Manufacturing the Future

Arnold Lumber Company's Adam Bartlett Drills In to the Meaning of Digital Transformation

Meet Adam Bartlett, Data Systems Manager at Arnold Lumber Company
"My direct boss, the COO of Arnold Lumber, Matt Semonik, says I'm often the man behind the curtain. I make things happen," says Adam Bartlett, Data Systems Manager at Arnold Lumber Company. "I tell my team that our job is to make other employees' jobs easier, as easy as we possibly can, and to develop the tools, give them the tools, buy the tools, whatever we need to do to make their jobs easier. So I do a lot of things like report writing, business intelligence. I solve business problems. They have a problem. They come to me. Do we have the tools? Yes. No. Let's get the tools. Let's find a solution. A lot of brainstorming, a lot of teamwork, a lot of data wrangling and managing. But it's fun. I enjoy it. I enjoy coming to work."
Arnold Lumber Company has grown from a small wood lot in North Kingstown, RI to a full service supplier with locations across the state. They serve the broader New England area with a wide range of building materials, hardware, cabinetry design services, contractor referral services, and much more. Arnold Lumber Company has everything their customers might need to bring their visions to life.
However, running the tight, employee-friendly and customer-first business they are today hasn't always been so smooth. Although it was an adjustment period, when Arnold Lumber embraced technology, specifically BisTrack, in 2015, it has ultimately helped them grow and improve. 
In This Episode
How can technology be a game-changer for everything from less paperwork to better scheduling for both customers and employees? Listen to our conversation with Adam Bartlett to hear all about Arnold Lumber Company's journey with not only embracing technology, but using it to succeed.
Topics
Arnold Lumber Company's decision-making process of investing in technology.
Why BisTrack is "the best solution out there."
What technologies have had the biggest impact on Arnold Lumber Company's business.
What innovations Arnold Lumber Company is excited to incorporate next.
Practicing the saying "Change the people around you, or change the people around you."
The two jobs every company should have: safety and making sure everyone is successful.

PureCycle's Dustin Olson on Leaning into Technology and Innovating Sustainability

As with any business, expansion is overall a good thing--but it does come with its challenges. PureCycle has worked to strike a balance between keeping costs low via making their processes more efficient and using materials that are cheaper and expanding to new locations and working with new partners. 
Dustin also describes how having a "culture of bias to action" allows PureCycle to make decisions quickly and by extension lean into new technologies. Aside from its main values of innovation, sustainability, and recycling, PureCycle focuses on being as digital as possible.
In This Episode
Listen to Dustin Olson talk about PureCycle's culture of bias to action, staying connected to technology, focusing on sustainability, and more.
Episode summary 
Dustin Olson believes that PureCycle's mission is to innovate how polypropylene plastic is the future of sustainability. "At the end of the day, it's not marketing, it's not shows, it's not promise. It's just boots on the ground manufacturing excellence that gets it done." By focusing on technology, listening to people within the company, and celebrating even the small wins, PureCycle is proving him right. 
In our latest podcast episode, Dustin talks about the challenges that recycling faces as a whole and how PureCycle addresses those challenges in a unique, sustainable way. According to Dustin, people and companies generally want to recycle and commit to being more sustainable, but it's often difficult due to cost, inconvenience, or both. 
PureCycle's process takes plastic that might otherwise end up in a landfill, washes it to a pure and more versatile product, and gives it to the customer for use however they need. This process also means that those same products can be turned right back around and recycled again, indefinitely. 
At the core of all this innovation and vision? Working hard, grinding through the problems, being kind, staying humble, and leaning into technology.
Topics
Why Dustin believes that sustainability is not just a marketing tactic, it's a business practice.  
How leaning into technology and letting it guide innovation is the future of manufacturing.
Why expansion of your business can be tricky: it involves balancing cost with growth. 
How PureCycle's recycling process is unique and innovative, taking plastics that would otherwise end up in landfills and turning them into pure, versatile products.
How PureCycle has learned to be nimble and make decisions quickly without sacrificing what's right for the business.
Why a policy of listening within your company is a key practice for successful leadership. 

E4D's Tammi Carter on Helping Customers "Dream, Design, Deliver, and Delight"

"Because we've always been one of the smaller companies with competitors, we needed technology so that we could compete and not have as many people," says Tammi Carter, CEO at E4D Technologies, in our newest podcast episode. "Also being a medical device company, there's a lot of regulations about traceability and serialization, and so, from day one, there was some level of technology. Obviously, we've grown, we've expanded, we've enhanced, but technology was always part of the DNA of E4D."
E4D Technologies is a leading contract manufacturer and design company that serves customers with innovative technologies and methods like 3D scanning, as well as unique approaches to product development and manufacturing. The E4D methodology centers around four principles: "Dream, design, deliver, and delight." When a customer comes to them with a dream for a product — which could even be a sketch on a napkin — they bring it to life and support it until the end of its lifecycle.
However, running a great organization doesn't happen by chance, and takes deliberate thought and effort to make sure you're optimizing technology, processes, and people to address your challenges. E4D uses technology to stay competitive as a smaller player, as well as uses automation and robotics to address labor shortage gaps. They also focus on understanding the customer so they provide technology that actually meets their needs and have created a culture that's comfortable with change.
 
In This Episode
How can manufacturing leaders leverage their technology and culture to stay competitive and bring those dream products to life for their customers? Listen to our conversation with Tammi Carter to learn more about how to build great products and a great team behind those products.
Topics
How E4D brings products to life through their methodology of "dream, design, deliver, and delight."
How a background in music performance helped Tammi prepare for a career in manufacturing leadership.
The importance of mentoring and why sharing experiences and expertise is a sign of good leadership.
Why E4D relies on technology to stay competitive, and how they're using it to free up humans "to do the work that only people can do."
Why having a culture that's comfortable with change is key to success.
How E4D is evolving its digital transformation through ERP utilization, digitizing documents, and moving to the cloud.
Why you need to understand your customer and their needs — not what you think they need.

Praxie's Michael Lynch on How AI is Transforming Manufacturing

"How do you practically apply artificial intelligence? I think that's the core question that most manufacturers are asking themselves," says Michael Lynch, CEO at Praxie, in our new podcast episode. "AI is the second step. The first step is getting digital, because you can't use AI unless your stuff is digital. So if you think about a pragmatic roadmap, it's get digital, get all that stuff out of Excel sheets and paper, and build those workflow processes."
Praxie is an AI-powered software platform that advances digital transformation for discrete and process manufacturing companies. Once a company digitizes its documents and processes, the AI built into their workflows can give feedback and insights about issues seen on the factory floor, or generate an action plan by tapping into a large language model. Or, AI can extract insights from a company’s data, identifying root causes of problems.
However, for manufacturing organizations to reap the full benefits of AI, they have to ensure they're underway with their digital transformation first. Two of the challenges to digital transformation are cost and time: how expensive your infrastructure providers will be and how long it'll take to implement the solution. But another challenge is the human element, because if you try to implement new digital processes that are different from what you currently have, they won't be adopted.
 
In This Episode
How can manufacturers overcome the hurdles to a successful digital transformation, and use AI to improve their processes to make them better execution leaders? Listen to our conversation with Michael Lynch to learn more about how AI is transforming manufacturing today and how it will continue to do so in the future.
Topics
How Michael made his way from Broadway to video games to leading an AI software company in manufacturing.
Why manufacturing companies need to digitize first before they can then practically apply AI to help solve operational problems.
The two big challenges that manufacturing companies face in their digital transformation.
Best practices for managing your data, and why data cleanliness will affect your outcomes.
Examples of how manufacturers can use AI to improve their production, increase efficiencies, and lower scrap through more effective management.
Some of the indicators that tell a business they're ready for a digital transformation.
What a "manufacturing plant of the future" may look like with its augmented environments and computer vision.
 

Bunting's Robert Bunting Jr. on Increasing Efficiency and Adding Value Through Digitization and Automation

"We're trying to go back and figure out how can we produce what we do, maybe less expensive. How can we do it quicker, more efficient?” says Robert Bunting Jr., President & CEO at Bunting, in our new podcast episode. “A lot of it is through our processes. Does a process bring value? If it doesn't, figure out a way to cut it out. That's how you compete in the world today, is being as efficient as you can."
Bunting is a family business that, since 1959, has manufactured precision magnetic products for the worldwide printing, automotive, plastics, food, electronics, pharmaceutical, and recycling industries. Today, they've grown to 250 employees with offices in Kansas, Pennsylvania, England, and other parts of the world. Robert started working in the office as a teenager, and after some time away, returned to work in a variety of roles in the company, from sales to product management, before rising to President and CEO.
But Bunting is at a point in their company's lifecycle when they're looking at how to improve their processes to stay competitive — especially when the "Amazon effect" is changing customer expectations for better service and faster delivery. So, they're turning to technologies like digitization, cloud platforms, automation, and more to create more efficiencies and bring more value to their processes and, ultimately, their customers.
 
In This Episode
What can mid-sized manufacturing companies do to ensure they're well-positioned for the future of the industry and increase their competitive advantage? Listen to our conversation with Robert Bunting to learn more about how to implement new technologies and processes to prepare for the future of manufacturing.
Topics
How digital transformation is helping Bunting be more efficient, better manage processes, and allow for more remote work.
Where Bunting is using automation to eliminate steps that don't bring value.
How Bunting is testing "lights out" automation and how it's creating a competitive advantage.
Why changing customer behaviors are forcing manufacturers to become more efficient with customer data and response time.
The areas in which Bunting is practicing sustainability, especially in their recycling.
The potential of AI to enhance efficiencies, quickly gather data, and assist in customer service.
Advice to other manufacturers that includes learning as much as you can from the world around you.

Analyzing the Findings from ”The Evolving Role of Financial Leaders in Manufacturing” Report with Epicor’s Mark Jensen

"One of the things that we wanted to do at Epicor was to start to broaden our understanding of manufacturing beyond just production orders or MES systems — really start to further learn more about the finance, the accounting side, because that's so, so important," said Mark Jensen, Director of Product Marketing at Epicor on a recent episode of the Manufacturing the Future podcast. "We surveyed finance and accounting leaders in over 200 companies worldwide ... the people that are in there day in, day out, working with the financial and the accounting aspects of software."
Mark recently visited the podcast to discuss the findings from Epicor's "The Evolving Role of Financial Leaders in Manufacturing" report. As he explains to Kerrie, the report shows how much the role of the CFO is changing and in many ways elevating to new responsibilities. The CFOs surveyed are also looking to new technologies like AI and business intelligence to support growth and profitability. They're also finding a lot of value in the cloud as well.
However, CFOs are facing a number of challenges today, including talent shortages and retention, and how to manage and maximize the value of data. Yet they're turning to technology to address these challenges, like automation that can help improve retention by minimizing manual tasks and robust data management platforms to help extract value from all that data.
In This Episode
What's on the minds of manufacturing CFOs today? Listen to our conversation with Mark Jensen to hear more about the findings from "The Evolving Role of Financial Leaders in Manufacturing" report.
Topics
How "The Evolving Role of Financial Leaders in Manufacturing" report was created and an overview of its findings.
How the role of the CFO is changing, evolving, and elevating.
Four challenges CFOs are facing today, including talent acquisition and data siloing.
How CFOs are addressing the talent shortage and turnover by relieving burnout through automation.
Three new technologies that CFOs are leveraging to improve profitability.
Top takeaways from the report around data management, the value of the cloud, and how not to be held back by market conditions.

”Voice of the Manufacturing Manager” Roundtable with John Preiditsch of Six S Partners, Mark Jamieson of 2WTech, and Ivan Rebolledo of Technology Coast Partners

"Voice of the Manufacturing Manager" Roundtable
What's on the minds of manufacturing leaders today? What's on their to-do lists? What do they see on the horizon? Epicor recently surveyed 400 manufacturing leaders for our "Voice of the Manufacturing Manager" report to find out more about how they're approaching technology, business strategies, worker engagement, and the future of their industry
In this special episode of the "Manufacturing the Future" podcast, we invited three manufacturing leaders to discuss the findings of the report and to hear their perspectives on the key takeaways. Kerrie hosts John Preiditsch, President & CEO, Six S Partners; Mark Jamieson, President & CEO, 2WTech; and Ivan Rebolledo, Chief Revenue Office, Technology Coast Partners for an insightful discussion on the technology shaping manufacturing today, how to increase engagement across your workforce, and how being perceived as "modern" can promote your business. 
Topics
A discussion around the key takeaways of Epicor's new report, "Voice of the Manufacturing Manager."
How being perceived as a "modern manufacturing company" impacts business.
The different types of technology manufacturing companies are using today, including cloud and AI.
Where manufacturing companies stand on upskilling, and how it can increase worker engagement while producing a higher return on new technology.
How to increase the morale of manufacturing workers through increased pay and time off, and by appealing to other non-monetary needs.
The priorities and challenges to manufacturing leaders and how to solve them.
Why communication is a key skill to look for when hiring for the future of manufacturing.

Prollenium’s Ario Khoshbin on Building a Tech Company from Scratch That Stay True to Its Roots

"A lot of times you can really get stuck when you're doing something. You lose sight of what's next because you're so fixated on what you're doing that you don't think about the future," says Ario Khoshbin, Founder & CEO at Prollenium Medical Technologies in our newest podcast. And Ario has done just that in building a medical aesthetics technology company from scratch, learning the ins and outs of the industry as it scaled, and instilling a mindset of constant innovation.
As Ario explains, Prollenium Medical Technologies started with a $300 loan and is now a company that employees 300 people. Instead of hiring expertise from already established companies, Ario built it from scratch, learning how to create formulas for their products and ensuring that they're being produced in sterile environments. As they grew, they implemented more technology like HR software and an ERP system to empower employees, especially to keep the pulse of employees as the environment scaled.
Ario founded the company after working with his immigrant parents in their own businesses, and being inspired by their hard work. That’s been another factor he’s focused on: scaling a company while staying true to his family roots and values.
 
In This Episode
What can young entrepreneurs learn from someone who put in the work to found and scale a company in a highly-regulated industry, and make sure that that growth is sustainable? Listen to our conversation with Ario Khoshbin and leave inspired to follow your passions and see your hard work come to fruition.
Topics
Ario's background being raised in an immigrant family, and how he grew up working with his parents in their businesses, which inspired him to start his own medical aesthetics technology company.
How the company grew from a $300 loan to now employing 300 people, and is the first Canadian company to open a manufacturing facility specializing in dermal fillers.
The technology that Prollenium has adopted to support and empower their employees, like HR software, an ERP, and more.
How instead of hiring from other companies, Prollenium built their company from scratch, and why Ario considered it a great learning experience.
The current trends in manufacturing, and why it's key to continue to innovate and not get stuck.
Advice for young entrepreneurs on following your passion and standing on the shoulders of others.

Cre8tive Technology and Design’s Bob Aronson on Using ERP to Stay Compliant, Reduce Risk, and Improve Operations in the A&D Industry

"When we look at some of the technology or capability that our aerospace and defense manufacturers are looking for, it really is centered around how can we let technology improve their operation and put a minimum impact on the resources or the people that they have inside their organization?" That's what Bob Aronson, Chief Revenue Officer at Cre8tive Technology and Design, does each day: help manufacturing customers understand how to leverage technology to either obtain or maintain compliance in a very rapidly growing industry.
Manufacturers in the aerospace and defense industry need a number of elements to be successful. Not only do they need methods in which to track their manufacturing and visibility into their operations in order to stay productive and efficient. Manufacturers with government contracts also need to stay compliant to certain regulations as well, like the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) that ensures contractors have safe cybersecurity practices. A failure to stay compliant can mean losing their contract.
How does an ERP system play into this? As Bob explains during the conversation, an ERP system and other technology can not only optimize production, but it can ensure you're staying compliant while taking out human error and lowering risk.
 
In This Episode
How can aerospace and defense manufacturers seek to improve their operations as well as ensure they're staying in compliance with often-changing government regulations? Listen to our conversation with Bob Aronson to find out how to leverage technology like an ERP system in order to thrive in the growing aerospace and defense industry.
Topics
Bob's career trajectory, from serving in the Air Force, to being the launch director for the first military satellite inside the space shuttle, to creating ERP solutions, to becoming Chief Revenue Officer at Cre8tive Technology and Design, Epicor's aerospace and defense partner.
The rise in cybercrime, and how an ERP system can help keep aerospace and defense manufacturers safe and compliant with government regulations like CMMC.
How an ERP can support the many facets of an aerospace and defense manufacturer's supply chain, and give visibility into inventory, finance, engineering and part production, contracts, and more.
How aerospace and defense manufacturers can optimize their operations and lower their risk by using an ERP system.
Advice for aerospace and defense manufacturers on what to keep in mind when adopting a new technology, as well as why you shouldn't wait to upgrade.

Knowing When to Automate, Digitize, and Modernize While Moving Quickly in R&D

"The leader of the lab asked me, 'So what are you really all about? Do you love building things or doing research?' And in my heart, I knew that the answer was building things." For David Merrill, it was his love of building things and his realization that "logistics needs better solutions” that led him to create a new approach to enable same-day shipping to every person on the planet: Elroy Air. 
By using autonomous cargo aircraft systems, Elroy Air is doing more than just making sure your package gets to you quickly. They envision the ability to provide humanitarian aid, disaster relief, and resupply in locations that may be challenging to reach with current aircraft. But building new types of aircraft requires finding ways to manage materials, product requirements, compliance, software updates, and more.
As Elroy Air continues to invest in R&D and prove that their technology works, the question now is: When do we begin to integrate technology to help scale our efforts? When do we transition from pen and paper that allowed us to move fast to digital systems that can standardize, automate, and scale our production? David talks about facing and answering these questions in our new episode of Manufacturing the Future.
In This Episode
Elroy Air has the opportunity to revolutionize logistics for a number of industries across the globe. Listen to our conversation with David Merrill to get a behind-the-scenes look at a manufacturing company at a digitization inflection point, and how they're beginning to implement technologies that will help them grow alongside with their goals.
Topics
How David started Elroy Air after realizing he wanted to build things and not go the academic route, and how they're solving express logistics across the planet.
The intersection of humans and technology, and the way in which computers, hardware, software, and robotics systems "become an extension of our intentions."
How Elroy Air is balancing moving quickly with their research and development with taking their time on implementing automation, digitization, and other technologies for standardization and scale.
The digitals tools that Elroy Air is embracing as they scale, like software tools, document tracking, specifications tracking, and ERP.
The questions David says they're asking in terms of what new technology to implement, and when is the right time to implement when you're still in the R&D phase.
Advice for entrepreneurs, including hiring a manufacturing expert, being efficient with capital, and digitizing what makes sense.