MIBIZ: Funding Furthers Autocam Medical’s Efforts to Close the Skills Gap and Build a Talent Pipeline

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A longtime advocate for the skilled trades, Autocam Medical, will benefit from two U.S. Department of Labor grants, the GoingPro Talent Fund, and the One Workforce for West Michigan Project.

The GoingPro Talent Fund assists in the training, developing, and retaining of current and newly hired employees. While the One Workforce for West Michigan Project is a collaborative effort designed to help the unemployed or underemployed gain in-demand manufacturing skills with a focus on automation and artificial intelligence.

The grants will help further the company’s commitment to creating a skilled workforce and their CNC Machinist Apprentice Program. The innovative year-round program requires students to complete 728 hours of classroom instruction for 91 weeks. Apprentices are also employed by Autocam Medical and must maintain a full work-schedule during the training period. Students walk away with a CNC Machinist certification, a State of Michigan certified Journeyman card and 27 college credits towards an associate’s degree.

“We recognized some time ago, that that the need for skilled workers would only continue to grow, as most machinists are aging and getting ready to retire, and fewer students are pursuing machining as a career,” said Kristy White, Autocam Medical’s Human Resource Director. “That’s why we’ve made such a significant investment in building our Department of Labor (DOL) registered CNC Machinist Program over the past several years. It’s the right thing to do for our industry, our company, and our workers. It creates a pipeline for manufacturers to secure applicants and workers to get jobs.”

A recent article in MiBiz elaborated in more detail on the many ways that the Going Pro Talent Fund, in particular, will help Autocam Medical and other Michigan companies close the widening skills gap:

Continue reading at MiBiz…

TODAY’S MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS: Autocam Medical Looking to Fill CNC Machinist Positions in Plymouth, MA

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Autocam Medical, a global contract manufacturer of precision surgical and medical components and devices, announced today that due to continued growth they are looking to hire more than 10 CNC machinists and CNC Swiss machinists.

Applicants are required to have a high school diploma and three or more years of CNC experience. They must also be capable of setting up and operating lathes and/or mills and be able to precision machine small metal parts with tight tolerances. Proficiency in maintaining production procedures and working within the expected quality standards and established efficiencies are also necessary. The availability to work Autocam Medical’s day shift from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday or their night shift which operates from 3:15 p.m.-1:45 a.m., Monday through Thursday is also required.

An employee-centered workplace, Autocam Medical, offers a pristine, air-conditioned, work environment that’s outfitted with the most innovative equipment and managed according to the latest principles of good practice, trust, fairness, and respect for the individual. CNC machinists can also look forward to receiving a generous compensation package that includes a premium-free health plan that rewards employees for positive lifestyle choices. They will also receive vision insurance, dental insurance, quarterly incentives, a 401k match of $3,000.00, and tuition reimbursement. Those that work the night shift will also earn a pay shift differential which increases their hourly base wage by 10%.

Tim Ducharme, a CNC Swiss Machinist at Autocam Medical, recently remarked on the supportive work environment offered by the company. “Autocam Medical has outstanding benefits and they really encourage you to focus on career goals. From management all the way down, you feel involved and inspired to do more.”

Continue reading at Today’s Medical Developments…

DESIGN WORLD: Autocam Medical Brings VentMI Device from 3D Prototype to Development in Under a Month

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Researchers at the University of Michigan, collaborating with Autocam Medical, have tackled the COVID-19 crisis of potential ventilator shortages globally and developed VentMI™ in remarkable time—from prototype to available for use in under a month. This new ventilator splitter overcomes a previously critical limitation for shared use of these devices. Previous splitters could deliver only one pre-set pressure to patients even though each patient requires a unique pressure tailored to their lung size and degree of disease. Excessive volume or pressure can cause lung trauma, thereby limiting the ability to share a ventilator.

Continue Reading on Pages 25-27 of Design World…

GRBJ: Autocam Medical Filling Dozens of CNC Machinists Positions

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A contract manufacturer of precision surgical and medical components and devices is looking to hire dozens of full-time CNC machinists.

Autocam Medical said this week it is seeking new CNC machinist employees to work the night shift at its Kentwood location, from 8 p.m.-6 a.m. Monday through Friday.

The company will provide a shift pay differential for these positions that increases the employee’s hourly base wage by 10%.

Applicants are required to have four or more years of CNC experience. They also must be capable of setting up and operating single and/or multiple spindle machines, as well as monitoring and controlling the quality of machining practices by utilizing process control tools. Proficiency in maintaining production procedures and working within the expected quality standards and established efficiencies also are necessary.

“As our sales have continued to accelerate, so has our need for CNC machinists,” said Kristy White, human resources manager for Autocam Medical. “While there may be similar opportunities out there, the work environment and benefits that we are offering for these positions really sets us apart.”

Autocam Medical offers “a generous compensation package, including a premium-free health plan that rewards employees for positive lifestyle choices,” as well as vision insurance, dental insurance, quarterly incentives, a 401(K) match of $3,000 and tuition reimbursement.

Continue reading at GRBJ…

NEWS BREAK: Autocam Medical seeking dozens of CNC machinists

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A contract manufacturer of precision surgical and medical components and devices is looking to hire dozens of full-time CNC machinists.

Autocam Medical said this week it is seeking new CNC machinist employees to work the night shift at its Kentwood location, from 8 p.m.-6 a.m. Monday through Friday.

The company will provide a shift pay differential for these positions that increases the employee’s hourly base wage by 10%.

Applicants are required to have four or more years of CNC experience. They also must be capable of setting up and operating single and/or multiple spindle machines, as well as monitoring and controlling the quality of machining practices by utilizing process control tools. Proficiency in maintaining production procedures and working within the expected quality standards and established efficiencies also are necessary.

Continue reading at News Break..

GRAND RAPID BUSINESS JOURNAL: Autocam Medical seeking dozens of CNC machinists

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A contract manufacturer of precision surgical and medical components and devices is looking to hire dozens of full-time CNC machinists.

Autocam Medical said this week it is seeking new CNC machinist employees to work the night shift at its Kentwood location, from 8 p.m.-6 a.m. Monday through Friday.

The company will provide a shift pay differential for these positions that increases the employee’s hourly base wage by 10%.

Applicants are required to have four or more years of CNC experience. They also must be capable of setting up and operating single and/or multiple spindle machines, as well as monitoring and controlling the quality of machining practices by utilizing process control tools. Proficiency in maintaining production procedures and working within the expected quality standards and established efficiencies also are necessary.

Continue reading at Grand Rapids Business Journal…

MURFREESBORO.COM: Autocam Medical Looking to Hire Up to 10 CNC Machinists in Murfreesboro

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Autocam Medical, a global contract manufacturer of precision surgical and medical components and devices, announced that they are looking to hire up to 10 full-time CNC machinists to work the night shift in their Murfreesboro location.

Applicants are required to have two or more years of CNC experience. They must also be capable of setting up and operating single and/or multiple spindle machines as well as monitoring and controlling the quality of machining practices by utilizing process control tools. Proficiency in maintaining production processes and working within the expected quality standards and established efficiencies are also necessary. Autocam Medical’s night shift runs from 4 p.m. to 2:30 a.m.

Autocam Medical offers a clean work environment and a generous compensation package including premium-free health insurance, vision insurance, dental insurance, quarterly incentives, a 401K match of $3,000.00, and tuition reimbursement. The company also provides a shift pay differential for this position that increases the employee’s hourly base wage by 10 percent.

Continue reading at MURFREESBORO.COM…

SME: Autocam Medical Featured in SME’s Humans of Manufacturing Heroes Edition

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When it comes to shifting production to aid in the COVID-19 pandemic, challenges can exist even if the product isn’t a sharp deviation from products you normally manufacture. That’s what Kentwood, Mich.-based Autocam Medical, a global contract manufacturer of orthopedic implants, spinal implants, precision instruments and orthopedic cutting tools, discovered.

As the pandemic swept around the globe, hospitals found themselves with an extreme shortage of ventilators necessary to treat and save COVID-19 patients who developed more serious respiratory complications from the virus. While engineers around the world rushed to develop cheaper and easier to build emergency ventilators and companies of all types and sizes pitched in to expand existing ventilator production, Dr. Kyle VanKoevering of MakeMedical, LLC, approached Autocam Medical with a drawing of a “splitter” device that could enable one ventilator to assist two patients at the same time.

Dr. VanKoevering, a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Michigan Medical School, designed the splitter to double the capacity of the vitally needed ventilators. The “splitter” device, called VentMI (Ventilate Multiple Individuals), serves to provide mechanical ventilation to two patients from a single ventilator.

“We know that Individualized pressure control and the addition of other components is the key to effective ventilation,” said Dr. VanKoevering. “Combining custom pressure regulators and one-way valves, this system has been tested in simulated lung and animal environments and has Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from FDA.”

Although Dr. VanKoevering has broad experience in the application of 3D Printing for diagnostic and surgical applications, having played a key role in several groundbreaking and novel uses of additive manufacturing in medicine, and used the technology for initial design and engineering, final manufacturing of the device would benefit from more traditional manufacturing processes.

Enter Autocam Medical. Dr. VanKoevering approached the company, asking if they could use their medical manufacturing skills and experience to rapidly develop prototypes of several components for the piece. To which the company responded with a resounding, “Yes!”

Autocam’s experiencing making medical components and their existing certification to do so, made the company a perfect choice for the assignment.

Continue reading at SME…

ODT: Autocam Medical Leaders Discuss Advancements in Orthopedic Device Fabrication

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Medical industry technologies are evolving to serve more surgical and patient needs. People are living longer, with higher expectations for staying active as they age. Surgeons want better devices, instruments, and tools to help them achieve these goals—which in most cases requires state-of-the-art manufacturing and tight-tolerance machining. Machining continues to advance to meet the challenges of making smaller and more complex devices, sometimes from newer, harder-to-machine materials. Computer numeric control (CNC) machines can integrate other technologies to produce complex shapes and features, quickly and efficiently, with tolerances of only a few microns. These advanced capabilities are often software-driven, enabling the use of sensor and other Internet of Things technologies to maximize efficiency and performance.

“For example, information from various sensors can be integrated and analyzed, enhancing computer-aided manufacturing simulation and offline G-code verification,” said Dave Davie, production manager at the Dayton, Ohio, facility for Lincotek Medical, an Italy-based contract manufacturer for the orthopedic, trauma, spine, and dental markets.

Even with additive manufacturing (AM) looming constantly in the wings, the demand for CNC subtractive machining remains robust in the medical device industry. This is largely due to a willingness to embrace process improvement in all areas and push current manufacturing systems (sometimes to the limits) for the quickest and most cost-effective process. OEMs and their contract manufacturers (CMs) are always looking for ways to improve machining and tooling, especially to reduce cycle times and get products to market faster. As OEMs continue to apply price pressures on their manufacturing partners for increasingly complex devices, CMs are forced to be more innovative with their equipment and their approaches to process improvement.

Continue reading at ODT…

BONEZONE: Autocam Medical Account Managers Highlight the Importance of Engaging Suppliers in DFMEAs.

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Successful design and manufacture of an implant requires that everyone involved, including your contract manufacturer, is familiar with the product and its components. Autocam Medical Account Managers Michael Spencer and Morgan Taylor are experiencing more conversations during the design for manufacturing (DFM) phase, and some OEMs are even sharing their Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (DFMEA). This early collaboration is desirable, because it allows OEMs to identify manufacturing issues and cost efficiencies earlier in the process.

We asked Spencer and Taylor three questions about working with OEMs.

Continue reading at BONEZONE…

MD+DI: VentMI Device Manufactured by Autocam Medical Addresses Critical Need for Ventilators

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As the healthcare industry began responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, concerns emerged of a potential shortage of ready-to-use ventilators for patients. The response to such need has been incredible, from medical device companies and their innovation partners to manufacturers and designers from other industries. MD+DI shares some of these amazing stories below, and we’d love to hear how you have helped by emailing our editorial team.

Continue reading at MD+DI…

DBUSINESS: Autocam Medical, AMP Lab Noted as Resource for Students and Entrepreneurs Pursuing Careers as Makers

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The process of launching a product or business as a maker doesn’t happen in a vacuum.

From a budding entrepreneur’s first exposure to engineering to career fairs to hands-on shops where students and early-stage developers can work on prototypes, Michigan offers a bevy of resources.

Continue reading at DBusiness…