ArcelorMittal Archives

Tri-C manufacturing center of excellence

In June, I met with Alicia Booker, vice president of manufacturing, and Alethea Ganaway, program manager additive manufacturing & Ideation Station, of Cuyahoga Community College’s Workforce, Community and Economic Development division at the Metro Campus. Booker says, “We take a manufacturing systems approach and not a product approach. We don’t just focus occupationally on the need to fill a gap then three months later the need arises again due to churn.”

For this team, it’s all about workforce development and creating a skilled workforce. More than 3,500 students are attending the workforce programs, including youth, adults interested in a career transitions, students who already have a degree but are returning to upgrade skills, older adults interested in a second career, employees who need additional training for their current role, and job seekers interested in starting a career.

Booker moved to Ohio two years ago from Pennsylvania to accept the position. Ganaway was moved from Tri-C’s robotics program to additive manufacturing in order to write the grant to fund the program. Now, two years later, the fruits of their labor are paying off in the Manufacturing Center of Excellence (MCoE).

Booker says, “We offer a unique brand of training – short-term through two-year degree plus transfer opportunities. Classes are offered in environments that meet the needs of the students and customers — day, evening, weekend, and bootcamp formats, full- and part-time training, and now we can offer onsite training through the Citizens Bank Mobile Training Unit. Our programs are comprehensive, offering exploration and career exposure to students as young as eight years old through our Nuts & Bolts Academy, middle and high school visits (via the mobile unit), and our college credit plus K-12 initiative.”

This is what the impressively outfitted MCoE contains: Tri-C manufacturing center of excellence scanner

A shop that houses CNC equipment
An integrated systems line with Fanuc robots that launched in June 2017 (Students can become a certified production technician in eight weeks, including program automation, PLCs, and visual inspection for quality control.)
A 3D printing lab that houses a Faro scanner and two printers that can print biomedical-grade devices
A PLC training line with both Allen-Bradley and Siemens systems that launched In August 2017 (Students can earn an international certification for Siemens Mechatronics Systems, mainly used by European companies, since there are more than 400 German companies in northeast Ohio, while Allen-Bradley is more common in The United States. Some companies, such as Ford, use both systems in different portions of the plant. The training line includes a PLC station with hydraulic and pneumatic boards and a robotic arm.)
A rover for virtual-reality training and integrated gaming
A Fab Lab, a maker space for community and international collaboration (it houses a classroom; a Techno CNC router; an embroidery machine; a small mill for engraving, heat presses for T-shirts, hats and mugs; a laser engraver; and a vinyl cutter.)
A mobile unit that can go to businesses, events and schools for teaching and demonstration opportunities in a nine-county area that launched in February 2017 (The trailer fits 10 students and instructors; is WiFi, laptop and software equipped; has its own generator; has plugs for different amperages; and can be deployed with electrical, welding, CNC, mechanics and 3D printing equipment. The lab already has been deployed to the 2017 IndustryWeek Manufacturing & Technology Conference & Expo, a workforce summit, Crestwood Local Schools, and Boys & Girls Club of Cleveland.)

According to Ganaway, “The Additive Manufacturing program includes not only 3D printing, but we teach students how to reverse engineer parts, 2D and 3D design, 3D scanning, inspection and other technologies related to additive manufacturing. Additive manufacturing is not just related to manufacturing; it includes other disciplines, as well, such as medical. Some of the projects include 3D printing prosthetics for veterans at the VA who are disabled.”

The college offers training by which students can earn college credits and industry certifications. In the welding training, they learn MIG, TIG, and stick welding. Right Skills Now affords students with CNC training in manual and automated machining. They train on Haas CNC mills and lathes, and on Bridgeport manual machines. The 3D/additive manufacturing training is in digital design, and students receive training in multiple 3D printing technologies, including the use of 3D printers, scanners, and other equipment available through the Ideation Station where they can work with a techno router, laser engraver, etc. In Mechatronics, students learn techniques in mechanical, electrical, computerization, and gain an understanding of how these systems work together. Finally, as a certified production technician, students are prepared to begin career opportunities in manufacturing and earn four industry certifications in areas of safety, manufacturing processes and production. This is a hybrid training program that includes training on the integrated systems training equipment to prepare them for occupations in material handling, assembly and production.

To stay connected to industry, the program has several advisory committees made up of industry professionals from the welding, machining, electrical, mechanical, 3D printing and transportation sectors. They also have specific employer-based programs, including First Energy, Swagelok and ArcelorMittal, who have advised the college on customized programs that lead to employment with their companies. Local businesses, such as Cleveland Job Corps, Cleveland Municipal School District, Towards Employment, Boys & Girls Club, Ohio Means Jobs, Ford, General Motors, Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority, NASA, Arconic, Charter Steel, and others, utilize the program’s services.

The program, says Booker, helps to meet the growing demand for a skilled workforce by “working to strengthen the region by supporting the existing efforts of our partners and by addressing the needs we hear from employers for a skilled workforce. We provide a quick response for new skills by developing new programs and training modalities. We also are working with schools and youth-serving organizations to enhance the talent pipeline that industry needs.” She continues by sharing that the most common challenge that she sees manufacturing facing is “the alignment of skills — commonly referred to as the skills gap. The impact of technology on the industry is also a challenge as industry works to keep up with the growth of technology, and we (as a training institution) work to keep up with the projected needs for skilled workers.”

Tri-C manufacturing center of excellence mechatronics

Ford F150

Stamco Industries Inc., 26650 Lakeland Blvd., Euclid, Ohio, was started by William Sopko (see William Sopko & Son Co. and wind energy) in 1983 when he bought the assets and building from another stamping company that closed in 1982. He chose to locate in Euclid, Ohio, because, “The City of Euclid is friendly towards manufacturing. In the 34 years that we have been located in Euclid, Stamco has made three or four plant expansions, and the city was very supportive of these activities.”

The company is a heavy-gage metal stamper. That means that it takes flat sheets of metal or metal that comes in a coil (picture the rolls of steel that you see being transported on trucks on the freeway), puts it in machine that feeds the steel into the stamping press that goes up and down with a huge amount of force to generate a component or finished product at the end of the machine.

These parts are used by the braking industry in cars, trucks, SUVs, semis, farm equipment, military equipment and aircraft. Depending on which brand of vehicle you drive, if it’s a major American brand, more than likely Stamco’s parts are in the brakes of your car or truck. Roy Richards, manager of commercial operations at Stamco, says, ““I find it very satisfying to see parts produced with our equipment in our building and to see vehicles every day that are comprised of those very parts.”

But, Stamco is a job shop, which means it doesn’t have a product of its own or actually make the brakes. It buys supplies from a warehouse that buys the raw material from a metal manufacturer. Then, it provides a service by making a component at the request of a supplier. That supplier makes the finished product (brake or brake component) to sell to another supplier that assembles it then sells it to the manufacturer who makes the vehicle. Did you know that many companies are involved in making a vehicle’s brake system that keeps you safe on the road?

The presses that Stamco uses to manufacture these parts are medium to heavy tonnage, which means they are large and powerful. For example, a Ford F-150 can carry 1.5 tons of cargo. These presses have a 3,000-ton capacity. The parts being manufactured are larger in size and weigh as much as 20 pounds each. Because of this, 80 percent of Stamco’s customer base is within 500 miles; although, it does export to Belgium, India, Mexico and Brazil. And, for the same reason, the main material that Stamco uses – steel – is purchased from local steel warehouses that purchase it from ArcelorMittal USA in Cleveland’s Flats. This creates a strategic advantage due to much lower transportation costs.

You may be familiar with the term “tool and die.” The unit put into the press to stamp the part is called a die. Stamco makes some dies, purchases others, and is provided with dies by the customer that is placing the order. Therefore, the company employs a full staff of tool-and-die makers, engineers, designers, machine operators, die setters and lift-truck drivers. “The company was developed with a teamwork philosophy. Employees learn to operate a certain press then are assigned to other presses in order to crosstrain on other pieces of equipment,” Sopko says.

With regard to the company’s forseeable future, he states, “Our greatest challenge is finding experienced engineers and tool-and-die makers, and in next couple of years we will have people retiring. I am conscious that the skilled workforce pool is smaller than it was before, and we will be looking for new people.” He shares that for Stamco, as well as other local manufacturers, 2015/2016 was slow but he believes business will pick up a bit in 2017. At the end of 2017 and into 2018, Stamco has new projects scheduled and will be busy. That’s great news for the local economy!