VMEC

“According to estimates reported by Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Center manufacturing clients, the MEP National Network helped manufacturers achieve $15 billion in new and retained sales, $5 billion in new client investments, $2.6 billion in cost savings and over 108,000 jobs created or retained in fiscal year 2024.”  All the manufacturing companies that work with […]

What do you get when you cross Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, a compostable hemp bioplastic spoon and a VT Future Fest?  Answer – Vilhemp USA, of course!  Janet Currie and Amy Quinn Dacey, Co-Founders of QCC Limited, LLC dba Vilhemp USA, crossed paths with VMEC at the summer 2024 Future Fest in Burlington, Vermont.  […]

VMEC’s partner, The Manufacturing Collaborative (Vermont’s own Advanced Manufacturing Center) in Randolph Center, VT, is performing machining operations for Vermont manufacturers. We have recently completed additional training on our DMG Mori 5-Axis machining center and have full-time machinists on staff. The Collaborative’s mission is to help Vermont manufacturers understand the technology, demonstrate the equipment, or […]

We have all heard the saying “give a person a fish and feed them for the day but teach a person to fish and they can feed themselves for a lifetime.” Recently, we have been hearing from our Vermont manufacturers that this kind of approach is all well and good when you have the people, […]

November 25 is Small Business Saturday! It’s more than just a day; it’s an opportunity for communities to rally behind the local entrepreneurs and artisans that define their culture.  This is particularly true in Vermont, where Yankee ingenuity meets creativity to produce unparalleled products. Vermont’s small and mid-sized manufacturers continue to be the craftspeople at […]

We often hear from our small and medium manufacturing (SMM) clients that a lack of qualified people, or simply people, are hampering their ability to fulfill their current orders and negatively affecting their ability to grow. While that is true, there may be ways to mitigate or eliminate the issue through a combination of approaches. […]

Workforce challenges these days are never-ending, not just for manufacturers but across the business spectrum. You have to be on top of your game to be successful building a talent pipeline, recruiting and hiring, onboarding and training, creating an engaging workplace culture, and promoting career development. Leadership skills in manufacturing are paramount, as is the […]

There is much talk currently about culture in companies. Whether culture is done by design or simply allowed to evolve, it will have an impact on the engagement, behaviors and norms followed by people working at the company. Company culture – a set of behaviors expected and adhered to by most of the people working […]

Have you ever been in a company that had a yearly performance management review, perhaps a set of numbers to rate your performance based on a set of five or so objectives?  Did that system help you perform better and motivate you based on the feedback?  Did your yearly number help with your development? Research […]

Manufacturers for many years dealt with an 80/20 split of reliable sourcing versus uncertainty and variability. Now the dynamic has flipped – closer to 80 percent of inventory has long lead times and higher variability. The supply chain has broken faster than it can be fixed, which means many manufacturers have lower confidence in managing […]