PMPA Speaking of Precision Podcast:

Safety Needs to Be Comfortable

Miles Free, Carli Kistler-Miller and David Wynn discuss the importance of comfortability when it comes to performance in our precision machining shops apart.

 

Published October 9, 2023

 

 

2023 Annual Meeting Wrap-Up 

Omni Amelia Island Resort
Amelia Island, Florida
September 28 – October 1

 

PMPA welcomed 165 members from 76 companies to Amelia Island, Florida, last weekend to celebrate PMPA’s 90th Anniversary. 

It was a great opportunity to reconnect with PMPA peers and friends, as well as welcome 30 first-time attendees (which included two new members.)   We also had 13 past (PMPA) presidents in attendance.  

The resort was beautiful, the food fabulous, and the weather eventually cooperated.  And (despite all that), the business sessions were very well attended! 

Be sure to visit the Annual Meeting Summary webpage to browse the photographer photos and download the speaker presentations. 

Mark your calendar for the 2024 Annual Meeting to be held at the JW Marriott Laguna Cliffs Resort, Dana Point, California – October 9-14. 

 

 

Annual Meeting Summary Page

 

PMPA Craftsman Cribsheet #120:
Safety Needs to Be Comfortable

It’s important to be conscious of how comfortability affects performance.

Published October 1, 2023

By David Wynn, Technical Services Manager, PMPA

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Our performers can be focused on safety when they are comfortable. Think of it being like Maslow’s hierarchy of needs for the shop. For our performers to be safe, they must be well fed, have plenty of rest, and be comfortable, then they can move up to safety, then to productivity.  

I started thinking about this when a friend of mine got a new pair of work boots. The boots chaffed his feet to the point he found himself not concentrating on his tasks. The lack of focus was making him inherently less safe. As he told me this, I realized that for him to be safe and successful he had to be comfortable.

Once a performer is comfortable and safe, they can concentrate on the higher aspects of doing their daily work. Here are some points to consider to ensure that performers are both comfortable and safe with their personal protective equipment (PPE).

Eye Protection

  • Must fit right.
  • Must have adequate ventilation/no fog.
  • Must adequately cover the eyes.

Shirts

  • Must be good fitting and not excessively baggy or uncomfortably tight.  
  • Cotton is a preferred fabric because it cools easily and is safer around sparks. Synthetic fibers will easily burn and melt to the skin. (Moisture wicking shirts should never be worn when the possibility of catching sparks for flames is present.)

Pants

  • Must be well fitting.
  • Fabric must adequately protect legs from minor scrapes and cuts.  
  • Fabric must be weighted according to the season.  
  • Must provide flexibility if tasks include bending and lifting.
  • Belts must be comfortable and fit the job, be flexible enough to do the work, and be worn all day. If tools are mounted to the belt it must ride on the hip appropriately to help carry the load balanced not just hang off the pants.

Footwear

  • Good fitting and an appropriate weight for the individual. (A 100-pound person shouldn’t be wearing 10-pound work boots.)   
  • Great quality socks will amplify the comfort of the work boot as well as protect feet from blisters, fatigue and moisture-born illness.
  • Must have slip-resistant soles.
  • Steel toes (if required).

Be conscious of how comfortability affects performers.  Encouraging performers to be comfortable while being safe will make them productive.

 

 

Author

David Wynn

David Wynn, MBA, is the PMPA Technical Services Manager with over 20 years of experience in the areas of manufacturing, quality, ownership, IT and economics. Email: gro.apmp@nnywd — Website: pmpa.org.

STATE OF MANUFACTURING – Michigan Manufacturing

by Joe Jackson

Marketing & Events Assistant, PMPA

Published October 1, 2023

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Fabricated Metal Products Manufacturing is a subsector of manufacturing that makes critical goods from metal components.

Precision Turned Products Manufacturing is a subsector of fabricated metal product manufacturing that makes the components that MAKE IT WORK!

 

MICHIGAN ECONOMIC OUTPUT

Michigan Manufacturing
NAICS 31-33
$101,340,000,000

Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing
NAICS 332
$18,411,944,000

Precision Turned Product Manufacturing
NACIS 332721
$3,086,037,000

MICHIGAN MANUFACTURING ACCOUNTS FOR

Manufacturing Is Productivity – 17.98% of the Michigan’s total output (GDP)

Manufacturing Builds Businesses – 11,143 manufacturing establishments are in the state of Michigan.

Manufacturing Creates Jobs – Jobs: 14% of all Michigan employees are in the manufacturing sector. (609,000 employees)

Michigan is eighth in the nation in manufacturing jobs added since 2021.

 

Manufacturing produces for Michigan!

  • Manufacturing is the largest GDP producer in Michigan.
  • Fabricated metals is the fourth largest manufacturing sector in Michigan.
  • Grand Rapids, Auburn Hills and Detriot are the top three manufacturing cities In Michigan.

 

Michigan is a great place for a career in manufacturing

  • Manufacturing jobs pay on average 33% over the average job in Michigan (according to NAM.org).
  • Michigan created 121,000 new manufacturing jobs from 2009 to 2021, the national leader in manufacturing job creation and outpacing all other states during that time frame.

 

Sources: NAMorg, US Census, Michigan.gov, Statista.com, Axios.com

Data selected to show relative values. May not be directly comparable due to differences in sampling, analysis, or date obtained.

 

 

 

Author

Joe Jackson

Marketing & Events Assistant, PMPA

Email: gro.apmp@noskcajj — Website: pmpa.org.

A Reflection on 50 Years in Manufacturing

Miles Free III shares his stories and the lessons learned over 50 years in manufacturing.

by Miles Free III

Director of Industry Affairs, PMPA

Published October 1, 2023

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Literally everything in the sinter plant was lethal in some fashion: horsepower of the conveyor belts, toxicity of the dusts, contact with hot sinter, high voltage in the controls.  Even the spillage we were shoveling was slippery and could cause you to fall into moving equipment. Guards were in place around everything, as were cable limit switches to affect an immediate disconnect of equipment to power.

Lesson learned — When everything around you can kill you, paying attention to safety is the first priority.

New Technology
I moved up to blast furnace burden clerk in 1976 where I had to prepare a daily report of the hot metal (iron) produced by our blast furnaces.  It was arithmetic, how much did the ladle car weigh “empty” and how much after tap, and then weight of all cars summed for the day.  

But to report this involved using a machine with a rotating drum to clip in the paper that connected to the handset of our dial telephone to transmit the report to corporate headquarters.

This machine — it was called a fax machine — required that a very soft pencil be used to assure maximum contrast and would take about three minutes to scan and send the document to the machine on the other end. This was an amazing labor savings compared to having to teletype the entire report, as was done previously.

Lesson learned — New technology is your friend and frees you up to do more valuable work.

Environment
I transferred to the Lorain Cuyahoga works in 1978 in anticipation of the Youngstown mills being closed. One of the reasons for the closing of the steel mills in Mahoning County was a new rule from a new agency called the EPA.  The EPA was created by Richard Nixon on December 2, 1970, to protect human health and the environment.  

The Clean Water Act of 1972 (actually a compendium of amendments to the 1948 Federal Water Pollution Control Act) sounded the death knell for the steel plants that discharged both thermal and chemical loads into the Mahoning River. The river — which had never frozen in winter in my family’s memory over three generations — was now being held to what was called a “cold water fishery standard.” 

At Lorain, I started once again back in the labor gang, moved to mobile equipment operator, then department clerk, before getting a chance to go into environmental engineering.  At Lorain, the Coke plant was threatened with shutdowns if we didn’t find a way to significantly reduce visible air emissions. I was part of the team created to develop and implement a new process called stage charging, and the emissions were brought to a level that allowed the coke plant to operate for many more years.

Lesson learned — Sustainability isn’t bad, but we have to manage for the greatest good, not the immediate and expedient outcome that we think we want.

Quality — Threat Becomes Opportunity
In 1984, I was among the 200 first-line supervisors and salaried personnel who were discharged due to competition from the Japanese steel makers making us redundant.  We had just started corporate training on statistical process control (SPC) and I was pleased to have earned my certificates before the discharge notices came.

My immediate superior had arranged for me to interview for a job at a customer, and while I had a great interview, all hiring was on hold due to a corporate buy-out and restructuring. So, I attended community college for more coursework on machining, statistics, and quality control. When the hiring freeze thawed, I joined Bliss and Laughlin Steel and started implementing SPC at our Medina, Ohio, plant.  

Success leads to success — that’s a lesson from manufacturing as well — and I was promoted to manager customer service at our newest plant, where I led our team to earn the first Ford Q-1 Quality Systems Award to be awarded to a non-integrated steel mill. We displaced the Japanese steel suppliers at the Ford plants that used our cold drawn steel bars, logging several consecutive years of zero PPM at many of our other automotive customers.  

At that time, I was active on the PMPA’s Quality Committee, authoring white papers, and sharing and networking with others to help us all retool our management methods to better control and assure quality.

Lesson learned — Adversity is an opportunity for improvement, an opportunity for team work to get an important job done, and a chance for a career upgrade for all involved.

Lesson of Lessons — Manufacturing Is Really About Continuous Improvement
It’s been 50 years, and while I am now a staffer at a manufacturing association, I am still on the shop floor — virtually or in person almost every day.  What U.S. material is equivalent to this European designation? How to clean steel bars that have been contaminated from improper storage?  How to eliminate staining on plated parts? Why are my stainless-steel bars magnetic? These are the kinds of member questions I’m privileged to answer at PMPA.
In 50 years, I have come a long way from being paid for my labor and ability to lift a shovel full of iron ore or Coke breeze with an MSA-approved respirator over my face.  

But this didn’t happen by accident. It happened — despite the circumstances, the plant closings, the lay-offs, and other uncontrollable situations — because of a vision to improve what I knew.  To learn more. To apply it. And to commit to achieving my highest and best use. At one time, I just wanted to work in the laboratory. Well, I got to be the foreman of the laboratory. But manufacturing has a higher and better use for all of us — perhaps one we don’t even know that exists yet.

All we have to do is use our superpower.  What is the superpower we have as manufacturers? Showing up. You cannot make a difference if you don’t show up. Just show up. Magic doesn’t happen sitting at home or idle on the street. It shows up when you are doing your job, and another opportunity beckons. A threat that needs to be overcome. You are the bench. Raise your hand. Do your very best. Learn and apply.

Lesson learned: Continuous improvement is the way of manufacturing. Improve and thrive. Show up. Learn. Improve. Succeed. May not be guaranteed, but after 50 years, it’s the way I’d bet on.

 

 

 

Author

Miles Free III is the PMPA Director of Industry Affairs with over 50 years of experience in the areas of manufacturing, quality and steelmaking. Miles’ podcast is at pmpa.org/podcast. Email Miles

 

Roles of Women in Manufacturing Series: IT in Manufacturing: Bridget Casey and Missy Gedridge

Two women share their journeys to IT in manufacturing, and give advice to anyone seeking a career in manufacturing.

by Carli Kistler-Miller

Director of Programs & Marketing, PMPA

Published October 1, 2023

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Information Technology (IT) empowers precision machining shops to operate with higher precision, accuracy and efficiency. Bridget Casey is the global manager for information systems and technology for Bracalente Manufacturing Group in Trumbauersville, Pennsylvania. Missy Gedridge is the customer service/IT for EMC Precision in Elyria, Ohio. Both women share their journeys to manufacturing.
 
Bridget Casey’s Journey
During the summer between her junior and senior year at Bloomsburg University in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, Bridget served as a supply chain intern with Bracalente. During her internship, she lead a project of upgrading Bracalente’s ERP system which ignited her career in IT. When asked about her favorite part of her job, Bridget responds, “It is getting to work with each department of my company to integrate new technology into their daily processes and help them become more efficient and remove nonvalue added activities.”

Missy Gedridge’s Journey
Missy started as a temp working in the shipping department. After eight weeks, she was hired full time. While working, she earned a certificate in computer maintenance and networking from Lorain County Community College just about the time that EMC Precision was preparing for Y2K. Missy let the owner know about her certificate and she was placed on the implementation team for the new ERP system. She remained in IT for about six years and earned an associate’s degree in computer maintenance, A+ certification and an associate’s in digital forensics. Missy states, “In manufacturing I’m continually being challenged. I’m part of a team while continually learning and growing. It’s so rewarding.”

Advice to Women (or Anyone) Seeking a Career in Manufacturing
Bridget says, “Manufacturing has opened my eyes to see how things around the world are made and how valuable little metal parts can be to saving and maintaining lives.”

Missy’s advice is, “If it interests you and makes you curious, you should find out your next steps to get there. Don’t be discouraged. If you feel you encounter a road block, seek help in unblocking it. Most importantly, be yourself.”

 

 

 

Author

Carli Kistler-Miller, MBA has over 25 years of experience with
communications, event/meeting planning, marketing, writing and
operations. Email: gro.apmp@rellimc — Website: pmpa.org.

PMPA Speaking of Precision Podcast:

The 2023 Mastery Program New England Tour Experience

Miles Free, Carli Kistler-Miller and David Wynn talk about their mind-blowing experiences on the most recent tour for PMPA’s Mastery Program where the cohort visited TEN PMPA member shops and suppliers in the New England area.

 

Published October 2, 2023