Mazak shows solutions, not just the machines
For the next two weeks, Mazak Corp. will welcome more than 2,000 industry professionals at its North American Technology Center in Florence during its Discover 2013 event.The event will offer technical seminars and industry-specific metalworking demonstrations and showcase a wide array of Mazak’s new machine models.
Mazak frequently hosts industry events, but company president Brian Papke said it has raised the bar this year to provide an enhanced experience for attendees.
“It’s no longer practical to just have an open house,” Papke said. “The time of people is so much more valuable that, in order to have an event like this, it has to be technology-driven. All companies are not at our level yet, but they are going to have to be to compete, so in a sense we are representing what manufacturing will be.”
Mazak has continued to expand and invest in manufacturing technology that has established it as an industry leader and an efficient machine tool builder that provides high-quality, reliable products.
The world-class facility in Florence produces more than 100 models of turning centers, multi-tasking machines and vertical machining centers.
A total of 37 new machines will be on display in the technology center during the event, including a cell of five developed specifically for a customer.
“All of these machines are new in some way,” Papke said. “Some are dramatically new models and others have been reconfigured with options and accessories that make them come up to a higher level of productivity.”
The production area will also display 11 new models designed for the current expansion of that facility, as well as seven other models in various stages of development.
Mazak is also working with its VIP partners to go beyond just showcasing its products.
“It adds another dimension of technology to some of the things we do,” Papke said. “We are in the final stages of putting this show together and the technology is incredible. Some is software and some is hardware, but the idea is to show customers a wide range of solutions, not just machines.”
Papke said there is a nationwide resurgence in the advanced manufacturing industry triggered by a number of factors. Mazak’s U.S. workforce alone has increased from 680 in late 2009 to 1,091, and 735 of those jobs are in Northern Kentucky.
“There are many companies that would like to reshore to the United States and there are some real advantages to manufacturing here,” Papke said. “The energy cost is reasonable compared to other countries and the long-term outlook for energy and the ability for us to reach energy independence is very bright. We also have moderate inflation, so it’s becoming more attractive to buy things here.”
Mazak utilizes a production-on-demand concept that allows it to make products in smaller quantities with short lead times, which provides a competitive advantage over foreign suppliers.
“We all would like to customize our products more and produce in lower quantities that match up to the needs of customers,” Papke said. “That is kind of a different idea from bringing things offshore where it’s not practical to buy things a few at a time because the freight costs and the labor costs are rising in those countries. This is the future of manufacturing.”
As a preview to Discover 2013, Mazak will host a Next Gener8n event for more than 200 Boone, Kenton and Grant county high school students and their parents Monday.
It is part of an ongoing effort to recruit a local workforce that will support the advanced manufacturing industry in Northern Kentucky in the future.
“We see it as our contribution to help employ people in the manufacturing industry,” Papke said.
The combination of growth within the industry and an aging workforce has left companies such as Mazak in desperate need of skilled workers. Mazak has partnered with manufacturers at the Northern Kentucky Industrial Park to determine why it is so difficult to fill jobs in the industry.
Mike Vogt, Mazak’s vice president of human resources, said the biggest revelation is that there are some long-held perceptions about the industry that are no longer accurate.
“We did some surveys and some focus groups with students and parents to try to learn why high school students were not considering careers in manufacturing,” Vogt said. “What we found is that manufacturing still has this old image of a dirty, dark, dangerous kind of work.”
Advanced manufacturing jobs today have evolved into highly-skilled, well-paid positions in facilities that are in clean, safe environments.
There are currently almost 700 unfilled advanced manufacturing jobs, with an average annual salary of $55,000, available in Northern Kentucky.
In three years, that number will jump to 2,500 and during the next decade more than 6,000 new advanced manufacturing jobs are expected to be available in the region.