In Arkansas and across the United States, more manufacturers are turning to automation for help in replacing the experience of retiring workers — experience that’s not being replaced by the rising workforce — and for the potential return on investment.
Justin Majors, director of existing business for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, said Arkansas manufacturers have been moving toward more automation for several years.
Justin Majors
“We saw a trend of companies moving towards automation, really, before the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said. “The pandemic sped it up a bit. Manpower has always been an issue. Companies can’t find the right or enough people.”
Majors noted that companies also are looking to automation for the ROI it provides.
“Companies think, ‘If I can get a robot to do the job of two people, that will allow me to maintain production schedules,’” he said. “Companies that would never think about it are doing it now.”
One of those companies is Vista Outdoor’s Remington Ammunition in Lonoke, which produces the company’s wide array of ammunition. Adam White, director of operations, said there are several reasons why automation proves beneficial in his plant.
Adam White
“We are investing in robotic technology that helps assist our employees in eliminating the ergonomically stressful or manual manipulation portions of their job,” he said. “We’ve partnered with other Arkansas companies to help automatically transfer components immediately after the assembly line that helps eliminate handling, improves the quality for our customers and allows us to improve output on the line. Another robot arriving will assist our team members by helping orient and stage products for quicker placement into final packaging.”
White said Remington workers direct the robots and ensure that quality checks take place but now aren’t required to carry the weight that is packaged each day at the plant.
“By adapting to new technology, we provide our team new tools and ensure that our processes are modernized to give our customers the right quality at the right cost for years to come,” he said.
White said the longevity of Remington’s workforce over the years “has been a blessing,” but it hurts when experienced workers retire or leave.
“Our challenge is getting new employees who are excited about helping us solve problems and improve their process on a daily basis,” he said. “Those employees certainly exist but attracting and investing in them to make them successful and helping them grow with the company throughout their careers is a never-ending challenge that we’re glad to take on. We want to create an environment where people want to work and have the ability to grow with us as they expand their skill sets.”
At the Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. plant in Texarkana, company officials are in the middle of an automation expansion plan.
“We’ve spent more than $100 million in the past three years on automation,” said Jeff Butler, operations manager. “Our look forward has us doing that much again in the next three years.”
Jeff Butler
Cooper is adding automated tire-making machines and an automated sort-and-retrieval system that entails robots taking tires and storing them until they are ready for the curing process. The new automation is designed for efficiency and ergonomic gains, and the company, acquired by Goodyear in 2021, will continue to expand on both technologies, Butler said.
“The new automation will replace three of the worst jobs in the factory in terms of ergonomics and injuries to employees,” he said. “We’ve set out to take out the worst jobs in the factory.”
New, higher-paying jobs will become available as the new tech is put in place, Butler added.
The plant has struggled with attrition, but Butler attributes it to many employees hitting their 30-year retirement mark at roughly the same time.
Arkansas manufacturers have seen an uptick in people looking for work, Majors said, but he added that more often, companies need fewer and more highly skilled people.
“Finding the right people to maintain and set up and tear down these kinds of automated machines and to troubleshoot is kind of a niche challenge,” he said. “The trend is toward businesses training existing employees. Businesses prefer to hire off the street, but if they can’t buy the talent that way, they’ll train their people to do it. Many are considering it.”
“Five years ago, many companies were saying, ‘No way.’ Now, they think, ‘Maybe this is for us.’ It’s a generational change as much as a production change.”
Existing employees are a known commodity, limiting the variables, Majors said. There are also costs associated with bringing in new employees and training them, especially if they leave six weeks later.
Majors said more Arkansas manufacturers are contemplating the costs associated with bringing in new employees and training them just to have them leave six weeks later. Training internally is catching on, and employees already on board who have good soft skills and the potential to learn are a valued commodity, he added.
Much of the automation available on the market is state-of-the-art, White said. At Remington, that includes metal forming, loading and packing technology. Regardless of how strong an ROI that automation can deliver, factories will always need human workers, he said.
“Our industry, like many others, is differentiated by the knowledge and ability to problem solve when any issues arise,” White said. “Technology without the experience or understanding on what our products are supposed to do and how to ensure the consistency and quality that our customers demand is critical to our success. Having enough experience to know which technology will have the desired impact and withstand the heavy demands in this industry is important. We want to invest in technology that allows us to improve quality or drive the cost improvements that we can pass along to our customers.”
Still, automation represents a tantalizing temptation for manufacturers looking to increase efficiency.
“Companies are looking at it that way,” Majors said. “They are starting to think that spending half a million for an automated milling machine is maybe a good investment.”
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