Kim Mooney, Author at FlexTrades

It’s a tale as old as time. Manufacturers are always thinking about how to meet production demands and delivery timelines and how to do it with the available resources they have. And with the shortage of available skilled trades workers, it’s getting even harder.

The goals of companies nationwide are not only to meet demand and timelines but also to improve, improve, improve. And whose job is it to analyze manufacturing operations and determine ways to improve? Engineers.

But we’re facing a shortage of engineers who want to work in manufacturing and those that do, well, they just can’t do it all. So, what’s the solution?

Manufacturers are increasingly turning to supplemental workforces as a flexible solution to close talent gaps and reduce operational disruptions. But it’s not just happening on the production floor. It’s also happening in the engineering office.

Why Engineering Talent Is Critical in Manufacturing

Engineering is central to everything that happens on the manufacturing floor. Engineers carry the responsibility to:

Maintain equipment reliability
Improve production processes and documentation
Support quality control initiatives
Manage facility and equipment upgrades
Troubleshoot operational issues
Ensure compliance with safety and industry standards

How Engineering Shortages Create Bottlenecks

Everything in a manufacturing facility is interconnected. A shortage in one area impacts everything downstream. And with engineers responsible for so much of it, a shortage in engineering can create significant bottlenecks.

Common bottlenecks caused by engineering shortages include:

Delayed identification of manufacturing issues
Slow resolution of manufacturing issues
Production inefficiencies
Delayed equipment maintenance
Poor employee morale

Engineers keep equipment running. Without equipment running, downtime increases and production output decreases for manufacturers. They also identify and solve operational inefficiencies, always working to optimize workflow and focus on continuous improvement across the plant.

These are key factors in the overall health and well-being of every employee working in a facility. Without strong production processes and reliable equipment in place, morale decreases because workloads increase. When that happens, burnout, turnover, and productivity issues often follow.

With the growing demand for engineering talent combined with the wave of retirement-aged professionals in the field, and no strong incoming workforce interested in manufacturing careers, manufacturers need to think like engineers: outside the box. And that can often mean adopting a supplemental workforce strategy.

How Supplemental Workforces Help Manufacturers Reduce Bottlenecks

By leveraging a supplemental workforce in their engineering department, manufacturers can tap into external engineering and technical expertise for temporary, project-based, or ongoing support. This approach helps them respond faster to labor or resource shortages while reducing reliance on conventional hiring cycles.

Benefits of supplementing the engineering workforce include:

Finding the exact expertise needed for a specific project or operational challenge
Scaling the workforce based on business needs
Reducing downtime and overall workload for existing teams
Maintaining or improving operations while giving the search for the right long-term hire the attention it deserves
Completing large projects that often remain on the back burner because there simply are not enough people to help

Building a More Resilient Engineering Workforce with FlexTrades

Engineering shortages are likely to remain a major challenge for the manufacturing industry in the years ahead. Supplemental workforces offer a practical solution by helping companies access technical expertise quickly, improve operational flexibility, and support critical projects without long hiring delays.

Contact FlexTrades now if you would benefit from our engineering team’s support in your facility. And if you’re an engineer looking to experience new opportunities across domestic manufacturing while also enjoying the opportunity to travel, contact a recruiter today!

Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in the manufacturing sector are often driven by clear financial and operational objectives such as expanding capacity, increasing funding, entering new markets, improving margins, or optimizing production footprints.

But while balance sheets and company alignments are what you see in the headlines, there is one much more important factor that really determines the success or failure of an M&A. That’s the people.

Unlike some other industries, M&As have an immediate impact on operations. Demand often increases after an M&A, and production needs to increase as well. There are consolidated or expanded production lines, products being transitioned from one facility to another, and equipment that needs to be running. Companies often end up asking more from their workforce while also trying to hire new talent. In doing so, they see burnout from current employees and soon realize there is a lack of skilled talent in the local market, requiring heavy training.

Talent as a Strategic Asset

So while M&As in the manufacturing sector are often about acquiring assets, they are not considered successful, nor can they be successful, without the most important assets: the skills and experience of the skilled trades, engineers, and technicians working hard every day to meet goals.

Workforce Planning

Workforce planning would ideally happen before any merger or acquisition is completed. However, that’s not usually the case. It’s not until the merger is completed that a company identifies skill gaps on the shop floor, the upskilling and training required, and the increased hiring needs. By then, it can feel too late because production and demand do not stop.

And that’s where FlexTrades comes in.

Leveraging External Workforce Support

In many cases, companies benefit from supplementing their internal teams with external talent. FlexTrades professionals bring expertise, flexibility, and additional capacity during a resource-intensive period.

A blended workforce model allows organizations to scale quickly, meet demand, and train new hires.

Contact FlexTrades

If you’re facing an upcoming M&A or are currently in the midst or aftermath of one, contact us. Our skilled team spans a wide range of experience and can provide exactly what you need, from Material Handlers to Quality Inspectors, Engineers, Supervisors, and even Trainers.

Manufacturing doesn’t slow down when your workforce comes up short.

Orders still need to ship. Quality still needs to hold. Deadlines don’t care if you’re understaffed.

That’s where FlexTrades steps in.

We provide highly skilled tradespeople who integrate quickly, work safely, and produce at a high level from day one. The result is simple. Less downtime. Fewer bottlenecks. More control over your operation when demand spikes or labor gets tight.

Across the United States, manufacturers rely on FlexTrades to close critical labor gaps without compromising quality or culture.

Most of our clients operate in core manufacturing sectors, including:

Primary Metal Manufacturing
Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing
Machinery Manufacturing
Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing
Electrical Equipment, Appliance, and Component Manufacturing
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing

But that’s only part of the story.

Beyond Traditional Manufacturing Sectors

Modern manufacturing is more complex than ever. Supply chains shift. Demand fluctuates. Skilled labor is harder to find and even harder to keep.

FlexTrades was built for that reality.

Our technicians bring diverse experience across a wide range of industries, allowing us to support operations that extend well beyond traditional manufacturing categories.

We regularly support production teams in:

Food Manufacturing
Beverage and Tobacco Production
Textile Mills and Textile Product Manufacturing
Apparel and Leather Goods Manufacturing
Wood Product Manufacturing
Printing and Related Support Activities
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing
Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
Furniture and Related Product Manufacturing
Merchant Wholesalers, Durable and Non-Durable Goods

If your operation relies on skilled labor to keep production moving, we can support it.

A Real-World Example: Scaling Production in a Rural Facility

One of our clients, a large rice manufacturer, faced a familiar problem.

Demand was rising fast as harvest season approached. Production needed to scale. But the facility was located in a rural area where hiring locally at speed simply wasn’t realistic.

They needed skilled workers. They needed them quickly. And they needed them to perform.

FlexTrades delivered.

Our technicians deployed to the site and stepped into critical roles across the operation, including:

Scale Attendants
Heavy Equipment Operators
Machine and Line Operators
Sanitation Technicians
Maintenance Technicians
Control Room Operators
Lab Technicians
Packaging Operators
Material Handlers

They didn’t just fill seats. They produced.

With the right people in place, the facility maintained output, protected product quality, and kept shipments moving during one of the most demanding periods of the year.

No shortcuts. No drop in standards. No chaos.

Just execution.

Built for Manufacturers Who Can’t Afford to Slow Down

Labor shortages aren’t going away.

If anything, they’re getting more unpredictable.

The manufacturers who win are the ones who can adapt quickly without sacrificing quality, safety, or their workforce culture.

That’s the role FlexTrades plays.

We give you access to skilled tradespeople when and where you need them so you can scale production, stabilize operations, and keep moving forward.

Let’s Get to Work

If you’re a manufacturer dealing with workforce gaps, production backlogs, or shifting demand, we’re ready to help.

Schedule a call with FlexTrades and take control of your workforce strategy.

If you’re a skilled tradesperson looking for your next opportunity, explore our open positions and get to work.

As cliché as it may sound, FlexTrades really does believe in “Safety First.” When safety is top of mind and safety protocols are followed, not only are the risks of worksite injuries reduced, but we also see an increase in quality, productivity, and employee morale.

Year over year, the manufacturing industry sees three common (and very preventable) causes of workplace injuries. These causes include:

Bodily contact with moving equipment (think hand injuries)
Slips, trips, and falls
Overexertion

So, what can manufacturers and manufacturing employees do to prevent these causes of injuries?

Have a “Safety First” mindset
Practice “Line of Fire Awareness”
Don’t be afraid to “Stop and Ask”
Conduct frequent safety trainings
Conduct audits
Be open to feedback

If manufacturing employees start their days with a Safety First Mindset, everything else falls into line.

Safety First Mindsets prompt employees and manufacturers to naturally practice “Line of Fire Awareness,” in which everyone starts each assigned task by being observant of their surroundings and potential hazardous objects or actions.

And with everyone practicing Line of Fire Awareness, employees won’t be afraid to stop when they see something potentially dangerous; rather, they’ll feel encouraged to ask someone for assistance.

When a culture is created in which everyone knows safety is first and foremost and open communication is welcomed, conducting safety training and safety audits become positives. And when positives occur frequently in a workplace, morale increases, and any feedback becomes positive feedback.

With all of this in mind, it’s easy to see that, if you want a project (or a workday) to finish safely, safety is where it has to start.

If you would like to learn more about how FlexTrades prioritizes safety, click here to contact our team, and we will get back to you shortly.

Tariffs have long been a cornerstone of economic policy and international trade. These taxes on imported goods have been part of the U.S. trade landscape since the nation’s founding, influencing everything from government revenue to domestic industry growth. While tariffs are designed to promote certain economic goals, their effectiveness remains a subject of ongoing debate. For manufacturers, in particular, tariffs can create both opportunities and challenges. Let’s explore the history, purpose, and implications of tariffs to better understand their role in today’s global economy.

What’s a Tariff?

Tariffs are taxes that a country’s government imposes on goods imported from other countries. They have been a part of U.S. trade policy since the United States was founded. In fact, tariffs date back to 1789 when Congress passed the Tariff Act of 1789 and President George Washington signed it into law.

Why Are Tariffs Used?

In general, experts like Douglas Irwin, a professor of economics at Dartmouth College, agree that there are three main reasons for utilizing tariffs: revenue, restriction, and reciprocity.

Revenue: Tariffs are taxes on others. When other countries pay tariffs, it increases revenue for the imposing country.
Restriction: Tariffs can limit foreign goods, restricting imports while potentially supporting domestic goods. The word “potentially” is used here because some argue that restricting imports raises the price of domestic goods, reduces the availability of inputs manufacturers rely on, and exposes inefficiencies in domestic production.
Reciprocity: Tariffs can act as negotiating tools, promoting trade agreements and creating opportunities for trade negotiations.
Some experts suggest an additional “R”: Retaliation. Governments can raise tariffs against countries that have closed their markets, using tariffs as a means of retaliation.

How the United States Has Employed Tariffs

The U.S. Constitution grants Congress the “Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States.”

Early in the nation’s history, free trade was a key principle as the United States sought independence from British influence. However, imposing tariffs during this period helped generate revenue to develop the nation while meeting its goal of separation from British policies.

Historically, the U.S. has used tariffs to encourage domestic industrial growth. Up until 1913, tariffs were the largest source of federal revenue. With the introduction of the federal income tax, the government began to rely less on tariffs as a primary revenue source.

After World War II, the global economy required cooperation to rebuild. This led to the establishment of agreements and organizations such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). These commitments to free trade sought to lower tariffs and facilitate imports and exports between countries.

What Tariffs Mean for Manufacturers

Tariffs and trade are often accompanied by tension, creating what could be called the “Three T’s.” For manufacturers, the impact of tariffs is complex, with varying opinions on their benefits and drawbacks.

Supporters of tariffs argue that they:

Increase domestic manufacturing and wages.
Boost government revenue.
Protect certain industries and intellectual property.
Address unfair trade practices.
Promote research, development, and innovation.

Critics of tariffs counter that they:

Disrupt global trade flows.
Create inefficiencies for domestic manufacturers.
Exacerbate market inequities.
Generate insufficient revenue to justify their implementation.
Increase costs for consumers.

What Do You Think?

Tariffs are a multifaceted tool that have shaped economic and trade policies throughout U.S. history. Their impact on manufacturers varies widely depending on perspective, industry, and the specific terms of trade agreements. Whether viewed as a means of promoting domestic growth or as a hindrance to global trade, tariffs remain a critical and often controversial element of economic strategy. For manufacturers and industry professionals, understanding tariffs is essential to navigating both opportunities and challenges in an increasingly interconnected world.

So, what do you think? Are tariffs a necessary safeguard for domestic industries, or do they do more harm than good?

Twelve years ago, in 2012, the Fabricators and Manufacturers’ Association (FMA) founded Manufacturing Day (MFG Day). MFG Day is a national movement to show the public (students, parents, and all others) just what modern manufacturing is all about because as they say, “It’s not your father’s machine shop anymore”. MFG Day is always the first Friday in October so this year we are celebrating all things manufacturing on October 4, 2024.

In addition to MFG Day, many states and manufacturing associations (including the International Trade Administration) consider the first week in October National Manufacturing Week or the entire month of October Manufacturing Month. But it doesn’t stop there for FlexTrades, we celebrate manufacturing all year long and hope you will too.

Below are ways in which you can do so!

Open your manufacturing doors to the public. You can find tips and tricks to do so
1. If you’re an employee, encourage your employer to open their doors!
Partake in trade shows as a visitor or manufacturer. Here’s a list of this year’s tradeshows, with a few left that you could still attend.
Visit or participate in a tour (or two) of manufacturing facilities. Find events to attend or ways to host an event at com
Know the industrial revolutions to understand how manufacturing has changed and why it’s so great!
Talk to the kids you know and tell them what’s it like, share your knowledge of manufacturing and discuss the vast opportunities within a manufacturing career. Show them some of these great How It’s Made videos so time on their electronics is also spent learning!
Share positive messages about manufacturing on your social media accounts.
Follow and reshare positive messages from manufacturers and those in manufacturing on your social media accounts.
Shop and buy American made products.
Donate or volunteer to the Nuts and Bolts Foundation (also known as Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs ® – NBT). NBT is on a mission to bridge the skills gap in manufacturing, keep American manufacturing alive and strong, and provide students the opportunity to learn how they can do great things working in manufacturing.
Donate your time and knowledge by visiting technical or trade schools to spread awareness about manufacturing and opportunities in manufacturing. Bring brochures with you (here’s an example).
Encourage your coworkers or employees to share their own stories with each other.
Curate an Employee Appreciation Day – managers can genuinely thank their workforce, provide pizza for lunch, organize a cookout, send thank you cards, give gift cards, sponsor a team outing, or film a video of thanks. The options are endless.

And as you celebrate, keep in mind the words of Alan Mulally, an American aerospace engineer and manufacturing executive, former executive vice president of Boeing, CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes and former President and Chief Executive Office of the Ford Motor Company. Alan is well versed in manufacturing and once said:

“No country is every successful in the long term…without a really strong and vibrant manufacturing base”.

Happy MFG Day (or week or month)!

Each year, we eagerly anticipate the arrival of Manufacturing Day (MFG Day), which takes place on the first Friday of October. Often, this celebration extends throughout the entire month, highlighting the significance of the manufacturing industry.

What is Manufacturing Day?

The inception of Manufacturing Day dates back to 2012 when the Fabricators and Manufacturers’ Association (FMA) joined hands with leaders from the National Institute of Standards and Technology Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NIST MEP). The brainchild behind this initiative was Ed Youdell, the President & CEO of FMA. Beginning as a modest concept, they conducted a pilot effort in the Midwest on the first Friday of October in 2012. As the years went by, the success of this day prompted them to collaborate with the National Association of Manufacturing (NAM) in 2016, who took the helm of the initiative. Thanks to NAM’s extensive network through The Manufacturing Institute, the event flourished. In just seven years, it expanded from around 240 events primarily in the Midwest to encompass more than 325,000 students, teachers, and parents participating in over 3,000 events across all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

How Can You Celebrate Manufacturing Day?

For Manufacturers:

Conduct Manufacturing Tours: Organize manufacturing tours within your facility. These tours can be in-person or virtual, making them accessible to individuals of all ages.
Educational Fair or Expo: Collaborate with other manufacturers in your area to host an educational fair or expo. Create informative displays, offer hands-on activities or demonstrations, and promote the event with giveaways.
Engage with Local Schools: Reach out to local schools, whether they are elementary, middle, high school, or technical colleges. Deliver presentations on the advantages of a career in manufacturing, highlighting earning opportunities, advancement prospects, and more. Foster enthusiasm among students.
Employee Appreciation: Celebrate your dedicated workforce. Show your gratitude by providing donuts, a pizza lunch, or a cookout for your employees. Express your thanks through cards, gift cards, or small tokens that convey your appreciation.
Social Media Acknowledgment: Share your appreciation on social media. Celebrate the manufacturing industry and your workforce with a heartfelt message of gratitude for their daily contributions that drive American manufacturing forward.

For Individuals:

Attend Manufacturing Tours: Attend manufacturing tours in your local area, whether in-person or virtual. These tours provide a valuable glimpse into the world of manufacturing.
Job Exploration: Approach your employer and inquire about participating in Manufacturing Day activities. Explore different areas of your workplace and spend the day learning about roles you may not have encountered before.
Educational Videos: Watch informative “How It Works” videos related to manufacturing processes. Share your favorite videos with friends and colleagues to spread awareness.
Engage the Next Generation: If you have children in your life, engage in meaningful conversations about manufacturing while enjoying ice cream. Show them videos and emphasize that it offers a viable career path with substantial earning potential and room for growth.
Educational Games: Introduce youngsters to educational games like the Manufacturing Institute’s Smart MFG 2 App, where kids can design and manufacture a drone. Additionally, consider playing board games like “The Manufacturing Game.” You can also explore a variety of factory simulation games.

There are numerous ways to celebrate Manufacturing Day, and the ones mentioned here are just a few examples. As you celebrate the manufacturing industry, its dedicated professionals, and those working tirelessly to drive it forward, remember that you can promote and celebrate it not only on one designated day but throughout the entire year!

As a Technical Manager at FlexTrades, I don’t work on the production or manufacturing floor, but I do work very closely with those who do. I love learning about the various production and manufacturing processes that directly affect my life as a consumer and user. With that said, there are two types of production and manufacturing: Discrete Manufacturing & Process Manufacturing. I’m here to tell you all about them!

Discrete Manufacturing

Discrete Manufacturing is the process of adding individual parts and components into one system or structure to create a final product. The parts and components can be individual in nature or a sub-assembly of the final product.

For example: Consider the manufacturing of a vehicle. Each section of a vehicle is individual in nature and created via machining, assembly, or welding operations (tire, engine, side panel, bumper, seats, steering wheel, wiring). These sections may come as one unit (side panel) or as an assembly (engine). These components or assemblies are then put together in a sequential manner to build the final product (vehicle). Additionally, we can easily disassemble the final product to determine and identify the individual components or assemblies used to create it.

Common job titles include: Warehouse Operators, Machine Operators, Machinists, Assemblers, Welders, Quality Inspectors.

Process Manufacturing

Process Manufacturing is manufacturing that occurs in bulk quantities, such as pharmaceuticals, paints, foods, and beverages. In this process, there is a chemical conversion occurring among ingredients rather than materials. This process is based on formulas and recipes. Unlike discrete manufacturing, it is difficult to identify the individual parts that make up the final product. Additionally, the ingredients that make up the product are difficult to disassemble and reuse.

For example: Consider the manufacturing of shampoo. There are a multitude of ingredients in shampoo including water, detergents, surfactants, polymers, silicones, a wide variety of preservatives, fragrances, dyes, and many other additives or preservatives. The average shampoo has 10-30 ingredients. This multitude of ingredients are poured into batch tanks, mixed and blended, heated and cooled in a formulaic and sequential manner, and then packaged. Unlike the vehicle in the example above, once the shampoo is blended, it’s difficult to separate the ingredients to determine the individual ingredients utilized to make it.

Common job titles include: Line Operators, Machine Operators, Warehouse Operators, Batch Makers, Process Technicians, Compounders, Mixers, Packers, Quality Control Inspectors.

As I said, I don’t work directly on a manufacturing floor, but manufacturing is great nonetheless. If you’re thinking about working in manufacturing, check out this video about Manufacturing Positions and Careers!

A patent is a legal document granted by a sovereign authority to an inventor or inventors, giving them the right (for a set amount of time) to prevent others from making, using, or selling their invention. Legal jargon like that might make patents seem like a boring conversation topic, but patents are critical to protecting intellectual property around the world and are much more interesting than you may believe. Read on to learn ten of the most interesting facts about patents we’ve found to see what we mean!

The very first patent granted was given to Filippo Brunelleschi in Florence. Filippo created an invention and secured a patent for his creation. It was for a boat to move heavy loads of large marble slabs up the Arno River during the construction of the Florence cathedral, which began in 1296 and took 140 years to complete.
From 1790-1836, U.S. patents were initially held in the Blodget Hotel in Washington, D.C. In 1836, a fire in this office blazed, destroying what is believed to be 10,000 patent drawings and 7,000 patent models. Of these, 2,845 patents have been restored, with the inventor resubmitting the drawings to the patent office.
Mary Dixon Kies was the first woman to not only receive a U.S. patent under her own name but also the first woman to apply under her own name in 1809. This is a big deal since women were not legally allowed patent rights under their own names until the mid-1800s.
President Abraham Lincoln held Patent No. 6,469, which was for a device to “buoy vessels over shoals.” Although never put to use, he is the only president to hold a patent.
In 1903, Lizzie Magie patented an anti-capitalist game called “The Landlord’s Game” (U.S. patent No. 748,626). Thirty years later, Hasbro’s “Monopoly” was invented (based on Magie’s game) and received Patent No. 2,026,082.
A man named Shunpei Yamazaki in Japan holds the Guinness World Record for the most patents, at 11,353.
In 1882, Samuel S. Applegate received a patent for his “Device For Waking Persons From Sleep.” This device connected a wall-mounted alarm clock to a wooden frame. On the frame were suspended wooden blocks, which were placed directly above the sleeper’s head. When the alarm rang, the frame would drop, causing the blocks to hit the person in the face. Applegate himself admitted in his patent application that “these cause pain.”
The IBM Simon Personal Communicator (SPC) is considered the first smartphone and was released to consumers in 1994.
In June 2024, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued its 12 millionth patent.
As of 2023, the University of California held over 12,700 patents, more than any other university in the world. Close behind was the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and in third place was the University of Texas system.

These facts prove that the topic of patents is far from boring. But we have more to share! If you have an invention that you want to patent, start with the Inventors Assistance Center of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (opens in a new tab). Want to learn more interesting facts? Then check out our previous blogs (opens in a new tab). And, if you have some interesting facts of your own, send them to our Writing Team. We might make a blog out of them next!

Green energy, clean energy, renewable energy! Although they seem like the newest trend, these ideas have been around for quite some time. In fact, the first congressional act passed in the United States aimed at these pursuits was the Clean Air Act in 1970. Since then, we’ve seen the following “green” laws passed as well (among many others):

Energy Policy & Conservation Act – 1975
Alternative Motor Fuels Act – 1988
Energy Policy Act (EPAct) – 1992
Energy Independence and Security Act – 2007
American Recovery & Reinvestment Act – 2009 (included investments in energy independence and renewable energy technologies – among other things).

Most recently, the United States passed the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022. This act is intended to fight inflation, promote growth in the economy, and bring back manufacturing to the U.S. while also putting investments into clean energy. Investments include tax incentives for Americans who purchase electric vehicles (EVs) and energize their homes with energy-efficient appliances, solar panels, HVAC systems, insulation, windows, and even wind turbines. And that’s just at the consumer level. At the commercial and industrial levels, this act also provides funding for domestic programs including renewable energy (again, like wind turbines).

So, let’s talk a little bit about wind turbines and wind power. It can be a polarizing topic, but like them or not, they are the leading renewable energy source in the United States.

Wind has been generating power for a long time. Just consider the historical images you’ve seen of sailing ships or even the Dutch windmills in Holland, which were built with the intention of pumping water to drain the land. But those are windmills, and what we have today are wind turbines. Turbines have quite the history themselves, starting with a Scottish electrical engineer named James Blyth.

James Blyth is recognized as the first person to harness wind for electricity when he designed and built a wind turbine to power his home in July 1887. Although he’s recognized with this achievement, a lot of credit is also given to Poul la Cour, a Danish scientist. He used a wind turbine to provide lighting for his entire village of Askov. He also started the Society of Wind Electricians in 1903. He even discovered that wind turbines with fewer blades spinning at faster speeds are more efficient than turbines with more blades spinning slower.

A lot has happened, in terms of development, between then and now, around the science of windmills and wind turbines (find out here), but let’s spend a minute focusing on just turbines.

There are two types of wind turbines: Horizontal-axis wind turbines (HAWTs) and vertical-axis wind turbines (VAWTs). Those that you see most often are the horizontal-axis turbines, which stand tall and proud (often in the middle of nowhere) with blades that look like airplane propellers. In fact, wind turbines use aeronautical science similar to that of aircraft rotors and wings. Wind flows over the blades creating lift and causing the blades to spin, which then drives a shaft to turn an electric generator. That generator, well, generates electricity.

But just how much electricity do they produce? To keep it simple, the average turbine in 2020 produced enough electricity (in just 46 minutes) to power the average home for one full month, according to the US Geological Survey. To measure the power produced by turbines, we use megawatts (MW), megawatt-hours (mWh), kilowatts (KW), and kilowatt-hours (kWh) which can be quite confusing. Essentially, MW and KW measure power while mWh and kWh measure energy and electricity.

An average onshore turbine (yes, offshore turbines are a thing) has the capacity to produce 2-3 megawatts (MW), which in turn can generate 6 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year.

Here in the United States, with the focus on wind power over the years, we’ve managed to go from 2.8 billion kilowatt-hours of wind power in 1990 to 434 billion kilowatt-hours in 2022. That’s a 15,400% increase in just 32 years. These 434 billion kilowatt-hours in 2022 provided 10% of the total energy used in the United States (with 25% of that coming from Texas alone). The current goal is to use wind to produce 20% of total energy in the United States by 2030 and 35% by 2050.

These goals not only support our green energy and renewable energy initiatives but also support our efforts to increase domestic, onshore manufacturing.

In fact, according to cleanpower.org, the wind power industry does a lot for American manufacturing.

There are over 72,000 wind turbines in the country.
Wind power is the 4th largest source of electricity generation in the country (which is enough to power 46 million American homes).
Wind power is the largest source of renewable energy, providing 10% of the country’s electricity.
There are over 450 manufacturing facilities in the United States building wind-related parts and materials.
Of these facilities, the top three facilities producing the turbines themselves are GE Vernova, Vestas, and Siemens Gamesa.
The wind power industry employs 120,000+ Americans across 50 states with 20,000 of those jobs in wind manufacturing facilities!
And this industry employs American veterans at a rate higher than the national average!

As a promoter of American manufacturing and the skilled people who make it happen, we can’t deny that this initiative is good for domestic manufacturing. If you work in manufacturing, you likely feel similarly, so as a fellow manufacturing supporter, we would love to work with you!

If you’re looking for skilled technicians to help you in your own manufacturing facility (regardless of industry), contact us now! Or, if you’re looking to join our team of highly skilled traveling technicians and engineers (we welcome veterans too!), please contact a recruiter.