger said. “We asked them to take that money and instead donate it” to one of Pella’s DE&I partner philanthropies.

• “It’s just about continuing to layer in the larger ‘Why?’ in all of our communication,” Creger continued. “We are the boots on the ground trying to create engagement. Our main focus is just meeting people where they are in their DE&I journey, creating spaces where we can have conversations.”

This year: In 2022, Pella’s DE&I-focused events will be fewer but hopefully even more effective.

• Among the planned activities are lunch-and-learn sessions and a months-long bingo-like challenge that lets employees track everyday positive behaviors, such as thanking a coworker or donating the amount of a “give-up” item.
• At the end of the challenge, Pella will match employee donations.

The last word: “We’ve learned some people like to track their progress, those day-to-day achievements, whereas some people would rather absorb content in a lunch-and-learn or partake in an activity,” Creger said.

“We know our people are unique, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach, so we do our best to create diversity in our outreach. Inclusion to Pella means our people feel comfortable showing up to work as their authentic self and belong as a valued team member. That intent holds true no matter our approach. We aim to get that message right each time, and let the rest vary.”

It was the 14th stop of the Creators Wanted Tour, but the level of enthusiasm among attendees made it seem like the first.

What happened: This week’s visit of the award-winning mobile immersive experience—an initiative of the NAM and its 501(c)3 workforce development and education affiliate, the Manufacturing Institute—to the Baton Rouge, Louisiana, area was an unequivocal hit.

• Hosted by Dow with the participation of Union Pacific, the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, FactoryFix, River Parishes Community College and BASF, the event drew more than 500 students to the college’s Westside Campus in Plaquemine, Louisiana. Students came from the college as well as area middle and high schools.
• The digital campaign signed up more than 26,000 new students and career mentors in Louisiana to learn more about modern manufacturing. In addition, Dow (a third-time Creators Wanted host) and Union Pacific had team members on-site to answer students’ questions about their careers.

High tech: Dow displayed drones and robots—including one named Spot—to give students a peek at some of the cutting-edge technologies they might expect to work with in manufacturing. Meanwhile, Union Pacific offered 3D virtual tours of company operations.

Manufacturing is everywhere: River Parishes Community College Chancellor Quintin D. Taylor, who gave opening remarks at the kickoff event, emphasized the extent to which manufacturing touches everyone each day—and how fulfilling a career in it can be.

• “Even the toothpaste we all used this morning was made in a facility that does manufacturing,” Taylor said. “Should a time come in your life where you decide to have a family, you have to be gainfully employed to take care of your family. Manufacturing is just one of many careers, quite frankly, that can help you do that.”

“Be somebody big”: Union Pacific Executive Vice President of Marketing and Sales Kenny Rocker seconded that sentiment.

• “Who wants to make the world better and make a lot of money doing it?” Rocker asked the audience to a show of numerous hands. With a manufacturing career, “you can be the GOAT in your family,” he continued, referring to the acronym meaning “Greatest of All Time.” “You can be somebody big in your family.”
• Stay tuned: Union Pacific will host a Creators Wanted stop in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area in the fall.

Creators required: There’s an acute need for more workers in manufacturing, MI President and Executive Director Carolyn Lee said, and there’s something in it for everyone.

• “I can promise you if you are interested in designing, building, solving, creating things, fixing things with your hands, just figuring stuff out, there is a home for you in manufacturing,” she said.
• Lee cited research by the MI and Deloitte that found if current trends continue, manufacturers will need to fill some 4 million jobs by the end of this decade.

Autograph-worthy: Attendees were so inspired by the kickoff-event remarks of Dow Chairman and CEO (and NAM Board Chair) Jim Fitterling—who spoke about students’ opportunities to do something historic in their careers—that several requested his autograph.

• “The world’s going through one of the biggest changes since we industrialized the United States,” said Fitterling, who along with NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons wrote an op-ed about the tour that appeared in the Louisiana Policy Review this week.
• “We’re about to go through another … massive change because we’re going to reindustrialize this country. And that means you are going to get to work on some of the biggest projects that we have ever seen in the world.”
• Fitterling, who personally took students through the Creators Wanted immersive experience before his talk, emphasized, “We’re here to see you. We’re interested in you. We want you to have a great future, and we want you to have … opportunities.”

“I’m still having fun”: Panel discussions featured leaders and team members from Dow as well as Turner Industries, giving students a more in-depth perspective about modern manufacturing careers.

• During an on-stage discussion with Fitterling, Dow Senior Lead Site Manufacturing Director Crystal King told the audience how she came to choose engineering: her mother chose it for her.
• “When I was in 10th grade, my mom asked me what did I want to do,” King said. She had said she wanted to go into education because her mother was a teacher. Then her mother “explained that when she went to college, there were only two things that, as an African-American female, she could be. One was a teacher, and one was a nurse. And I needed to do something other than either one of the two of them.”
• Despite thinking she “would hate” being an engineer, King loved it—and she still loves it. “This is the best job in the world,” she told the audience. “I tease Jim [Fitterling]—I say, ‘When I stop having fun, I’m going home.’ I’m still having fun.”

The reception: In addition to a student who was “left … speechless” by the week’s events and another who called Creators Wanted “the best thing I ever did,” the tour stop had social media abuzz with praise for the initiative:

• “Thank you to #CreatorsWanted for hosting our students over the past two days,” tweeted White Castle High School. “The students had a great time learning and building excitement about modern manufacturing careers.”
• “Our Juniors and Seniors are having a fantastic time at #creatorswanted today!” tweeted Plaquemine High School. “They’re expanding their knowledge of the manufacturing industry and workforce, while also getting a chance to tour RPCC. A big thank you to #Creatorswanted, Dow and RPCC for this opportunity!”

Coming up: Creators Wanted will travel to Marysville and Columbus, Ohio, next week for stops at the Honda Heritage Center and the COSI Science Festival, sponsored by Honda. Later in May, the tour goes to the Indy 500 in Indianapolis.

Creators Wanted in action: See here, here and here for exciting footage of this week’s tour stop, including the remarks of LABI Interim President and CEO Jim Patterson.

Recent changes to the U.S. tax code are threatening manufacturers’ continued success—and they need to be reversed now, Winton Machine Company CEO and NAM board member Lisa Winton told U.S. lawmakers at a recent hearing.

What’s going on: Winton, whose 25-year-old company designs and manufactures machines used in tubular part and coaxial cable fabrication, testified before the House Ways and Means Committee at a hearing last Friday on the state of the American economy.

• Winton spoke about the challenges facing manufacturers and highlighted the impact of two recent changes to the tax code that increase the cost of financing machinery purchases: the phaseout of immediate expensing and limitations on deductions for interest on business loans.
• “While I would like to double the size of my facility, the cost of doing so has risen fourfold over the last several years,” said Winton, whose business is one of approximately 244,000 small manufacturers in the U.S.

Why it’s important: “These changes are like a tax on manufacturing growth,” Winton said.

• Winton expressed concern that “these changes will force our customers to keep using older pieces of equipment, rather than purchasing newer or additional ones, or they will buy cheaper equipment from Asia.”
• In addition to these two harmful changes, Winton spoke about another recent revision requiring businesses to deduct or amortize their R&D expenses over a period of years. This makes R&D more expensive because businesses “can [now] only recover a small portion of those costs each year.”
• In sharp contrast to this treatment, China currently allows a “super deduction” for manufacturers, Winton noted.

More to come: There are more harmful changes on the way. The 20% pass-through deduction is set to expire in 2025, “at the same time that tax rates for pass-through entities like ours go up across the board,” Winton said.

• In addition, a scheduled change to the estate tax could force family-owned businesses to sell off pieces of their companies. 

The last word: “None of these tax changes are fair to our employees, their families [or] our communities,” she said. “We need to fix them so we’re not making it harder to do business in America.”

The energy and enthusiasm of the night were fittingly high for the occasion: a gala to honor 130 standout women in manufacturing.

What went on: The Manufacturing Institute’s 2023 Women MAKE Awards—formerly the STEP Ahead Awards—took place Thursday evening at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., following the two-day Women MAKE Leadership Conference. (The MI is the NAM’s 501(c)3 workforce development and education affiliate.)

• The gala—which featured a live performance by violinist Ezinma and was sponsored this year by BASF, Trane Technologies, Amazon and others—is held each year to honor women in manufacturing who exemplify leadership in their careers.
• This year the awards recognized 100 honorees and 30 “emerging leaders,” women under the age of 30 who have achieved unique accomplishments.

What was said: MI President and Executive Director Carolyn Lee delivered the night’s opening remarks, telling audience members she was humbled to be in their midst.

• “We have women who have launched entire product lines,” she said. “Women with dozens of patents to their name. Women who oversee the production and distribution of millions of products every day … women who constantly exceed expectations.”
• Carolyn Lee touched on the MI’s year-old 35×30 campaign, which aims to raise the percentage of women in manufacturing from 29% to 35% by 2030, and said the women honored at the gala serve as inspiration to young women considering manufacturing careers. “Because if you can see it, you can be it,” she said.

“The opportunity”: WMA Chair and Cornerstone Building Brands President and CEO Rose Lee underscored the importance of filling the current shortfall of manufacturing workers.

• If the shortage continues unchecked, the number of missing workers could exceed 2 million by 2030, she said, citing a study by the MI and Deloitte.
• “Therein lies the opportunity to engage an untapped, underutilized pool of women talent in the vitally important manufacturing sector,” Lee continued. “This is the collective work we need to pursue, and the honorees and emerging leaders here tonight are advancing this work by demonstrating the myriad ways in which women can achieve professional success in the manufacturing industry.”

Thank you: MI Board Chair and NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons thanked the honorees for showing the next generation what’s possible.

• “Thank you for being role models—including for my daughters and my son, the many families we have in this room and the people you impact every day,” Timmons said. “The ripple effect you can have is incalculable.”

From one to many: Rounding out the night’s lineup was event Vice Chair and Caterpillar Inc. Group President of Resource Industries Denise Johnson, who told the audience it was “remarkable” to be in a room with so many other women in manufacturing.

• “There have been many times throughout my career when I’ve been the only woman in a room, the only woman on a project,” she said. “What an incredible change of pace this is. I … am overwhelmed with gratitude and pride for how far we’ve come. Congratulations to all of you.”

It’s no easy feat to transform a struggling family business into a thriving digital enterprise, but that’s exactly what Cooley Group President and CEO Dan Dwight is doing.

Change for the better: Cooley Group was formed in 1926 as a family-run textile manufacturer in Rhode Island. In 2011, Dwight, a member of the NAM Board of Directors, joined the company as president and CEO to navigate the ship through a new age of manufacturing and market demands.

• Today, the private equity-backed extrusion and textile manufacturer is the leading global maker of polymer-coated textiles. Applications range from single-use blood-pressure-cuff materials, to proprietary urethane combat raiding crafts for U.S. special forces, to liners and covers for some of the world’s largest water reservoirs.

How they did it: “As a family-run business, Cooley inherited aging equipment and an aging workforce,” said Dwight, who also serves as vice chairman of the Manufacturing Leadership Council’s Board of Governors. (The MLC is the NAM’s digital transformation arm.)

• “We not only modernized our equipment and infrastructure to compete in the digital age, but also revolutionized our culture. Hierarchies slowed us down.”
• “Digital transformation isn’t only beneficial for the advancement of our physical technologies; it’s also critical to develop a more collaborative company culture that empowers employees at all levels to take action.”

Starting small: “Digital transformation—the integration of digital technology into all facets of an organization—can seem daunting at first,” Dwight said. “But that can’t deter an organization from jumping in.”

• “I advise companies, particularly mid-sized manufacturers like Cooley Group, to approach digital transformation incrementally,” he said. “Don’t expect the cultural, institutional or technological benefits of digital transformation to manifest overnight as some mega-solution.”
• “Think strategically about the areas of your business that are the first movers. Once one aspect of the business is modernized, the digital insights and team’s enthusiasm for change will build momentum to push the remaining pieces into place.”

Gaining momentum: The transformation of this firm of 300 people is ongoing. “Ten years ago, we had trouble keeping our equipment operating for any period of time,” Dwight said. “Now everything in all our factories is digitally [Manufacturing 4.0]-driven across a single operating platform.”

• The company plans to do the pilot phase of an artificial intelligence implementation later this year.

Figuring it out: The MLC was key in Cooley Group’s remarkable transformation, according to Dwight.

• “I’m not sure we would have figured it out on our own,” he admits. “I’m an avid reader; I was born excited to build things. I read a lot about manufacturing and leadership. But even if I could have figured out M4.0 strategy, actually implementing it on the plant floor would have been difficult without the support of MLC members to share best practices and to encourage the Cooley team to embrace transformation.”

Get involved: Companies can jumpstart their own digital transformation by attending Rethink, the MLC’s premier event for manufacturing executives, in Florida on June 26–28. Check it out here.

“It is up to us to shape our future,” Rose Lee advises women in manufacturing.

Women should “take the opportunity to lead and do it in your own way with the outcomes you know you’ll be able to produce so others will see you as an example of diversity,” continued the President and CEO of North Carolina–based Cornerstone Building Brands and member of the NAM Executive Committee. “There is not just one way of doing it, even in the manufacturing environment.”

This year, Lee is serving as chair of the Manufacturing Institute’s Women MAKE Awards, which will honor more than 100 outstanding women working in the industry. We spoke to Lee ahead of the awards ceremony, and here’s what she had to say.

Finding your passion: Lee describes herself as someone who derives a lot of satisfaction from the work she does—and wants to ensure others can do the same.

• “In our company, we are part of creating things that are part of the most important things in your life: your home, your shelter,” said Lee, who holds degrees in aeronautical and mechanical engineering as well as an M.B.A. “I find that very meaningful.”
• But her focus extends beyond the tangible, too. “There’s the content of what is done, but then there’s the opportunity that can be created for others … [which] increases the probability that they can find passion and enjoyment … like I had the opportunity to do.”

Increasing diversity: When it comes to diversifying the job pipeline in manufacturing, candidates themselves can often play a bigger role in their own success than they may realize, Lee said.

• “It starts with awareness that there are these opportunities. Then, [candidates should seek] the training, exposure and knowledge that are critical for these roles.”
• Meanwhile, “those of us who have the opportunity [must] make our voices louder,” she added. “Reach out to help people understand more clearly what is required and how you can advance yourself.”
• “We should all think about what more we can do ourselves and what more we can do together to welcome more women into manufacturing.” she continued.

Workplace flexibility: The same goes for manufacturers seeking to increase the number of women in their workforce, Lee added.

• “There is no magic solution,” Lee said. “But it’s important for companies and organizations to have a supportive structure, whether by providing [varied] job content, time off or additional flexibility in the work environment that [allows women to] balance things better.”
• “Supporting great initiatives that prioritize recognition, mentoring, education, skills training and networking are powerful ways to build a much stronger pipeline of women in manufacturing.”

Letting it go: Lee also knows a lot about having a rewarding career in manufacturing while being a caregiver at home—because she’s learned it firsthand.

• “Just remember that you can’t be everything to everybody all the time,” said Lee, a mother of two daughters. “It’s OK; let it go. Your kid doesn’t have to look like they’re in their Sunday best all the time.”
• Nor does the parenting style or career path that works for someone else have to work for you, she added. “You’ve got to design [being a working parent] so it’s bespoke to your life.”

Making history: Last year, when Honeywell International added her to its board of directors, Lee became the first Korean American woman to sit on the board of a Fortune 100 company. She regards the position as an opportunity to accomplish even more.

• “The building materials space doesn’t live in isolation,” Lee said. “Having a connection to a broader space, under global dynamics, helps [create] connectivity. We are continually deepening our knowledge.”