LEADERSHIP
FOR DECADES AMERICAN manufacturing prospered , spurred on by an insatiable desire for new products , continual improvements in technology and an abundant workforce of skilled manufacturing tradesmen . But as companies progressively moved their manufacturing overseas , so went the jobs for hundreds of thousands of skilled workers . Those companies that elected to keep their manufacturing in America however , still needed skilled manufacturing workers , and the most efficient and direct way to achieve this was through company-sponsored , structured training programs .
One company that stands out particularly , which early on developed and implemented in-house training programs for its skilled manufacturing employees is OPEX Corporation , headquartered in Moorestown , New Jersey . This world-leading manufacturer of high-speed automated mailroom , document scanning and material handling systems , has been providing structured , company-sponsored training programs to develop skilled workers , continuously since the early 2000s .
Despite the trend to push manufacturing offshore for the last
30 years , OPEX made a deliberate choice in the other direction , and instead invested heavily into training its employees . It has been at the forefront of employing and training previously unskilled workers , and transforming them into highly skilled manufacturing tradesmen like CNC machinists and programmers , welders , electronic technicians and woodworkers .
The breadth of this company ’ s training programs is extensive , reaching well beyond manufacturing . OPEX maintains one of the most comprehensive service organisations in the industrial sector . Where outsourcing field technicians is the norm , OPEX built its own worldwide network of over 300 locally-based , direct-employee field technicians , which provide full 24 / 7 / 365 support to its thousands of customers . Every one of these technicians has been factory trained and certified at OPEX .
“ The shortage of skilled manufacturing tradesmen has presented some unique challenges for us ,” says Doug Hendry , Manufacturing Operations Manager at OPEX , and First Class Journeyman Machinist . “ Like so many other manufacturers , when we put out ads for qualified CNC
8 F ebruary 2016