NEW Manufacturing Insights

Melissa Samuels of ErgoFactor and Emily Tietjen of NEW Water are Kate's and Ann's last guests of 2025, joining the podcast this week to talk about their volunteer work with Brown County FIRST Robotics, which teaches K-12 students skills including collaborative problem solving, Gracious Professionalism™ and Coopertition™, as well as technical fluency for future careers in fields like engineering an...

EDL Packaging, a Massman Company's Kathryn Rowen, vice president and general manager, and Lynn Caruso-Stueck, director of operations, join Ann and Kate on this week's episode to talk about the company's 60-year tradition of making equipment for shrink wrapping and shrink bundling in Greater Green Bay. EDL recently constructed and moved into a new facility in De Pere that expands the company's capa...

Julia Herlache, sustainability manager for Masters Gallery Foods, joins Kate and Ann on this week's episode to talk about how the company has been intentionally and methodically building its sustainability efforts over the past dozen or so years since two employees first approached Masters Gallery's leadership about taking steps to reduce waste in the plant.  Today, Masters Gallery is an example i...

Annika Galloway, director of communications and public relations for Galloway Company, is Ann's and Kate's guest on this week's pre-Thanksgiving episode of NEW Manufacturing Insights. Listen as the co-hosts raise a glass with Annika, a fourth-generation family business leader, while the company prepares to sponsor A Very Neenah Christmas Market Dec. 5-7 and announces the development of its latest...

Started in October 2023 as a joint project of Insight Publications and the Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance, NEW Manufacturing Insights celebrates 100 episodes this week with a look back at some of the most interesting guests, topics and insights shared on the podcast so far.  Co-hosts Ann Franz of NEWMA and Kate Bruns of Insight talk about and play some of their favorite clips, includin...

Ann and Kate take a look back at the 15th annual Manufacturing First Expo & Conference, which was held last Wednesday at Resch Expo in Green Bay, with more than 1,000 attendees and more than 200 exhibitors. Hear interviews from the expo floor with attendees representing companies including HUI Manufacturing, GPS Education Partners, Carron Net Company, Oshkosh Corporation, Appleton Airport and...

Ryan Downs, president of Oh Snap! Pickling Company and formerly of the sauerkraut mega-maker GLK Foods, joins co-hosts Ann Franz and Kate Bruns on this week's episode to share his and his family's history in food manufacturing in the New North region. Downs created Oh Snap! in 2015 following a robust product development process and now sells through most major retailers all over North America, pro...

Dan Haak, president, and Cheryl Fritz, business development manager, for Appleton-based Apricity join Kate and Ann on this week's episode of NEW Manufacturing Insights, sponsored by Wisconsin Public Service. Apricity was created in 2017 when STEP Industries merged with Mooring Programs -- making the company a comprehensive source for providing treatment, employment and support services to individu...

Chris Calawerts, Insight on Business' October 2025 cover subject, is the president and COO of Oshkosh Door, Edgewater Door in Neenah and Oregon Door in Winston, Oregon. On this week's episode he shares his passion for manufacturing, his admiration for Garth Brooks and his best leadership insights as co-hosts Ann Franz and Kate Bruns, the author of the October cover story, dive a little deeper into...

NEW Manufacturing Insights celebrated its anniversary and the start of Manufacturing Month with a special recording in front of a live audience Oct. 2 at Schreiber Foods in Green Bay. The exclusive event was open to pre-registrants of Manufacturing First taking place Oct. 29 at Green Bay’s Resch Expo.  On this week's episode, sponsored by Wisconsin Public Service, Pat Koleske, senior vice presiden...

Aimee Herrick, director of events and emerging talent for the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce, brought her past experience working as a teacher to the table when she established the Emerging Talent Alliance. “When we started, we really wanted to focus on how we can bridge gaps between schools and businesses,” Herrick says. In this week’s episode, Herrick talks with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz...

Betsy Allen-Manning, company culture expert and this year’s Manufacturing First keynote speaker, says transforming your company into a ‘destination workplace’ — one with a positive brand reputatio — gives you an advantage when there is high competition for talent. In this week’s episode, Allen-Manning talks with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz of NEW Manufacturing Insights about her journey to b...

Josh Delforge, vice president of engineering and operations at Cruisers Yachts in Oconto and a member of the leadership team for North Coast Marine Manufacturing Alliance (NCMMA), originally intended to be a part of the space program. “Unfortunately, my senior year was the Columbia shuttle disaster,” Delforge says. “So that really changed the plan.” In this week’s episode, Delforge talks with co-h...

Tim Riebau, president and CEO of VPI (formerly known as Valley Packaging Industries), says one of the best parts about his organization is the impact it can have on people with disabilities — while at the same time filling a vital co-packing niche for large companies in the community. In this week’s episode, Riebau talks with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz about VPI’s mission, the changes the o...

Amanda and Adam Kroener couldn’t find a low-carb ready-to-drink cocktail that they could enjoy on their keto diet—so they created their own. On this week’s episode, Amanda and Adam talk with co- hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz about how they founded the fast-growing and popular drink brand Carbliss and where they’re taking the company next. “The biggest thing is knowing the right timing for scale …...

Dr. Patricia Terry, Chair of the Richard J. Resch School of Engineering at UW-Green Bay, and Dr. Vallari Chandna, Associate Dean of the Cofrin School of Business at UWGB, are both leading the launch of new degree programs at the university. On this week’s episode, Chandna and Terry talk with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz about why the programs are important to helping meet future workforce nee...

Connor O’Brien, vice president and trust investment officer at Legacy Private Trust Co., has spent his career helping clients accomplish their financial goals. On this week’s episode, O’Brien talks with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz about how Legacy prepares its clients to manage market instability and why today’s volatility isn’t unusual from other times. “We have tried to instill in our clie...

Jeff Engelbrecht, training and development manager at Robinson, Inc., came to the company after a long career as a police officer who led training and development programs for the Green Bay Police Department. On this week’s episode, Engelbrecht talks with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz about developing the Robinson Training Academy and how manufacturers can create a similar training program at...

Jake Schulz, vice president of production for TTX (Therma-Tron-X), is committed to helping youth find their future pathways, including through developing the Youth Apprenticeship program at the Sturgeon Bay company. On this week’s episode, Schulz talks with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz about the company’s commitment to its YA program and how leaders build connections with local students. “Sin...

Lori Sealock, recently named president of Eagle Performance Plastics, has been with the custom job shop for going on 24 years. On this week’s episode, Sealock talks with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz about the company’s succession planning, her role and making the company’s vision come to life. “We’re focused on setting the next generation up for success, which means making sure they have the...

Jennifer Clement is one of six Wisconsin experts sharing their perspectives on the shifting global trade climate in the July issue of IOM. This week Clement, client relationship leader at CLA, talks with co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz about her essay “Ten Steps to Reduce Tariff Exposure for Mid-Market Manufacturers,” and about how she and the team at CLA are helping companies to navigate the vo...

Howard Hauser and Mike Berns wrote the new book Value Creation is Everything -- the first book for each of the co-authors, who have been consulting and coaching together for the last 23 years in Northeast Wisconsin.  Howard tells co-hosts Kate Bruns and Ann Franz on this week's episode that the pair felt the time was right to distill 40 years of industry experience into "something that was simple...

Lindsay Blumer is the president and CEO of WRTP | BIG STEP, a Milwaukee-based organization that is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year and is currently working under its sectoral partnership model to expand its mission into Northeast Wisconsin.  BIG STEP, which was created in the 1970s, merged with the Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership (WRTP) after it was created in the 1990s. Today i...

Steve Trautman of The Steve Trautman Co. has decades of experience in the fields of talent risk and knowledge transfer, which he shares with listeners on this week's episode. And the timing for this advice is right for Northeast Wisconsin manufacturers, according to podcast co-host Ann Franz: At the Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance's May 2 "Future of Work" Summit, it was revealed that a...

Terry Brei, president and owner of Sure Controls in Greenville, joins Kate and Ann on this week's podcast to talk about digital manufacturing, Industry 4.0 and the future of manufacturing technology. Automation and artificial intelligence are hot topics in the manufacturing world, and Sure Controls' work is at the forefront of these technologies. Terry says the mission at Sure Controls is to "keep...