Trends and Opportunities for 2019
Jim King 01.30.2019
2019 is full speed ahead in the machine tool industry, and many of us are putting new plans and goals in motion. As we at Okuma envision our path forward, there are several trends and opportunities we’re focusing on. I’ll share a couple of them here, and I welcome your thoughts.
Workforce Dilemmas
Lack of skilled workforce will continue to be a huge issue in 2019 and beyond. Just last week I talked with a customer who made a comment I’ve heard more times than I can count: “Jim, I’d love to buy a machine, but I can’t. I don’t have anyone to run it.” So we started a conversation around what kinds of parts he produces, and what areas might lend themselves to an FMS or some type of machine tending with robotics. What processes can be set up to run unmanned? While this seems to be the natural next step for folks to take, it too has its workforce challenges, because this drives a need for highly skilled workers who can take care of things like robot programming. It’s a dilemma, swapping one workforce need for another.
Demand for Simple Robotic Solutions
Because of this, we feel there’s a growing demand for simple, low-cost robotic tending solutions. Solutions that are so simple you don’t need a robot programmer to set them up. At IMTS 2018 we demonstrated, along with our partner Gosiger Automation, a robotic system called the Load & Go (shown in the photo above). The idea here is to provide an automation solution that’s simple to integrate, you roll it up and plug it in, and the teaching of the robot is very simple. You don’t need a robot programmer to set the machine up and the tending is done through a simple human interface. Providing simple automation that can be integrated easily into your shop is an important theme for Okuma in 2019.
Investing in People
Another topic that comes up often in conversations, and I believe is a strong trend for 2019, is investing in the next generation of people in your shop. This connects to the whole idea of training and apprenticeship programs, and what we’re collectively doing as an industry to attract people to careers in manufacturing.
At Okuma we have an Apprenticeship Program in place where we train students for jobs in both Service and Application Engineering. These are significant investments we’re making in our employees. The apprenticeship training period for Service employees is a year, and for Application Engineering it’s a year and a half. After the training period these employees become very productive, and our retention rate has been quite high.
Blog Post: Okuma’s Apprenticeship Program Provides a Steady Stream of Talent
Commitment to Community
Other types of educational and community programs are important as well, such as partnering with local technical high schools, community colleges and worthy non-profits. Okuma works with York Technical College’s Center for Advanced Manufacturing and various other community organizations in this capacity. We all need to take responsibility to give back in our own local communities and gain awareness for our companies and the great opportunities available in the machine tool industry. Any job shop, from a human capital standpoint, needs to develop the skillsets, or help schools develop the right curriculums, that support their business so they can grow jobs in their local communities. To me, an important theme for 2019, 2020, and all the way out to 2025 is that long-term success involves a commitment to, and an investment in, human capital.
As an industry we’re smart, resourceful and resilient people. I know we’ll find creative ways to turn these opportunities into our next successes. I look forward to working alongside our customers, distributors and partners for another exciting year.
Jim King is President and COO, Okuma America Corporation.