Manufacturing Happy Hour

You’ve seen the viral videos of Spot, Boston Dynamics’ famous robotic dog, dancing to your favorite tunes, but did you know that this canine-inspired mobile robot has tons of practical applications in manufacturing too? Michael Perry, VP of Business Development at Boston Dynamics, shares how Spot is helping manufacturers optimize their processes and improve their safety standards in this week’s in...

After some recent cyber attacks on various verticals within the manufacturing world, Cybersecurity is on the mind of manufacturers everywhere. This week, we're diving back in the archives to bring you 3 of the best lessons we've ever received surrounding cybersecurity. We'll be tapping into 3 past guests to hear their practical approaches for getting started on a robust cybersecurity program while...

Let’s get this out of the way first: Manufacturers are leaving money on the table. If you’re a US manufacturer and you have yet to take advantage of the R&D tax credit, you need to listen to this episode. This week, we are joined by Jessie Cahill and Scott Hamilton, who are both experts in Research & Development Tax Credit Services at CohnReznick. These two are helping put money back in th...

We’re back with another additive manufacturing episode of the podcast. This time, we’re talking to Jeff Mize, the CEO of PostProcess Technologies. Jeff and his team are revolutionizing additive manufacturing by pioneering automated and intelligent solutions to remove the biggest bottleneck in the 3D printing process: post-processing. Yes, the company is literally named after the third step in the...

If you’re in manufacturing, there’s a good chance you’ve seen Aaron Prather pop up on LinkedIn. The company he works for is a household name as well. Not only is Aaron a Senior Technical Advisor at FedEx, but he's also an evangelist for automation and workforce development. Whether you’ve come across his robotics videos on social media, or this is your first time hearing about him, you’ll get to h...

One of the best things about a career in manufacturing is that there’s so much variety! One person who can attest to that is Sheena Patterson, who joins us in this episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour. Sheena has been zooming through an incredible career in manufacturing that's taken her from the Midwest to Silicon Valley and back in less than a decade. Having led as an engineer with companies like...

Is the world of automation and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) something to fear or celebrate? People worry about robots taking jobs, but according to this Manufacturing Happy Hour guest, robots are here to save the day. Jeff Christensen, VP of Product at Seegrid, joins this episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour to talk about his work with AMR, automation, and problem-solving technology in the manuf...

What does a future-ready manufacturer look like? What trends and practices are here to stay post-pandemic? These are just a couple of the questions that Salesforce set out to answer in their recent Trends in Manufacturing report. After talking to over 750 industry leaders across the manufacturing world to get their take on the future of manufacturing, we had to take the opportunity to learn more a...

We're diving back in the archives for this one. We're taking segments from 3 of our past interviews to bring you 3 of the best pieces of leadership advice that had ever come up on Manufacturing Happy Hour. From strategies for shaping culture to taking on unconscious bias in the workplace, this episode is for everyone that considers themselves a manufacturing leader.

We're bringing back RōBEX President Craig Francisco one last time as we take on a smorgasbord of topics impacting manufacturing leaders of all specializations. From sales to productivity, Craig shares some of his best lessons that you can find on his legacy podcast The 8 Keys of Sales Excellence in addition to what you can expect from his current show The Automation Solutions Podcast . It's a quic...

This week we're talking all things LinkedIn! It's been awhile since we've done a solo episode of the show for you. In this episode, Chris walks through 4 of his top tips for manufacturers that are on LinkedIn (and we're not just talking about the sales team). From building your personal brand to creating content that prioritizes timeliness over perfection, this episode will help you take your Link...

Patrick O'Rahilly is the Founder of FactoryFix, a Chicago and Madison-based technology company connecting manufacturers with a network of vetted, skilled professionals through their innovative matchmaking platform. Said another way, Patrick and FactoryFix are taking on the hiring challenges of the manufacturing sector head-on! This episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour was recorded live during a fir...

Zach Arnold is the President of Arnold Machine Inc. (AMI), a premier full-service engineering and equipment manufacturing business that he’s been running for almost three decades. After starting the company in a garage in 1994, AMI now operates out of a 50,000 square-foot facility in Tiffin, Ohio, where they make innovative automated equipment for applications in automotive, appliance, heavy indus...

Andrew Crowe might just be the most important person in manufacturing right now. He's a teacher, brand energizer, and a strong proponent for diversity in manufacturing, but that’s just scratching the surface. After discovering the promise and potential of manufacturing after college, he created the Elevate Institute of Advanced Manufacturing Technologies. Elevate is a program that brings together...

Craig Francisco is back on the podcast! And this time, he’s here to get technical… Craig Francisco is the President at R ō BEX, a new automation company that works with food, glass, and tissue industries. He’s previously spoken with us about digital marketing, but now it’s time to dive deep into the world of automation and robots. In this episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour, Craig shares the top 3...

Nick Fallucca is passionate about pizza and people. He's the Chief Product and Innovation Officer at Palermo's Pizza, a company that's been an Italian frozen food staple in the Midwest and beyond for over 50 years. In this episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour, we sit down with Nick to talk about all things pizza and what goes on behind-the-scenes in food manufacturing. He takes us through the chall...

If you’re familiar with the term “digital twin” in manufacturing, maybe it’s time to start thinking of blogs, videos, and social media content as the digital twin of your sales force. Greg Mischio is the Owner & Founder of Winbound, a marketing agency that provides content marketing for small marketing departments with a focus on manufacturing and industrial verticals. He also knows...

Gavin Collier is an attorney turned serial entrepreneur. After cutting his teeth as an attorney and cofounding multiple companies, he's now focused on his latest venture as the CEO of Dynamic Blending, a global cosmetic manufacturing company. Dynamic Blending was just ranked #17 on Inc. 5000's list of fastest-growing private companies in 2020. In this episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour, we discus...

Jake Hall is a believer that the future of manufacturing is in the hands of millennials. By day he’s a Business Development Manager at Feyen Zylstra , but most people know him as “The Manufacturing Millennial.” Through conversations and online manufacturing videos that he releases on a constant basis, he's doing his part to highlight the excitement behind automation and high-tech manufacturing. In...

Craig Francisco is a modern sales & marketing guru in manufacturing and beyond. In his 25 year career, he's served as an operations leader, a podcast host, a sales consultant, and now he’s the President at R ō BEX . This brand-new automation company is taking the world by storm with an incredible team and deep expertise in the food, glass, and tissue industries, just to name a few. In this epi...

Karen Kerr has a long track record in Venture Capital and manufacturing. For over 2 decades, she has been developing technology-based businesses, serving as Executive Managing Director at GE Ventures, as well as the Senior Director of New Ventures and Alliances at USC's Stevens Center for Innovation (just to name a few). Today, she's the Managing Director at Exposition Ventures in Chicago, IL. In...

Chris Grainger has had a long, illustrious career in electrical distribution, currently serving as the Engineering & Services Manager for the Electrical Equipment Company, better known as EECO . Now, he’s also the host of the podcast EECO Asks Why , a show that focuses on the heroes and ideas impacting the industrial world. In this episode, we talk about the origin story of how Chris’s career...

Greg Paulsen is the Director of Application Engineering at Xometry, offering industry-leading manufacturing and 3D printing on demand. While we can’t help but highlight Greg’s experience as a wine educator back in his college days, today, he leads the Application Engineering team at Xometry as an advanced manufacturing expert and 3D printing evangelist. In this episode, we talk about the inner wor...

We’re back with another cybersecurity edition of the podcast, only this time, we’re focused on ransomware. Today we’re joined by Ofer Shaked, Co-Founder and CTO of SCADAfence, an Israel-based security company with the most comprehensive OT and IoT cybersecurity platform for critical infrastructure and enterprises. He’ll be sharing the details of a targeted ransomware attack he and his team recentl...

Kristin Russum is a Director of Human Capital Services at TriNet . Having spent almost 2 decades as an HR leader across a number of companies, at TriNet, she’s now helping small and medium size businesses implement full-service HR solutions tailored by industry. In this episode, Kristin takes us through her journey in the HR world and shares some of her best tips HR tips that every...