The NEW Manufacturing Insights podcast is celebrating its 50th episode this week, sponsored by Werner Electric Supply. Today’s episode features a conversation with Jason Bailin and Jordy Krall of Appleton’s Eagle Performance Plastics, which was recently named one of Wisconsin’s Best Places to Work in Manufacturing and was featured in the September issue of Insight on Manufacturing. Bailin, sales manager, and Krall, sustainability specialist, talk about Eagle’s recent growth as well as a fascinating new partnership they have forged with a New North vendor that is helping divert 200 tons of plastic waste from landfills every year.
This week’s guests told co-hosts Ann Franz of the NEW Manufacturing Alliance and Kate Bruns of Insight on Manufacturing magazine about machining plastic, the company’s evolution from a supplier to a fabricator, and how it has built and retained a skilled workforce.
“We do a lot of work with the youth in our area,” Krall says. “At any given time, we have four students that are enrolled in the youth apprentice program.”
Krall also talked about Eagle’s in-house machinist training program, which brings employees at any level up to speed in machining, as well as its tuition assistance program, which helps employees become journeyman machinists.
Bailin talked about the “Eagle Enhancers,” a new program for employee engagement program that helped Eagle earn recognition as one of the best places to work.
Listen to the full episode and learn more about Eagle’s HR and sustainability efforts on the Insight website, on Spreaker, or anywhere you get your podcasts.
New episodes are released on Thursdays and produced by B.J. DeGroot of Woodward Community Media.
