Manufacturing Talks

Send us Fan Mail Your host Jim Vinoski tackles Chapter 5 of his book *American Manufacturing: 22 Tales of Integrity, Ingenuity, and the Modest Heroes Who Built a Nation,* and explains how Chuck Hull and 3D Systems helped commercialize 3D printing and expand it from prototyping into production. Jim details how Chuck's invention first revolutionized fast prototyping and is now enabling the maki...

Send us Fan Mail Fellow GMI alumnus Andy Pfeifer joined your host Jim Vinoski this week to discuss enterprise-wide business transformation: effective execution, seeking and acting upon employee feedback, and drawing lessons for operations and supply chain professionals. Andy draws on more than 30 years of experience, mostly at General Mills, spanning logistics, manufacturing, and sales, and includ...

Send us Fan Mail Continuing solo shows for each chapter of his new book, *American Manufacturing: 22 Tales of Integrity, Ingenuity, and the Modest Heroes Who Built a Nation,* your host Jim Vinoski today talks about Vendome Copper & Brass Works in Louisville. They make the vessels that make your bourbon (and other distilled spirits), and it's as much art as science. Their work is gorgeous....

Send us Fan Mail Retired economics professor Howie Baetjer, who was the instructor for an online class your host Jim Vinoski took way back when, joined us to discuss how free markets, private ownership, and decentralized decision-making are the strongest foundations for productive and resilient manufacturing. Howie described his path from psychology and English teaching to political philosophy and...

Send us Fan Mail Rick Graber, president and CEO of the Bradley Foundation, joined us to explain the mission and activities of his organization, which was founded based on the free enterprise, limited government, and human dignity principles of the brothers who founded Allen Bradley. Highlights: 00:00 - Introduction and Rick's Background 04:03 - Allen-Bradley History 10:11 - Foundation Princip...

Send us Fan Mail Your host Jim Vinoski goes solo this week and explains why Victaulic is featured in Chapter Three of his book *American Manufacturing: 22 Tales of Integrity, Ingenuity, and the Modest Heroes Who Built a Nation.* 01:15 - Victaulic Origins Victaulic began in England in the 1800s with pipe couplings and later established itself in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley. Its couplings join pipe...

Send us Fan Mail Dave Hebert - native of Detroit and son of a manufacturing worker - and how an economist and manufacturing guru with the American Institute for Economic Research, discusses the economic productivity of American manufacturing and the negative impact of current trade tensions with Canada. Dave argues that American manufacturing remains highly productive despite political narratives...

Send us Fan Mail Who are your manufacturing heroes? Your host Jim Vinoski interviews Avi Reichental, highlighting his extensive background in manufacturing and technology, including his roles at 3D Systems and Exponential Works. Reichental emphasizes the need to inspire the next generation into manufacturing, arguing that the current challenge is a "belief shortage" rather than a skills...

Send us Fan Mail Your host Jim Vinoski discusses the history and business evolution of Worksman Cycles, which is Chapter 2 of his new book, *American Manufacturing: 22 Tales of Integrity, Ingenuity, and the Modest Heroes Who Built a Nation.* Company History Jim details the origins of Worksman Cycles, founded by Morris Worksman in Manhattan in 1898. Originally a dry goods store owner, Morris develo...

Send us Fan Mail It's always cool to learn about breakthrough new tech, so Jim's discussion with Larry Harrell from Perfect Point EDM was a treat! Larry discusses how Perfect Point uses advanced electrical discharge machining (EDM) to revolutionize aircraft fastener removal. He explains that traditional twist drilling for titanium fasteners is labor-intensive, requiring up to seven minut...

Send us Fan Mail Your host Jim Vinoski kicks off his series that will highlight each company in turn that he featured in his new book, *American Manufacturing: 22 Tales of Integrity, Ingenuity, and the Modest Heroes Who Built a Nation.* Jim starts out here with Chapter 1 about Frank J. Zamboni & Co., Inc. Jim details the origins of the Zamboni company, founded by Frank Zamboni in California. O...

Send us Fan Mail Jim Vinoski discusses his new book, "American Manufacturing: 22 Tales of Integrity, Ingenuity, and the Modest Heroes Who Built a Nation," highlighting the importance of American manufacturing. He chose 22 companies, emphasizing their deep community roots and critical roles in national defense and everyday life. Jim aims to educate the public and policymakers on the neces...

Send us Fan Mail It was great fun to focus on nuclear energy for the second week in a row! Your host Jim Vinoski interviews Julia Cartwright from the American Institute for Economic Research about nuclear energy and regulations. Cartwright, an economist, professor, and deep thinker, discusses the inefficiencies of government intervention in energy policies, citing examples like the Road to Housing...

Send us Fan Mail Your host Jim Vinoski interviews Brett Rampal, a nuclear expert with 20 years of experience, about the current state and future of the nuclear industry. Brett highlights the industry's significant regulatory challenges, noting the need for reform and better project management. He discusses the impact of recent presidential administrations on nuclear energy support and the pot...

Send us Fan Mail It was very cool to return the favor for Aaron Witt, founder of training platform BuildWitt and host of Dirt Talk, where your host Jim Vinoski appeared a couple months ago. Aaron Witt discussed his mission to promote the construction and mining industries through micro learning and continuous improvement. He highlighted the critical infrastructure workforce shortage, noting 80-85%...

Send us Fan Mail Regulations have gotten so bad we mostly don't even talk about them anymore. That's a huge problem, because red tape is the number 1 thing that can derail our reindustrialization efforts, our nuclear resurgence, and our energy independence. Your host Jim Vinoski tackles the problem head-on, discussing the extensive impact of red tape regulations on American manufacturing...

Send us Fan Mail Here's a superb example of a public-private partnership to help with our desperate need for more skilled trades gurus. Jim Vinoski interviews Jason Wells from the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) program, which trains the U.S. defense industrial base workforce. The program, based in Danville, Virginia, focuses on skilled trades like machining, welding, and...

Send us Fan Mail It was a pleasure to be joined once again by Samuel Gregg, who is President of the American Institute for Economic Research, and joined us to discuss a recent article of his that's right up our alley. Sam and our host Jim Vinoski did a deep dive into his article, "Dear Conservatives: Industrial Policy is a Dead End," which critiques the British and American approach...

Send us Fan Mail It was illuminating to hear from Mike Musheinish, CEO of Detroit Axle, about the effects of tariffs on his aftermarket auto parts-making business. Mike discussed the severe impact of the new tariffs on his business. Initially, tariffs cost his company $25,000 per $1 million in parts, but this rose to $725,000. This forced Detroit Axle to raise prices, affecting profitability and c...

Send us Fan Mail It was great to return the favor of podcast guesting with Melinda Tse, Louis Leung, and Jared Plumb from inFlow Inventory. They had our host Jim Vinoski on their show, "The Secret Life of Inventory," a few months ago. For their visit with us, we dove into their strategy of making their show an integral part of marketing their industrial inventory management software. Hig...

Send us Fan Mail Your host Jim Vinoski discusses the latest newsletter from the National Center for Energy Analytics (NCEA), highlighting key articles. He praises Jonathan Lesser and Portia Roberts' critique of wind power, noting its low capacity factor (25%) compared to nuclear (90%). Vinoski also summarized Ike Keifer's op-ed criticizing corn ethanol, citing a 28% increase in greenhous...

Send us Fan Mail Your host, Jim Vinoski, goes solo and discusses the impact of regulations on American manufacturing, emphasizing that hyper-regulation has driven jobs offshore and hinders reindustrialization efforts. He highlights the Trump administration's deregulation initiatives, such as repealing the Obama-era endangerment finding and implementing a 10:1 regulation rollback policy. Jim n...

Send us Fan Mail Software for manufacturing feels like a minefield sometimes. These guys get it. Benny Buehler from Uptool, a startup focused on improving American machine shops, joined us this week. Benny, with a background in metal additive manufacturing, co-founded Uptool with Alex Huckstepp to address the inefficiencies in traditional manufacturing software. Uptool's AI-driven software au...

Send us Fan Mail We've got a shorter episode for you this week. Your host Jim Vinoski flies solo for deep dive into the event he attended last week, the Energy Futures Forum by the National Center for Energy Analytics. It was a pow-wow with some very smart folks and a few big names talking the latest and greatest on energy in America and beyond. The highlights: 00:00 - Introduction 02:46 - Se...

Send us Fan Mail What an amazing episode! Our guests this week are Seth Kanor and Vinny Livoti from Enabling Devices, a company that creates assistive technology for people with disabilities. Seth's father, a medical engineer, founded the company in the 1970s after witnessing the transformative impact of a simple switch on a child with cerebral palsy. The company has since grown, focusing on...