Inside IALR

Full-Stack Manufacturing Optimization | Bridging the Valley of Death

• Institute for Advanced Learning and Research

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What does it actually take to move a new technology from the lab to the shop floor and make it stick? 

In this episode of Inside IALR, host Caleb Ayers is joined by Jason Wells, John Ring, Josh Sims, and Jeremiah Williams for a deep dive into IALR's Center for Manufacturing Advancement (CMA). 

Together, they highlight how CMA functions as a hands-on optimization arm focused on operationalizing existing technologies and helping manufacturers avoid the infamous “valley of death” between readiness levels and real production. It's not a research institute, 

The conversation covers CMA’s full-stack approach to manufacturing advancement, from precision machining, additive post-processing, and metrology to automation, robotics integration and digital/AI enablement. 

The team explains how the CMA serves as a non-biased third-party testbed where manufacturers can explore new technologies, validate processes and refine workflows without shutting down production or making massive capital bets. The CMA comes alongside companies as a partner—not a vendor—to help them get to “more, better, faster, cheaper” without just shifting bottlenecks somewhere else.

The Institute for Advanced Learning and Research serves as a regional catalyst for economic transformation in Southern Virginia. Our services, programs and offerings are diverse, impactful and far reaching.

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Jeremiah Williams:

I think at the end of the day it's always about creating a better process, but but better is a relative term depending on the customer that that you're talking to. Everybody needs something different. So, you know, yeah, somebody may need a faster tool path or somebody may need that tool to last, you know, twice as long at the end of the day. Um so for us, it's you know it's our responsibility to investigate their needs. Um and instead of uh reinventing the wheel for them, it's just about turning the wheel faster for them.

Caleb Ayers:

Welcome to another episode of Inside IALR. Thank you all for listening today and joining us. So today we are here to kind of say introduce or reintroduce our Center for Manufacturing Advancement. So that is an initiative that we've had for several years, and I'm going to turn it over to our four guests to introduce themselves.

Jason Wells:

My name is Jason Wells. I'm the uh executive vice president for manufacturing and advancement. It's one of the five divisions uh here on campus at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research. And the uh CMA is one of the lines of effort that fall within the uh manufacturing advancement division.

John Ring:

I'm John Ring. I'm the vice president for the Center for Manufacturing Advancement.

Josh Sims:

Hi, I'm Josh Sims. I'm the Vice President of Partnerships for Manufacturing Advancement at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research.

Jeremiah Williams:

And I'm Jeremiah Williams. I'm the Assistant Director of Technical Innovation and Optimization here at the Center for Manufacturing Advancement.

Caleb Ayers:

I'm going to start it with the very basic question. Kind of describe to me, and any of you can take this, what is the Center for Manufacturing Advancement? Let's go with the one minute short version, and then we'll kind of get in the weeds and break it down from there.

Jason Wells:

So the Center for Manufacturing Advancement was really uh a bit borne out of necessity. Um, here on campus, we we had the the initial uh efforts within our manufacturing advancement division were heavily centered around workforce development, workforce training efforts, and we supplied uh the industrial base with a tremendous amount of talent uh through our workforce training efforts. And in the process of doing so, we heavily engaged with industry to help craft a lot of that curriculum and a lot of efforts on that side of the house, which gave us a lot of high visibility and high touch with industrial partners. And as we were putting students out into the industrial space, what we were getting was feedback both from our advisory council members as well as our graduates about the challenges of bringing technology and deploying technology within their existing uh confines. Um, you know, a lot of industry partners knew they had to advance themselves, they knew they had to adopt uh new technology to stay competitive, , to stay price uh within certain price uh constraints that the market was demanding. Um, and students were, you know, learning, we were teaching them on really high technologies, but they weren't really getting to fully utilize those skill sets when they were getting out into industry. So as we started to integrate uh and communicate more with these industry partners, what we were finding was a fairly common theme of their inability to really have the time and the bandwidth within their day-to-day demands of keeping a manufacturing facility running to really focus in and explore technology, uh, evaluate it and then validate it and then deploy it within their operations. Um, so really discovering this, we found that just by the demands that were put on them, they're putting themselves uh at somewhat of a not by choice, but by force, a competitive disadvantage. Um, so we decided that we would invest and start the Center for Manufacturing Advancement or the CMA in order to create a facility where they could come in and engage with us, with our team, to really help them do that, that go through that process. And all the process starts with a really good assessment of where they are now, where they want to get to, and then a good project scope, and then uh and then engaging in that perspective. Um, it's really important. I always try to reiterate to people that the CMA is not a research institute. It sometimes gets confused as one. Uh, we are more an optimization arm. We really live uh in trying to operationalize technology that's already out there, that's already in existence. Um, get get uh you know new emerging technology from uh what's known as technical readiness level three out to technical readiness level eight and and kind of bridge over that what industry often refers to as that valley of death. And so that's why we created that this uh environment so that uh again, industry without a huge capital outlay or a gamble, help them de-risk the process of exploring technology and then validating it.

Jeremiah Williams:

I'd like to add just a little bit uh to that one. Um, I think you did a really good job explaining it, you know, from my side of things, just really quickly. Um, you know, kind of our goal is to uh, or CMA's goal is to operate as a a non-biased uh third-party uh technical organization. And so we're here to help manufacturers turn advanced machine capabilities into actual production successes. Um and so, you know, we're focused on that through process validation, optimization, technology transitions, and and helping bridge those gaps between uh what are the machines capable of and what do our customers actually need on the shop floor. Um so kind of getting back to Jason's point where we're not chasing those IP or or moonshot efforts, you know, we're focused on existing technologies and how do we implement them as quickly as possible to support our customers.

Caleb Ayers:

Some big themes. I'm I mean, I'm I've heard a lot of these ideas before, but big themes from from both what both of you guys just said is that idea of you know taking existing existing technology and helping customers figure out how to implement it and not just here's a PowerPoint, but here's how to implement it successfully and actually deploy it in a way that will help them. So that's the that's clearly that's you know the main idea is how do you how do you help these companies implement these new technologies or technologies that are readily available and implement implement them into their operation?

Jason Wells:

Uh one thing you just said that I think is really important, , we don't engage in just you know creating a a report or an update of, you know, here we explored this technology for you, here's this PowerPoint, as you were saying earlier. Um, our focus and our mission is to really see it all the way through. Sometimes when you do this type of effort into a in a controlled environment like what we've created, there's some translation problems once it actually gets embedded into those industrial partner sites. So, what's really important to us because of our history and and what we've been uh trying to accomplish as an institution as a whole is to follow it all the way through and close that loop. So we want to make sure that we're going into these facilities that that trust us uh in helping them deploy this technology. We help make sure that the results we see in a controlled environment translates out in a production environment, help them uh define the processes and parameters around that. Um, because we do workforce training, we can also help them with training initiatives so that their staff can adopt this new technology internally and know how to integrate uh interface with it. Um, so it's a it's it's a complete uh value proposition that we try to deliver, not just, you know, here's your research, good luck, and you know, best to you.

Caleb Ayers:

So and that does kind of get to that the question I was gonna ask, ask next is kind of how do we go about this? You know, what are some of the ways that we come alongside of a company and and help them improve their process? You know, what what types of services are we offering them and what does that look like?

Josh Sims:

Taking what Jason framed as the problem and kind of getting specific about it. Um, my background, I came out of the technology industry, I came out of the software industry. Um, and what the CMA does is it provides essentially a full-stack solution. Um, and you have to look at any implementation of a piece of technology into a manufacturing system or some sort of change, software, uh, advanced technology, AI, all the things that you sort of hear about. Anytime you introduce something into that ecosystem, there's uh an associated set of changes in the rest of the ecosystem to include potentially workforce, uh, upskill, new workforce, onboarding operators for new pieces of equipment, et cetera. So, what we try to do is approach it as a full stack problem, , the same way you would in the software industry. If you look at a software solution, , you would bring a full stack solution uh anytime you're gonna completely change or deploy a new piece of technology. Manufacturing works very similarly. Um, so the CMA offers uh support for artificial intelligence, machine learning, uh advanced analytics, uh data, precision machine optimization, uh additive manufacturing optimization, uh, metrology, uh non-destructive testing, all the sort of standard things you would think about in a manufacturing ecosystem. But as Jason mentioned, when we come alongside a partner and we go on this path with them, we're looking to help them navigate that entire change cycle from a full stack perspective. So we want to deploy new additive manufacturing technology. Great. Let's look at the way that's gonna change processes, let's look at what the workforce demands are gonna be, let's look at what the data design requirements are gonna be, and let's find some solutions that are deployable in your current environment, sort of meet you where you are, and then go along with you to where you want to go, but using that that full brella of capabilities.

Caleb Ayers:

That's a cool way to describe that. And and you keep moving your hands in a circle because you know it all all the all the things connect clearly. I want to take a side a side detour real quick. Um, I know we use the word optimization a lot when talking about the Center for Manufacturing Advancement. Um and Jason, I've I've heard you talk a little bit about this, but I mean any of you guys can can touch on this. What does what does optimization mean?

Jeremiah Williams:

I'll speak from from my side of things. Um, you know, I think optimization, depending on the context in which you're applying it. So, you know, Josh mentioned several key areas that that we focus on here at the CMA, from operational excellence to precision machining to metrology to to NDT, to all of these these fields. Um for me, you know, my role over the engineering activities that take place specifically on the subtractive, metrology, and additive side of the house. Um, optimization comes in the form of reducing uh friction between teams, , uh shorter setups, fewer adjustments at the machine tool, fewer surprises, uh, more just process stability in general, uh and just creating an overall smoother process where everything at the end of the day is is much more predictive or predictable. Um it means you know, eliminating waste and not you know from just a standpoint of you know the materials, but also the the time and uncertainty that's associated with those processes.

John Ring:

I would like to add to Jeremiah's, and I come at this from a career in manufacturing, manufacturing engineering specifically, and every manufacturer knows that they're going to be there's going to be competition and there's always a need for continuous improvement. And that will never go away. And that at different points, if no matter what you believe you're good in, uh there is always this rotation of are my people at the best they can be in terms of safety, quality, and delivery and training? Is my process at the best it can be? Is it evolving with the new technology? And so from an optimization perspective, where I believe uh we really do three things well, is we convene people, we collaborate, and we deploy technologies and and a focus in areas where we can help the workforce, we can help introduce the technologies that if you know that hey, I I'm a I'm a machining company and I'm thinking about five-axis machining, but I don't really know what that is, we're a great form for that as an example. Come see us, we have a machine, we can help you migrate to that technology or understand it better. Um, so optimization comes in many forms, but I think it's just continually looking at where you are in your process with your people and where you are with your technology, and ask the question is there a better way to do this to keep me competitive?

Jason Wells:

I think that's a strong way of putting it, an excellent way of putting it. You know, like I said, you've heard me talk a lot about optimization through past podcasts and other efforts, but optimization is a unique uh it's it's gonna be different for each uh organization and and what their needs are. And , you know, typically it's it's the one of the challenges when you get into a project is , you know, everybody wants it, they want more, they want it better, they want it faster, they want it cheaper, you know. And the reality of it is when you engage in an optimization project, uh thus the you know definition of optimization is how do you how do you find the right balance of achieving as much as you possibly can out across all those wants and needs? Um, because the truth of the matter is you're not going to maximize across the board in all those areas because there's always a bit of give and take and there's always a bit of compromise. Um, you know, give you a quick example, you know, sometimes you'll go into an account and somebody wants, you know, do no choke tool changes over an eight-hour shift, and then you go to the next account and they want parts off as fast as they possibly can. And, you know, so it's it's gonna vary dramatically. Um, and try trying to find how you can get that that 80-20, you know, how do we get you 80% of what you want? And that's that's optimized.

Jeremiah Williams:

So that's a good point, Jason. Um, you know, for for us, you know, I think at the end of the day, it's always about creating a better process, but but better is a relative term depending on the customer that that you're talking to. Uh, everybody needs something different. Um, so you know, yeah, somebody may need a faster toolpath, or somebody may need that tool to last, you know, twice as long at the end of the day. Um so for us, it's you know, it's our responsibility to investigate their needs. Um, and instead of uh reinventing the wheel for them, it's just about turning the wheel faster for them.

Caleb Ayers:

That sounds like that could go on a postcard. We'll we'll keep that one. So you guys have talked a lot about , you know, obviously, with as you just said, with optimization, you're taking the customer's goal and then optimizing the the process based on what they want to accomplish. So that can look different in every scenario. And you've also talked about this is not theoretical research that you all are involved in in the CMA. It's very much how do we put this technology or this process or this adjustment in action to make a difference? So, kind of how do those two things go together and what does that look like as as you're working with a customer or a partner or a client? What does that look like?

John Ring:

There's a lot of listening that goes on. You know, you go to the place, uh, you you walk their floor, you learn their problems, you listen, uh, and you do all of that in your mind asking very intentional, thoughtful questions to try to understand if they realize where their pinch points are. Um you bring that information back, , you put together ideas of what you've seen. Uh, you go back to that uh that partner, that customer, that client, and you share with them what you think you learned. And then put them in a position to reflect and understand through your descriptions of how we can convene and collaborate and share improvements, tangible improvements, and try and put some value around that, be it be it time, be it improvement in quality or delivery.

Josh Sims:

Add to that, John. Um that process John described is is really accurate uh based on my experience doing the work as well. Um what's unique when we do this is we're giving the client or the customer permission to generally say something they already knew they needed to say or wanted to say, or to hear each other say things that perhaps they've not had time, space, uh, the opportunity to tell each other. Um rarely do we find uh this sort of miracle solution through this process. Um, but where the solution is generally found and most effectively is when the customer or the team at a customer or a client site actually start to talk and listen to each other because they've had a moment of space and time to reflect. Um, generally they already know the solution to the problem they're looking for. Perhaps they need some help de-risking or defining it. Um but that's a very accurate description John give gave. We do this quite often together. Um, but watching that discovery where the client gets to hear themselves derive their own solution, , and then we're able to kind of help from frame it. That is that is where I think the sort of magic happens, as it were, for the CMA.

Caleb Ayers:

And I mean, this applies to the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research as a whole, but also to the CMA. You know, partnerships are a giant part of that. Um, you know, here, well, Josh, you got partnerships in your title, so we'll we'll let you answer this question. We do very little by ourselves at the institute. There are so many different kinds of partners we work with, whether that be , you know, local school divisions, local governments, whether that be private companies, whether that be , I mean, obviously now we're working with federal partners and we'll we'll get to that as well. I guess the different roles that organizations can play with the CMA. Obviously, you know, you guys have talked about clients and customers, but what are what are the other types of partnerships that make this successful?

Josh Sims:

The easiest way to define them, , we have obviously frankly, we considered our customers or clients to also be partners first and foremost. That's the first and most important kind. Um, folks that come to us that want to go on a journey with us and need our help. Um, that's those are our prime partners. Um, we in order to do that and to answer to have technology partners, we have uh folks across the industry that either have derived a solution, uh, machine tool, and Jeremiah could talk about this for quite some time from and from a technology partner standpoint. Uh they've developed a solution, uh, some sort of technology or capability that we can bring to folks that are seeking our support. Um, we have strategic partners, they may be educational, they may be government. Um and then we we have educ, you know, so strategic could be industry, government, , and then you have uh our technology partners, and then you have the folks that have come to us looking for a solution. Um the answer to your question really is that all of those categories actually cross-pollinate. Um, so it is not uncommon to engage with one of those types of partners and discover that there's a solution for one of the other types of partners or other partners within the CMA, or to engage with a customer or a client that's looking for a specific type of support and then derive some sort of insight that helps some other customer or client or partner. Um so John's mentioning of convening, that is the that is sort of a key attribute of the CMA and of IALR is the ability to sort of combine ideas and knowledge and relationships and then guide that to some sort of outcome.

Jeremiah Williams:

From my side of things, it's uh it's a little bit simpler. Um, you know, so in in my mind, you know, we have manufacturers and we and we have technology partners. And so, you know, the manufacturers, that that's industry, that that's our customer, , the folks that are bringing real-world problems to our doorstep, and and it's our responsibility to then step in and be that third-party convener that Josh just mentioned and stitch all of these folks together. And you know, where we shine is we have the ability to create what I would call a neutral space where all of us can collaborate without uh a competitive agenda and then allow each person to focus on their unique strengths to help us find a resolution to whatever that particular customer's problem is.

Jason Wells:

The the partnership thing, though, is important real quick, Caleb. I just want to add one other thing. Um both Josh and and Jeremiah framed it well, but it, you know, it's at the end of the day, the institute doesn't produce anything. We don't make a product per se. We don't have anything to sell in in that traditional sense. So those relationships, those partnerships are are really, really vital to us being able to provide opportunity and provide solutions. Um, so I think, you know, it it's important and we value uh highly, highly value our partnerships and our relationships be because they are so instrumental in, you know, our success and you know, their success is our success kind of mentality. So, you know, I I like, you know, Josh said something, you know. About how, in many ways, there's cross-pollination. So there's a lot of situations where we're playing matchmaker, quite honestly, between someone who's a really good trusted partner that has great technology on the technology side, an industry partner that's partnering with us and trusting us to come in their facility and express their pain points, or , whether it's even educational or what have you. Partnerships are also important too, because when you're like, you know, I said earlier about living in that valley of death and trying to be a bridge across that, , you know, we also have to have partnerships on that research side, that uh institutional side that's working on those moonshot efforts because the goal is those moonshots are to eventually be the next generation of emerging technology. So we have to really make sure we're keeping our finger on the pulse over there and maintaining those relationships and then helping those partners gain an audience at the in industrial side of things and say, hey, look at this really cool thing that just came out that we think could really have impact because we've gotten to know your business, we've gotten to know some of your pain points. Um, so I just, you know, I kind of just wanted to express because uh our lifeblood is, you know, really maintaining those relationships, taking care of those relationships, uh, bringing value to all of the interactions that we engage in. Um, and and that's how uh we maintain our relevance uh it very much. So we saw our product is our reputation. So those uh those relationships are vital to us.

Caleb Ayers:

Yeah, no, absolutely. You know, on the topic of partners, we've been working with the federal government and particularly , no, we have several several programs that are you know involved with the federal government. Um, Jason, do you want to give the quick 30-second rundown for each of ATDM, the AMCOE, and NASAM since we have all the acronyms? I'll just let you let you cook for 30 seconds on each of those.

Jason Wells:

Currently on campus, we support three federal programs. Uh, two of them are around workforce training and workforce development, and one of them is around the optimization or modernization. Um the first one I'll talk about is the accelerated training and defense manufacturing program, otherwise known as ATDM. Um, this is our uh uh federally funded program that does workforce skills training. Uh, we do it in a very accelerated format, thus the name. Uh we train 24 hours a day, uh, five days a week across three shifts in that program to help address the national crisis of a skills gap, a workforce, a workforce shortage. Um, and that is a uh what I'll call more public or forward-facing program and workforce training. We have a second workforce training program that we do that's known as the Naval Air School for Additive Manufacturing. We refer to it as NASAM. And that is a really intense uh short sprint training program for active duty military uh to come in and really learn technologies, emerging technologies around additive manufacturing and how they can then implement it out into uh whatever situation they're deployed in uh in their military uh lifespan. And then the uh third program is uh what's known as the additive manufacturing center of excellence. Um, that particular program is taking traditionally cast and forged components that have existed for years in shipbuilding and submarine manufacturing and converting them into additive manufacturing uh technologies. And uh we participate in that program. That is a consortium with five other partners. Uh we did a I participated in a previous podcast with John Harrison and Irena from uh Austel in that particular uh episode that does a really deep dive into the COE. So I would just probably refer people that have more curiosity to go look in the archives of the podcast because that was a good one.

Caleb Ayers:

So I think that was around October. So if you're if you're going back to look, it's in the October range. So yeah, that's thank you for that that quick rundown. And like Jason said, I think we've talked about all of these things at different points on this show, or if you keep up with us on any other you know, social media or our news articles or anything like that. But I'm curious how having all of that together, and obviously, Jason, as you said, it's you know, the AMCOE is within this the CMA building, is you all are supporting that directly. And then we have these two workforce training programs, you know, one we're we're having by next year it's gonna be a thousand students a year coming through, the other one more small-scale training, active duty military. Um, but how does having all of that together on this campus kind of boost the work that you all do and and boost the effectiveness of the CMA?

Jason Wells:

I think Josh would be fantastic at answering that.

Josh Sims:

I made a point about that manufacturing ecosystem. Fundamentally, our relationship with the with the federal government and and the Navy in particular is around providing support for that full stack problem. Um, so and we're in a unique place. We have the privilege of being able to do it from a number of different angles, uh, both here at IALR and within the CMA. The COE is a technology deployment problem, uh, but it is also an acquisition problem. Uh the Navy would like to acquire components that are additively manufactured. Uh, they must help energize the supplier base to supplier base to do that by providing uh technical support and engagement. Uh as that grows, so does the requirement for additive manufacturing technicians. Uh, we're one of the few places in the country that produces additive manufacturing technicians. So that those three federal programs that Jason described, , predominantly Navy programs, , are an excellent example of what I was talking about earlier with that sort of full stack ecosystem view of technology employment and manufacturing advancement. Um, it's an interesting thing to point out. We are, I'm gonna backtrack a little bit, but it matters to me, and Jason's heard me do this before. We are not the center for advanced manufacturing, we are the center for manufacturing advancement. Um, and it sounds somewhat pedantic, but it's actually quite important. Uh, advanced manufacturing are those moonshots, it's the research, it's the study. Um, manufacturing advancement is finding a way to do more manufacturing or do it cheaper or do it better or do it faster, or preferably all four of those things. Um, so what we do with the Navy on top of the hill, I refer to it as the hill because the institute sits on a hill. What we do on the hill for the Navy is an excellent example of that. Supporting the additive manufacturing center of excellence is about technology deployment. It's about getting technology into the hands of suppliers so those suppliers can optimize and increase the production capacity for submarines and capital ships for the Navy, which is a national security concern. Additive or uh sorry, accelerated training for defense manufacturing, ATDM, is about pouring fuel into the workforce to support that growth. Uh and NASAM is about taking what what used to be referred to as advanced manufacturing technologies, but just advanced technology for battle damage repair and support and placing it into the hands of sailors and Marines and airmen and Coast Guardsmen that then go out and engage with aircraft or requirements within their services, , so on and so forth. Um what we do as the CMA is that uh it's just those three Navy programs are very large, very visible, very important national security-facing solutions that very much so mimic what we do at the CMA. Um, so we've added industry 4.0, robotics, artificial intelligence, digital manufacturing. It all ultimately is for the same goal. Now, being able to do that for the Navy, the other benefit that derives for the CMA is we're doing those things, those Navy programs, to provide that full stack solution to Navy suppliers within the submarine and maritime industrial base. It's also given us the opportunity to build relationships and engagements with several hundred companies across the country that have manufacturing requirements. They want to make it better, faster, cheaper, or preferably all three. Um, so a lot of what the CMA does is engage with those defense suppliers outside of those three programs that Jason mentioned, providing what the CMA does optimization support, technology deployment, uh support on digitization or digital efforts, digital modernization, uh, metrology and DT, the menu of things I talked about earlier. Uh the nuclear navy. We have some relationships with organizations that are suppliers or have a supplier network within the nuclear navy trying to figure out how to make things better, faster, cheaper, higher quality, so on and so forth. Um, so it's just a micro, it's a very visible example of what we're doing for our industry partners. Uh, we're just doing the same thing for the Navy across multiple programs.

Caleb Ayers:

So you're saying the Navy is the case study of what the CMA does. That's what you're saying.

Josh Sims:

I think it's the other way around. I think the Navy understood what inherently the CMA could offer or the institute could offer full vote, uh, and it allowed us the opportunity to do it at greater scale and perhaps greater impact uh than we would have had otherwise had we just been working with regional or local industry. Now we are a national institution. We engage with companies, I think in almost all 50 states give or take. Uh we engage with international companies. Many of them are in the defense space, some are not. Uh, but it gave us the opportunity to take what we're good at and really supercharge it. Um, and yeah, it's a virtual cycle. People see what we're doing for the Navy, they come and ask us about it. We're get the opportunity to do more of it.

Jason Wells:

Josh said something too, Caleb, that I think is really important. Um, you know, we we started with one program. It was, you know, around workforce training and the value proposition of the institute as a whole resonated with the Navy that that really developed these other efforts going on. Uh, we had a great reputation around training, around workforce training and skilled labor, but then they really realized that there it was much deeper than that. It wasn't just simply a training program. Um, and that resonated with them when they came into our community. So you when you really think of the Navy investment, , as Josh pointed out, there's a thread that attaches, you know, across all three of those programs. You have, you know, the the validation of new technology, the exploration and validation of new technology happening in the COE. You have the actual manufacturing of technologies and products in the ATDM, which is what those students will go out in the field and do once they're placed into the defense industrial base. And then inevitably things break, especially in the military, you know, in the environments that they're going to be in. So we have the NASAM program that is that out in the field repair and address those uh immediate situations. So that technology thread attaches uh at different points along that life cycle of a product or of a technology, and we're supporting all three of those for Navy on this campus.

John Ring:

I want to add something that goes back to Caleb, a question you said based on what Jason was describing, that deploy. So based on what we do through AMCOE, it really gives us that window into being at that very far edge in terms of technology adoption for ourselves, so that when we uh look out into the community, into the region, we have had a chance to go through and and learn the hard lessons because we're doing it within our own building, right? So if a partner comes to us and says, Hey, , what's this AI stuff and how do I bring it into my factory? Well, we're already working through some of those, hey, what is this AI stuff and how do we do it in the AMCOE? So we've really got our own test bed, if you will, because we're we're really at a uh at a great position to do and try and stay on that front end so we're better equipped uh to continue that flow into optimization from the AMCOE. It's very complimentary.

Caleb Ayers:

That's really cool how all of these things fit together. And I it's one of those when I tell people where I work and I try to explain in one sentence what the institute does, I don't think there's a good one-sentence answer because what you guys are talking about with all this manufacturing advancement stuff is one fifth of what we do. Um, so there's there's a lot of interconnected parts.

Jason Wells:

Yeah, it's pretty tough to do an elevator speech. It better be a really tall building if it's an elevator speech.

John Ring:

So I give them Josh Sims' email address.

Caleb Ayers:

I'll start doing that too. I like that. So we've talked around the I guess we've we've given the very high level how we come alongside of companies. And Josh, you kind of gave the very brief, I guess not, I don't want to say menu, but kind of the specific services we can provide. Um, I want to do it again, trying to keep it short, but like one to one to two minutes about each of these efforts that we we can provide. So I have I have here written down process optimization and industrial efficiency. I think we've talked about that one enough. I don't think we need more details on that. Precision machining and additive post-processing. Who wants to explain in one minute how we can come alongside a company with that?

Jeremiah Williams:

I'll take that one. So we'll start off with you know with the the big question, you know, what does that mean? Um so for us, you know, this is uh focused on helping manufacturers achieve uh predictable, repeatable results in processes where uh precision is is important, , whether that be a fully machined component at the end of the day, or just you know, what is the workflow of that component? Um, and specifically, you know, if we're tying this back to the AMCOE side of things, , that also includes additive components and how does that uh flow through the manufacturing uh process? Um and so you know, how does this help manufacturers at the end of the day? You know, for us, this means you know we're optimizing the machining strategy itself, whether that be through uh work holding or the sequencing of the part uh or finishing strategies so that the teams that are receiving this this product at the end of the day don't have to incur that that trial and f uh trial and error phase. Um and so speaking specifically on the additive side, , that adds a new degree uh of difficulty into the machining process. So uh our teams are prepared to help manufacturers uh overcome those those initial barriers, , which includes things like irregular stock conditions, organic geometries, , and then just print layouts and strategies that are going to require very thoughtful uh datum planning uh strategies.

Caleb Ayers:

I definitely understood all of those words though. All right, so that kind of I mean that touched on precision machining and additive post-processing. I guess bigger picture, and and you already did cover some of this with additive manufacturing, but what other ways can we help companies with additive manufacturing?

Jeremiah Williams:

So from a uh additive manufacturing uh support role, , you know, for us it it starts at the design for man design for additive manufacturing step or DFAM, , because ultimately at the end of the day, uh printing does does not replace a a finished component. Um additive manufacturing replaces the foundry in most applications, especially with the work that we do. So we are trying to design a component and we're focused on the entire uh manufacturing life cycle of that particular part. So that is going to include choosing the the optimal printing modality. So taking into consideration, you know, what is the the final condition of this particular component? You know, do we need higher resolutions or do we need higher deposition rates based on the size and geometry of this particular component? Um, and then more forward thinking when you start getting into the post-processing steps, , you know, we're gonna start thinking about again the the work holding, , the data mean strategies and the material allowances that are offered by each print modality. Um, so this this approach for us it reduces again that that trial and error phase and it preserves critical features and it makes the that additive to machining workflow more predictable at the end of the day.

Caleb Ayers:

What about metrology? Yeah, metrology in general, what kind of services and and how do we come alongside companies with that?

Jeremiah Williams:

Um okay, yep. So the the metrology uh side of things, this this is kind of two components, depending on the manufacturer customer that we're speaking with. Um so it's either going to be you know dimensional metrology or or quality and and compliance side of the house. So ultimately for us, this is utilizing uh measurement to verify processes and drive decisions. Um and ultimately, you know, the goal of this particular process is to help customers you know reduce defects, , you know, receive components faster, and arming customers with uh data to close the loop of everything that has happened within all of the the value add processes that we just spoke about to produce a compliant component.

John Ring:

And to add to that, Caleb, Metrology is a great area where we have a trusted partner, right? Long-time relationship with Metatoya, both in uh our ATDM where students are training, but also in our AMCOE. And a good example is we're working on a project where uh an organization said, Hey, can this be done on this type of machine, uh a CMM, coordinate measuring machine? And so we have the expertise and the equipment uh that's that the institute invested in to be able to do that kind of analysis. A lot of times when a manufacturer will set up and begin making things, they usually buy tooling and quality equipment specific to making that thing. And then they go to making that thing and they want to get really, really, really good at it and optimize everything. But then there will be a need for a new product, or they may be uh a changeover in uh people in that organization and they need to expand and grow within that technology, and it's very hard to do while you're in the fire. And so we provide that that outside third party, again, agnostic third party, because we're not trying to sell a new type of machine or a new type of measuring technique, and so they can come to us specific, and we're doing that currently in metrology for uh some organizations.

Jeremiah Williams:

Yeah, I think I think that's that's a really good point, John. I mean, uh ultimately, you know, that that's that's the the the sandbox that we're trying to play in here. Um so when we start talking about helping manufacturers , you know, ultimately at the end of the day, reduce risk and and accelerate deployment of these processes, especially focusing on subtractive, additive, and metrology, , we're trying to de-risk things for those customers by giving them, again, that that neutral location to serve as a test bed before they can commit, before they commit a large amount of capital uh or or a stop production to a specific process.

Caleb Ayers:

What about automation and robotics integration? What is that, what does that look like?

John Ring:

From a similar standpoint, we we have an industry 4.0 lab here. Um and uh Jeremiah hit on it, capital investment, right? Um, before you go and buy, you can call in a lot of excellent uh robot uh organizations, you know, that sell you equipment, sell you a solution. Um but really what you would like to do, and I think and I've got to give you the now, this is why everybody goes to Best Buy, right? You want some headphones, you're gonna go to Best Buy, and you're just gonna walk up down the aisle and you're gonna try on every pair of headphones till you find yours. Okay. So you come to our industry 4.0 lab. We've got an uh a great team here with Butch and Adam, and they'll take you through the realm of the possible for Industry 4.0. They will talk to you about what you do, you can see examples, you can see machines in action, and begin building that knowledge base to help you then. Take that next step towards if you want to engage with an industry leader in robotics. Now you've got a little more idea about that application. Um, you you're more educated in uh what are some pitfalls, what are some things to do, what to look for. Uh, we're not an integrator, right? So rather than, hey, I bought this robot, I'm gonna call up CMA and get them to help me install. Uh, that that's not a space we play in because there's a lot of people out there that do that. Where we are are again, come to our campus. Uh, we'll convene with you here. If you want us to help you collaborate with some partners, great, we can fill that space too. But we can help you kind of uh take your vision or your idea, distill it down to what might be possible so that you can deploy.

Caleb Ayers:

So we're the the best buy for robots. That's what I heard you say.

John Ring:

You'll get us in trouble. Don't say that.

Caleb Ayers:

Generic department store for robots, digital manufacturing data, and AI enablement. And we got we got two more, and then we'll wrap this up.

Josh Sims:

I'll take this one. I am not a technologist or a software developer per se. I used to work in the industry. Um I also used to work for the Department of War dealing with uh technology issues uh as a contractor and as a service member. Digital manufacturing and AI, what we mean basically when we say that out of from the CMA's perspective, , and the other folks on the phone have heard me say this. Um it's 2026. Uh, if you want to make things, you are a software company, whether you realize it or not. Um, you are also probably a data company, whether you realize it or not. Certain companies are able to deploy technology. Um so could be custom algorithm development, could be data maturity, uh, could be network maturity, software maturity, , could be things like software-defined factories, which is it it's its own conversation for sure, and the integration of all those ideas. But if you modernize your production methods or if you're going to make a thing in 2026, there's an extremely high likelihood that you're going to use some kind of data and software to do so. And you are probably going to want at some point in time to engage with this big hairy thing that is called AI, that has a lot of definitions that creates a lot of confusion. Uh, we spend a lot of our time at the CMA with our digital team actually just engaging with partners and our industry partners, explaining what it is and what it isn't, more importantly. Um, we have the ability to do all of those things within the CMA. Um, but understanding that as time marches forward and and we progress, , software data become as as as important as how we're gonna cut metal or how we're gonna hold tools. Not more important, but as important. And just acknowledging that and kind of living in the future with our with our industry partners and and technology partners to kind of offer that service uh and that knowledge to our to our customers and to our partners.

Caleb Ayers:

And then the last one is accelerated and custom workforce development.

Jason Wells:

I guess everyone else has tackled one, so I by default I gotta step up here. Um, you know, around workforce training, workforce development, it's something that we have, you know, a deep, uh rich history of and uh wraps around uh a lot of the culture here at the institute. You know, we're always looking, , you know, you you build up the individual and and that's how the community gets stronger. So , but workforce training and development in the in the in the realm of the CMA is where we're looking to not necessarily do a bunch of individualized training, but certainly utilizing a couple decades of experience of figuring out how to best deploy training and make it impactful and make it resonate, make it stick, and and make sure that it's focused with an you know to achieve an end objective. Um, we're very fortunate because we have training programs here on campus that go from six weeks all the way through to a traditional uh community college uh academic year. So , so you can that's a wide range of time. So we have the ability to almost like an accordion compress and expand our curriculum and our workforce training, and that's not an easy task. It takes a lot of figuring it out. Um, so you know, we are very much able to pivot, adjust, adapt, and modify to meet very specific needs. But we also want to do a lot of train the trainer, you know, the analogy of you know, feed a fish for, you know, you feed a guy for a day or teach them how to fish. So uh we work a lot with industry partners when they indicate that they're having some issues, whether it be with onboarding or bringing in new technology or bringing in new machine operators or what have you. We'll work with their HR people, we'll work with their training departments and help them with some of our lessons learned in delivering curriculum, uh transferring knowledge impactfully in a short amount of time, in an accessible uh, you know, fashion, and and really help them set up systems internally so that they can continue to succeed and continue to you know grow and and prosper.

Josh Sims:

Jason, I'm gonna jump in on that one to try to provide some kind of a concrete example of what you're talking about, because I that's the real interesting part with the CMA. Um we've talked about this ecosystem tool. Uh I've I've said it enough times. Um, we are working with a defense supplier, one of our industry partners, uh, who does a lot of high volume laser powder red fusion additive manufacturing. Uh, and they are going to expand their capabilities. Uh, so we are working with them to help them develop their on-the-job training uh and their train-to-trainer programs because they're going to have to hire a bunch of folks to run these machines and run these lines, and then also the post-processing and the precision machining that follows that in order to set up a new production line. Uh, we were able to help uh in a number of ways, , but understanding that after we've solved all the problems of deploying the technology and we know we're gonna know how to run the line, we know we're gonna get the materials, we're not gonna do the designs, we know we're gonna how we're we know how we're gonna print, we know how we're gonna post-process and cut, et cetera, et cetera. Um, the last pinch point was we need to know how to onboard X number, and it's a large number, X number of additive manufacturing technicians and X number of C and C technicians, and we need to know how to train them on the job. Um, will you help us develop a curriculum to do that? And will you help train our trainers? And the answer was obviously we'd love to do that for you. Um, and so that I liked that example because it goes back to that sort of full circle full circle concept. This is a company with some very high-end capabilities, very high-end technology, very good design, very good technology deployment from a software and AI standpoint. They've got it all. Uh, but at the end of the day, to go to production at that scale, they also needed someone to sit down with them and help them train their trainers to put operators next to those machines to make it a reality. Um, but I just I like that example because you can see all of the things in the ecosystem in that one partner.

Jason Wells:

That's a great example. Um, and you know, we we had for a long time, you know, again, that history of putting people in jobs. You know, when you're running a training program where you're trying to train at volume, as Josh mentioned earlier, we have one program that'll achieve a thousand people per year. You really are uh you have to a broad spectrum of skill sets that you have to touch on. But uh, we all know that you know, once you get into a particular company, there, you know, there's a tremendous amount of lift on that side of it around specific processes, uh, specific uh governances, uh culture, you know, all those other things. So that's why where the CMA really wants to engage our workforce efforts, you know, step off because now we're gonna provide you a really skilled level set individual. Now you got to plug in OJT on the job training, and that's where the CMA takes over to help define you know what that looks like and and how that can look and really get it that ex that last leg of the race, you know, across that finish line. Um it's a it's a unique value proposition that we feel is uh critical. Um, also, again, not just optimizing processes, because we talked a lot about that, but also optimizing how uh the workforce to engage with those processes and engage with the technology. So it's so so specific, case specific for a lot of companies that uh we just can't do it with a broad reach uh training program.

Caleb Ayers:

We are basically out of time, but some main themes just to recap, the CMA. Um, you guys are very focused on kind of the whole manufacturing ecosystem. And Josh used the word full stack, like we're software. So, you know, the whole, the entire the entire system. We're focused on how do we optimize that and help companies improve whatever process they're looking to improve, whatever outcome they're looking to achieve, how do we help them get there? Um focused on deployable technologies, not things that are relevant five years down the road, but what's deployable right now. Um and we're independent and brand agnostic. So we're not, you know, and Jason, I've heard you say this a hundred times that, you know, we're not we're not salespeople. We don't have one company, you know, that we're we're working exclusively with. We're working, looking at the best solutions for the that particular company, that particular outcome they're trying to achieve. Um, so I just think it's really cool to hear you guys kind of explain, explain this vision that I know has evolved a lot in the last few years of of kind of what what role we can play, how we can help come alongside of manufacturers. We just went for an hour. So that was that was pretty impressive work there. Is there anything else that anyone has to say?

Jason Wells:

I one other thing that you know you triggered a thought as you were you kind of summarizing everything and you know going back to uh Josh's full stack solution. It's it's really important to understand, you know, to understand that ecosystem. I one of the things I'm very proud of with the team is you know, we we come from varied backgrounds, and I think that's hugely beneficial because I think sometimes you can get blinders on or you can get a very uh tiny point of view when you have you when you identify a pinch point and put all this energy into it, and then just end up moving bottlenecks downstream. And one of the things that I I'm really proud of the team, the way they engage in that holistic viewpoint, you know, doing that walkthrough, doing a lot of listening, doing that assessment mapping is to really make sure that, you know, if we come in and we solve this problem, it just doesn't move a couple aisles over and and create a bottleneck down the way or down the line. So , you know, that that environmental scan across is, you know, and having those touch points in multiple areas. So again, I just want to emphasize and stress that's why, you know, it's not go to our lab, do our research, and give you a report. That's why we have to come into your factory and follow it through. That's why we want to do the training component. That's why we want to sit and define what the SOPs look like, what the processes look like. That's why we want to engage with you around lean initiatives and 5S initiatives around that solution as well. So I just want to, you know, really, you know, kind of communicate that we're not just putting this out there as an a la carte menu. They're all interconnected for a reason and for a purpose, so that we're not just shifting bottlenecks and problems around within a facility.

Caleb Ayers:

Yeah, no, that's not a la carte. We'll add that to the postcard like that. Well, thank you guys. We really appreciate it.