Manufacturing Happy Hour

How do you explain mHUB? Chris asks the people behind it, over coffee instead of beer.Recorded in Chicago’s West Loop, Chris sits down with mHUB’s Bill Fienup, Co-Founder and VP of Innovation Services, and Kim Blomquist, Senior Director of Marketing and Communications, to explore how the company helps hardtech startups move from prototype to production.Bill and Kim cover the labs and the accelerator, and how a startup gets its first 10 to 100 units built before it finds a manufacturing partner. They also discuss why investors are paying more attention to hardtech.In this episode, find out:What a platform like mHUB gives hardtech startups beyond a building and a maker spaceWhy having labs on site speeds up product developmentHow the accelerator funds early-stage startupsHow startups find the right manufacturing partner as they scaleWhy hardware is harder to build than softwareHow HAAS Alert brought production home after tariffs hitEnjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!Tweetable Quotes:“In hardware, you’re manufacturing something that takes much longer and much more capital, and so it’s so important to get that first part right.” - Bill Fienup, Co-Founder and VP of Innovation Services at mHUB“We’re in the business of building new businesses. But we also want to retain them, we want them to stay here.” - Kim Blomquist, Senior Director of Marketing and Communications at mHUB“You need to be creative about how you can extend your runway, how you can raise enough money to cover not only the development, but the manufacturing.” - Bill Fienup, Co-Founder and VP of Innovation Services at mHUBLinks & mentions:mHUB is a Chicago hardtech and manufacturing innovation center that gives startups a machine shop, mentors, a manufacturing network and capital.HAAS Alert is a Chicago safety technology company whose Safety Cloud platform sends real-time alerts to drivers when emergency vehicles approach.Zenblen is a Chicago food robotics company that builds fully automated smoothie kiosks.PTC’s Industrial Newsletter is a quick hit of clarity on how design, manufacturing, and service data can work together for manufacturing leaders looking to modernize.MaintainX is a maintenance and asset management platform for the technicians keeping equipment running.Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.

Manufacturing has been collecting skills for centuries, and the list keeps growing.Chris takes Manufacturing Happy Hour to Revere Electric’s Executive Forum at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) for a live conversation about what the factory of the future needs in the plant and in the workforce. Joining him are Michael Cvelbar and Phil Bush of Rockwell Automation, Joe Hamann of the Connected Systems Institute (CSI), and Ryan Schneeberger of Revere Electric Supply.Joe and Phil look at how new people get job-ready through student hackathons and a veteran training program. Ryan and Michael cover the other side, keeping people on the floor and giving operators more to do once they’re there. Students learn where AI adds value, while manufacturers want to see the return before they invest. And a room full of manufacturers toasts every time they say “digital twin.”In this episode, find out:Why Michael says manufacturers need backup plans when disruption hitsHow Rockwell is preparing operators to troubleshoot their own equipmentWhy manufacturers say new engineering graduates can take years to reach full productivityHow Rockwell’s Academy of Advanced Manufacturing trains military veterans as controls techniciansWhat flexible automation can do for a customer and why manufacturers stay cautious on AI until the ROI is clearHow Phil, Joe, Ryan and Michael describe their factory of the future when the audience asksEnjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!Tweetable Quotes:“We want to hire on attitude and aptitude and culture fit, and we want to train on skills and capabilities.” - Phil Bush, Global Competency Programs Manager at Rockwell Automation“Get started. Try something, right? Start small, learn from it. It’s probably not going to be perfect, but you’ll be better the next time.” - Joe Hamann, Executive Director at Connected Systems Institute“The digitization that’s required, it’s business critical. It’s mission critical now. It’s no longer, ‘Hey, we’re going to go pilot this and see if this works.’ You need it, and it needs to be scaled across the enterprise.” - Michael Cvelbar, Director of Operations at Rockwell AutomationLinks & mentions:Rockwell Automation is a global leader in industrial automation and digital transformation, headquartered in Milwaukee.Revere Electric Supply is a fourth-generation, family-owned electrical distributor serving industrial and construction customers across Illinois and southern Wisconsin, and a presenting partner of this live event.Connected Systems Institute is a center of excellence at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, hosting this episode and developing manufacturing specialists through education, lab facilities, and research with industry partners.Husco is a Waukesha, Wisconsin manufacturer of hydraulic and electro-hydraulic controls for off-highway and automotive equipment.Fathom Digital Manufacturing offers more than 25 advanced manufacturing technologies under one roof, from CNC machining to injection molding.Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.

Manufacturing has a lot to gain from AI, and a lot to lose by waiting.Recorded at mHUB in Chicago’s West Loop during IMTS (International Manufacturing Technology Show), Chris sits down with Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD Redzone, to talk about what AI could mean for an industry facing 500,000 open manufacturing jobs and a growing need to do more with the people it already has.They also look at what happens when systems of record become systems of action, and how that changes the way manufacturers respond to problems on the shop floor.In this episode, find out:How a career that started on a Honda engine line shaped Sanjay's view of manufacturing as managing constraintsWhy manufacturers don't need to replace their existing technology before putting AI to workHow AI can turn a system of record into a system of action on the factory floorWhat QAD Redzone learned after giving line leads an AI agent before bringing their supervisors into the conversationWhy some manufacturers are willing to set aside 5-7% of their IT budget for AIHow a month of 24/7 bug fixing, complete with its own t-shirts, helped QAD Redzone rebuild customer trustEnjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!Tweetable Quotes:"The role of AI is not to replace the human being. The role of AI is to make that human being, that talent, 3 to 4x more powerful." - Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD Redzone"Manufacturing is a show-me world. It is not a tell-me world." - Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD Redzone"Nobody in manufacturing is sitting there waiting for somebody to give them AI. They only want it if it impacts their outcomes." - Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO of QAD RedzoneLinks & mentions:STÄUBLI is a leading manufacturer of quick connector systems, covering connection needs for all types of fluids, gases, and electrical power.QAD Redzone is the manufacturing AI platform built for the mid-market, bringing AI into the ERP and the workflow where decisions get made.mHUB is a Chicago hard tech platform that brings young companies together with networks of entrepreneurs, advisors, and capital.Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.

RVs are homes that go 60 miles an hour. That changes everything about what goes inside them.Chris sits down with Sean Petterson, CEO of Supersede, a company combining recycling and manufacturing in an unexpected way - turning recycled plastic into structural building materials. Supersede started with boats, where wood has an obvious problem - boats get wet!From there, the company moved into RVs, where the materials face constant movement and thermal cycling, on a production line that can build an entire RV in a couple of hours.Sean also explains the thinking behind Supersede's manufacturing model, including why he'd rather build 10 smaller plants than one big one.In this episode, find out:How running production lines in mirrored pairs cuts the distance operators walk across the floorWhy an RV, built to go 60 miles an hour, is a harder test for a material than a house that never movesHow Supersede built its own ERP with zero software developers, piecing it together through Slack, Jira, and GitHub insteadHow a pre-sold capacity threshold - already dropping fast - decides when Supersede builds its next plantHow embedding machine vision and LiDAR on the line replaces a QA machine that would otherwise cost far moreWhy Sean thinks manufacturers who didn't start using AI a year ago are already a decade behindEnjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!Tweetable Quotes:"If you hadn't gotten on the AI bus 12 months ago, you're a decade behind." - Sean Petterson, CEO of Supersede“A big contributor to those inefficiencies is, frankly, just legacy that gets embedded.” - Sean Petterson, CEO of Supersede“In manufacturing, things can move slow, and we just have the unique benefit of making sure that we're investing effectively, but very efficiently.” - Sean Petterson, CEO of SupersedeLinks & mentions:Supersede is a manufacturing company turning recycled plastic into structural building materials, starting with its Marine Board product for the marine and RV industries.Harmoni is a factory orchestration platform that connects what's happening on your shop floor with the systems you already use, from your machines and operators to your ERP, giving your team one real-time view of production.PTC's Industrial Newsletter - a quick hit of clarity on how design, manufacturing, and service data can work together for manufacturing leaders looking to modernize.Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.

There's a lot more coming out of Iowa than corn.Chris heads to Des Moines for a live conversation with four guests who each know Iowa manufacturing a little differently.Dominique Hain and Cami Schaefer share how Women in Manufacturing Iowa grew to over 900 members in three years. Denny Williams and Denise Hill take it from there, discussing automation, hiring, and just how deep Iowa's farm roots run through its factories.The conversation also uncovers some of the products many people may not know are made in Iowa, including Winnebago RVs.In this episode, find out:What makes a state better known for agriculture become one of the country's stronger manufacturing basesHow Iowa's farming communities are shaping who gets hired at companies like WeilerWhich surprising products are actually made in Iowa, from butter braids to basketball hoopsWhy so many Iowa manufacturers trace back to a farmer solving a problem for himself, then his neighborsHow Co-Line is using robots and cobots to boost throughput without cutting its workforceWhy finding qualified operators is harder than finding corn in rural IowaEnjoying the show? Please leave us a review here. Even one sentence helps. It’s feedback from Manufacturing All-Stars like you that keeps us going!Tweetable Quotes:"I love Des Moines because it's almost like a well-kept secret of Iowa, or of the US." - Cami Schaefer, Executive Operations Assistant at BrownWinick"We launched our chapter only three years ago, and we're already over 900 members strong, which is absolutely incredible." - Dominique Hain, Industry Account Manager at Rockwell Automation"With that strong work ethic and farming background, we like to hire young farm kids who know how to work on equipment. They're not afraid to roll up their sleeves and get dirty." - Denise Hill, Senior Human Resources Manager at WeilerLinks & mentions:Dominique Hain - Industry Account Manager at Rockwell AutomationDenny Williams - Sales/Estimating at Co-Line ManufacturingDenise Hill - Senior Human Resources Manager at WeilerCami Schaefer - Executive Operations Assistant at BrownWinickFathom Digital Manufacturing, offering more than 25 advanced manufacturing technologies under one roof, from CNC machining to injection molding.PTC's Industrial Newsletter, a quick hit of clarity on how design, manufacturing, and service data can work together for manufacturing leaders looking to modernize.Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.