Our hero Brandon Mendoza has a passion for engineering and helping people. He found a great intersection to be the exciting world of sales engineering. He first got exposure to this world working with Rockwell and now leads Oden Technologies as their director of sales.  Brandon offers up many areas of advice for those wanting to pursue their passions and practical tips for making those dreams a reality.   He emphasizes how important it is to find mentors that care about your success.  He refers to his personal board of directors and those are the individuals that he trusts to speak truth into his life and help guide his path.

Brandon loves to get his adrenaline rushing outdoors and spends quite a bit of time mountain biking whenever he can in the beautiful state of Utah.  He has a personal passion around technology and innovation which you'll hear in his story.  You'll quickly hear why Brandon is one of our heroes!

Guest:  Brandon Mendoza - Director of Sales at Oden Technologies
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets

Books
The Compelling Communicator
How to Win Friends and Influence People
Aligned to Achieve

Podcasts
Joe Rogan podcast
Manufacturing Happy Hour

Quote
That's what puts a smile on my face...helping people innovate and take their manufacturing operations to the next level is fun for me.

If the topic of Machine-as-a-Service (MaaS) is new to you this conversation covers the model in detail. Michael Cromheecke is the CEO of Steamchain and he unpacks this exciting new approach to industry. Essentially it is a business model that uses the data from the machinery to establish a contractual relationship.  In traditional business models OEM's build equipment to a designed set of standards and once the solution is running the manufacturer owns it from there. In the MaaS model end users are funding desirable outcomes of the asset. 

OEM's benefit in this model also as they can establish recurring revenue streams tied directly to machine performance. Their partnerships strengthen with the businesses they support as they have monetary incentives to reach premium efficiency of a given asset throughout the life of the equipment.  When improvements are found and implemented both the manufacturer and OEM will reap the rewards.

Mike is extremely passionate about this topic and feels it could be a new way for manufacturers and OEM's to grow in the future.  This is an exciting idea and one that we hope will help business owners and leadership as they think about the future of capital assets and meeting market demands.

Guest: Michael Cromheecke - CEO & Co-Founder of Steamchain
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets
Video Editing: Andi Thrower

Steamchain.io Website

K Sorsenginh has a powerful story and shares his journey as one of our heroes. K has supported industry in many ways and has worked in the pharmaceutical industry and is skilled in many areas such as welding, HVAC and mechanical services.  As a solution architect he is on the front lines and living out Industry 4.0 and Smart Manufacturing every day for the clients he supports. He's constantly building new  solutions that help industrial end users grow.

He has great advice for young engineers and encourages listening with intent to grow.  If you focus on learning what people are actually saying you'll be in a better position to help them achieve their overall goal.  He gets great joy by solving problems for others and helping them realize the power of technology in real world applications.

K is a busy guy away from work and has many hobbies that keep him busy.  He loves working on import race cars, snowboarding, camping and fishing just to name a few.  But not just regular fishing - K really enjoys ice fishing and loves to experience that whenever he can. 

This is a powerful conversation from a leader in industry and we are proud to have him as part of the EECO Team.  K is a visionary leader and you'll quickly hear why he is one of our heroes!

Guest: K Sorsenginh Solution Architect at EECO
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets

Don't get trapped in your own head.  Referencing how things used to be done doesn't always work and that stops progress. Ray Ziganto is the Manufacturing Unicorn and he has a passion for helping those in manufacturing get unstuck and move forward in their pursuits to be the best in their industry.  Engineers learn from other engineers and Ray speaks to how embracing others can help you grow personally and create meaningful relationships that your career will benefit from in the future.

Organizations that structure around process are leading the way in manufacturing today. Ray breaks down how businesses that embrace the process to lead the way will make significant impacts in the future.  Breaking down traditional org charts and shifts in culture are areas he unpacks around this innovative way of structuring businesses.

Ray closes with a discussion around adaptive capacity. This speaks to how comfortable or open you are to a new environment.  His "why" is that by asking for help enables and builds up each person in industry with heightened levels of adaptive capacity which will make a significant impact on industry in the future. 

This conversation is packed with great wisdom and insight to how manufacturers can get better and steps they can take today to begin moving forward. 

Guest: Ray Ziganto - Manufacturing Unicorn at Linara International
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets
Video Editing: Andi Thrower

Resources from Ray's conversation:

Podcasts
EECO Ask Why
The Happiness Lab
Revisionist History
Akimbo
Making Chips
MFG OutLoud!

Books
Emotional Agility:  Dr. Susan David
Creativity Inc.:  Edwin Catmull
Freedom's Forge:  Arthur Herman
American Icon:  Bryce G. Hoffman
The Fifth Discipline:  Peter Senge

Linara International Website 

Our hero Bill Medcalf has been a regular contributor on EECO Asks Why and in this episode he opens up about his journey throughout his career.  After graduating from Florida State (Go Noles) he's career blossomed and he's been able to make a significant impact in many different roles.  Bill discusses the challenge of living up to Industry 4.0 and how being ready to accept new challenges has always kept him moving forward and being in a position to help others.  He is intentional about mentoring others and tries to help people coming from school get real world experience that will help them grow.

 Bill loves music and shares about how he always tries to find time to play as often as possible.  He built his own mandolin which he is enjoys playing bluegrass on.  He has a wonderful wife of 40 years and shares about some of his favorite spots in the Wilmington area where he calls home. 

He is a highly motivated and driven leader in industry.  His passion and sense of humor made this a powerful and fun conversation.  You'll quickly hear why Bill Medcalf is one of our heroes! 

Guest: Bill Medcalf Director of Information Systems at Global Process Automation
Host: Chris Grainger.
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets.

Connect with GPA on LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, or visit their Website.

What do system integrators of the future look like?  What better way than to hear directly from an integrator that is leading the way in this space. Bobby Cole is the president and founder of Think PLC and let's just say that Bobby is shaking up things in his industry.  He focuses on helping OEM's see the future that could exist and then takes ownership of designing and supporting new solutions to give them a competitive advantage.

Think PLC has been embracing remote monitoring technologies before the pandemic and gives real world examples of how that has impacted their ability to support clients in a fast, efficient manner.  They are even tying IoT devices on the equipment they design back to reporting KPI's that help the end users make in the moment decisions. Talk about where the rubber meets the road!

Finally Bobby discusses how he's embracing outside experts and digital marketing to help his company grow. He recognizes the importance of learning from others and shares tips on how utilizing digital marketing is a great way for SI's to evangelize for their industry and attract the next generation of talent that everyone is searching for.

This is a packed conversation full of wisdom and inspiration on how system integrators are evolving to support the ever growing need for technology implementation and design in the future. 

Guest: Bobby Cole - President at Think PLC
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets
Video Editing: Andi Thrower

Resources:
Think PLC LinkedIn Page
Think PLC Website 

Solving problems and helping people - that is what drives our hero Mike Tricario.  He serves as the Plant Electrical Engineer at CertainTeed and gives us an inside look at his journey.  After completing his degree at State University of New York at Binghamton he found his way to the largest shingle manufacturer in the world (possibly universe per Mike)! He's worked his way to the plant engineer and is loving every minute of his career.

Working at an aging facility provides Mike opportunities for modernization projects and he's learning where to act and balancing that with production demands.  He debunks the myth that manufacturing in America is dead and loves how much his career impacts so many people.

Mike has a wonderful family and has two young children at home who keep him and his wife busy. They love the state of North Carolina and how it offers many opportunities for families to grow and explore together. He gives so cool insight to his favorite items in the lightning round and wraps up with his personal why.  After hearing Mike's story you'll quickly hear why he is one of our heroes!  

Guest:  Michael Tricario - Plant Electrical Engineer at CertainTeed
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets

Resources:

St. Gobain Early Career Development Program

Lifecycle services is a comprehensive approach to professional services that provides long-term partnership to end users, their needs and how others can support them meeting needs. This applies to whatever stage of the life cycle journey they're in. It's really providing end users a simplified approach at solving their problems.

End User needs are changing the way they want product is shifting to more of an on demand requirement. Lisa Scanlon unpacks how partnering for lifecycle services can help manufacturers continue to grow in the future.  She discusses how the aging infrastructure of products in many manufacturing facilities and the workforce skills gap are headwinds that services can support.  It all comes down to trust and understanding for lifecycle services.  As those areas are established true partnerships and growth for the future can occur.  

All of these areas help manufacturers stay relevant in today's environment by reducing risk. Being able to support the customer, whether they are in an innovation, design, build, or maintain phase, lifecycle services supports them at every step of the way.

Guest:  Lisa Scanlon - North America Partner Services Manager at Rockwell Automation
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets

Dr. Travis Hodge shared his impactful journey and opened up his world in this conversation.  From his childhood days of working at the family True Value he was intrigued at how business works. He attended Virginia Tech and has a Sugar Bowl ring as one of his prized possessions.  At Vulcan Materials he is a proven leader and is leading several projects that will continue to keep Vulcan as a leader in the aggregate industry.

Dr. Hodge attended Liberty University and endured a rigorous curriculum while working full time at Vulcan. What began as 600 applicants dwindled down to 2 actually completing the program.  He speaks about how faith guides his life and how he's always trying to serve others in everything he does. He speaks to the importance of wise counsel and how that has guided him along his journey. 

He debunks the myth that procurement is a downstream activity. Having a seat at the table with operations, engineering, sales and safety allows him to collaborate with all the stakeholders and keep alignment on overall company goals as they grow in the future. 

Dr. Hodge's family loves the lake and he shares some of his favorite spots they enjoy frequenting.  He's been blessed with 25 years of marriage and has four amazing children.  He gives an inside look at some of his favorite items during the lightning round and was an absolute delight to talk with.

You'll quickly hear in this episode why Dr. Hodge is one of our heroes and his humility and heart for serving others is sure to impact others in the future.

Guest:  Dr. Travis Hodge - Strategic Sourcing Manager at Vulcan Materials Automation
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets

BluePrint Automation is leading the way as a premier OEM of packaging solutions.  Chung-Chee Tai is an innovative thinker and is on the cutting edge of a rapidly changing industry.  He discusses how OEM's are focusing on making their solutions easy to implement with new automation technologies. Operator to machine interface is evolving and Chung-Chee is creating new design criteria to help their solutions continue to be an industry leader.

As OEM's grow and their equipment is deployed across the world having the ability to remotely access for troubleshooting is critical.  BluePrint recognized this need and began implementing technologies that are safe and reliable to be able to support end users whenever the need arises.

Chung-Chee debunks the myth that OEM's are cookie cutters and how being flexible and constantly thinking of new solutions is critical.  Having the spirit of intuitiveness and never settling is what makes OEM's special and our heroes at BluePrint Automation have these qualities at their core.

Sit back and hear first hand how this industry leader is building a better tomorrow, today!

Guest: Chung-Chee Tai - VP Engineering at BluePrint Automation
Host: Chris Grainger
Executive Producer: Adam Sheets
Video Editing: Andi Thrower

Resources for BluePrint Automation:
Facebook Page
LinkedIn Page
Twitter Account
YouTube Channel