An employee at Hypertherm working with a robotic arm (Courtesy of Hypertherm)
With laborers in scant supply because of the workforce shortage, NH manufacturers are increasingly turning to automation and robotics to meet their production needs.
Hypertherm, a Hanover-based manufacturer of industrial cutting systems, uses automation to pick and place high volumes of small parts, freeing workers for more complicated tasks. In Salem, a waist-high, red-and-white robot named Tally traverses the aisles of BJ’s Wholesale Club, blinking and bleeping and counting inventory.
This automation is part of the nation’s fourth industrial revolution, experts say, but unlike the steam, electricity and computing revolutions of earlier days, this one is fast-moving and demanding.
“Everything in the future is going to be automated,” says Tony Fernandez, director and president of the NH Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NHMEP), which provides workshops and training to the state’s manufacturers. “If you’re going to have a path to the future, it’s not going to be the old 1950s working with your hands but working with your mind.”
To facilitate that path, the state’s educational institutions are stepping up to provide skills and training to operate and maintain automated machinery. This includes soliciting ideas from manufacturers to tailor training to industry needs.
Phil Przybyszewski, partner development and outreach coordinator for the Community College System of NH, presented some telling data at July’s Seacoast Automated Manufacturing Business Roundtable. According to figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the NH Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau, Przybyszewski reports that 4 million new manufacturing employees nationally will be needed by 2030 and 2.5 million manufacturing jobs are unfilled because of retirements.
The problem is especially acute in NH, where 35% of the manufacturing workforce is 55 or older, with many of those workers “aging out” of their jobs. Meanwhile, manufacturing is the third largest industry in the state, with some 70,000 workers.
A Robotic Helping Hand
Roy VanGemert Jr., workforce training manager for NHMEP, cites efficiency, consistency and safety as the chief advantages of automation. That makes automation ideal for such tasks as machine-tending, material handling, welding, some medical procedures and palletizing. Examples include Amazon warehouse robots getting out orders quickly and “lights out” manufacturing where machines crank out products in the dark.
Robots have advantages over humans, VanGemert says, adding, “They show up every day, there’s no down time, and consistency and quality control is easier.”
Bret Kulakovich, coordinator of the Robotics Automation Program at Plymouth State University, says automation can be the best option when it comes to tasks involving “the three Ds.” “If it’s dull, dirty or dangerous, why should a human have to do it?” he asks.
There are basically two types of robots used in manufacturing, explains Fernandez. Industrial robots are heavy duty and used for major applications like parts assembly and palletizing. Collaborative robots or “cobots,” (also called service robots) are smaller devices that typically carry out repetitive tasks on the floor like counting inventory.
Robots may be joining the workforce, but don’t worry about them stealing jobs, experts say. Christoper Musumeci, director of operations for NHMEP, says the new technologies “are not necessarily replacing the people at work. It’s really there to help them out. It could be removing something that’s a safety issue or helping with productivity, looking at what we do on a daily basis and seeing what we can do to help our employees work better, quicker, safer.”
“The robot is not taking a job; it’s adding to the workforce,” agrees Fernandez.
Joseph Smith, who chairs the Advanced Manufacturing and Electrical Technologies Department at Lakes Region Community College, points out that even with the proliferation of automated manufacturing systems, “we still need people to install these systems, operate these systems. It’s evolving more to a technical field and less of a manual field.”
Robotics in NH
As the field continues to grow, numerous NH companies already use—or make—robots.
Hypertherm, which manufactures industrial plasma and waterjet cutting systems, uses automation to free employees from manual and ergonomically challenging tasks like assembling small parts, says Kristen Clark, director of communications. It also reduces production waste and assists in addressing the workforce shortage trend, she adds.
The global warehouse technology company AutoStore, which recently opened a new 40,000-square-foot facility in Salem as its U.S. headquarters, has experienced “phenomenal growth” over the past several years, with a compound annual growth rate of more than 40% from 2017 to 2023, according to Paul Roy, the company’s vice president and managing director of North America. AutoStore storage systems provide “warehousing solutions” for companies like Puma, Gucci and Best Buy. Its automated fulfillment systems use robots to replace aisles with cube-based, scalable storage that keeps everything within reach for faster
order fulfillment.
“While the global workforce shortage has been a contributing factor, it is not the sole driver of our growth,” Roy says. “Our technology not only automates critical processes but also enhances the productivity of the workforce already in place.”
Robotics accounts for at least a third of the business at Milford-based Cirtronics, a contract manufacturer for complex systems, according to Stephanie Gronvall, director of marketing, and “we continue to see an uptick.”
Cirtronics builds components for “things that move,” including boards, subassemblies and final system assemblies for applications like unmanned ground and underwater vehicles for the military, mobile robots that can perform tasks autonomously and medical and surgical assistive devices. Gronvall sees increasing demand especially in the areas of defense and medical devices. “Robots aren’t just arms anymore,” she says. “They can have wheels. They can have fins.”
ARMI’s BioFabUSA human tissue foundry in Manchester is automated with Rockwell Automation technology to consistently and cost-effectively manufacture cells, tissues and organs. ARMI was launched by Dean Kamen, who also founded FIRST Robotics, Segway, and DEKA Research and
Development.
The Turbocam plant in Barrington has numerous robots and machine tools that produce turbomachinery flow path components and continuously monitor the manufacturing process. The company’s turbo machinery is used in rocketry and the aviation and space industry. Several members of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Aeronautics team recently visited Turbocam to acknowledge the company’s key contributions to NASA’s Space Launch System.
Laconia-based Rogue Space Systems uses AI and “Orbots,” or robotic satellite servicing vehicles, to provide in-space infrastructure and services to commercial, civil and government customers.
The Advanced Manufacturing and Electrical Technologies department at Lakes Region Community College (Courtesy of Lakes Region Community College)
Robotics Engineering Programs
As robots continue to infiltrate the workplace, the state’s educational institutions are ramping up their course offerings to educate potential workers for careers in robotics engineering.
Plymouth State University offers the state’s only four-year degree in robotics and two years ago received $1 million in federal funding for a new robotics laboratory. The program, now in its second year, has grown from 10 students to 16, according to Kulakovich, who expects further growth as word of the program spreads.
Demand for the skills taught in the program is so high that “the phenomenon I’m seeing is that junior year, my students are getting hired,” he adds. “They have to take time off [from] a full-time job to finish their senior year.”
Manchester Community College places 100% of the graduates who earn an associate of science degree in Advanced Manufacturing Technology or certificates in mechatronics and robotics. Dan Larochelle, chair of the Advanced Manufacturing Department, says the department has evolved over 10 years and works closely with manufacturers like Hitchiner to tailor curricula to industry needs.
At Manchester Community College’s Spark Academy—a high school within the college—students in the “print farm” produce kits that allow NH middle and high school students to build and program simple robots in the classroom. The free curriculum was developed by Worcester Polytechnic Institute and implemented through a collaboration between the college, Spark Academy and DEKA Research & Development Corp. in Manchester. It is part of a national program called Experiential Robotics Program, or XRP.
As part of the XRP program, Great Bay Community College in Portsmouth has installed 10 3D printers to produce robotics kits, joining Manchester, Lakes Region and White Mountains community colleges as program participants.
Students at Lakes Region Community College can now earn an associate degree in Industrial Automation & Robotics under a new program. Joseph Smith, chair of the Advanced Manufacturing and Electrical Technologies Department, says the program was launched after local manufacturers said they were starting to invest heavily in automation because they couldn’t find enough workers to meet their needs. Smith says four or five students are enrolled so far but he expects that number to grow dramatically. The NH Technical Institute in Concord also offers Manufacturing Engineering and Robotics and Automation Engineering Technology programs.
Credits from the community colleges can be transferred to Plymouth State, where students can earn a bachelor’s degree.
The community college system also offers an Early College at Your High School program, which enables high school students to take community college courses for dual high school and college credit. Some 344 students use that program in the manufacturing area, according to Przybyszewski of the Community College System of NH, with a portion in the robotics design program.
As NH high schools and community colleges promote courses like mechatronics and advanced automation, “Students are going to come out of school with skills you could only dream about before,” says VanGemert of NHMEP.
Partnership Opportunities
Smith of Lakes Region Community College would like to see more business leaders visit community college labs to see what kind of skill sets students are learning, partner in the creation of apprenticeships, and help in securing federal or state funding to keep NH manufacturing ahead of the curve in a rapidly changing field.
Partnering with industry is key to keeping coursework relevant, experts agree. Przybyszewski has been surveying manufacturers throughout the state, asking them about what skills workers need, what certifications or credentials are important to them and whether they’re interested in internship or apprentice programs. That data is being used to upgrade community college courses to reflect the need.
Among the workshops that NHMEP offers throughout the year is one on Lean Manufacturing, a methodology to minimize waste while maximizing productivity in manufacturing. Musumeci says that course is being updated to incorporate more information on smart manufacturing and automation to “help educate and bring awareness to production workers and supervisors about these technologies” and how they will be used in the future.
Przybyszewski notes that many NH companies, especially larger ones like BAE Systems, are offering their own technical training for employees. Others offer training opportunities for clients.
Hypertherm produces Robotmaster, offline software for robot programming and robot simulation. The company’s Robotmaster Academy offers training videos and e-books for potential users.
AutoStore’s new Salem facility is home to AutoStore Academy, which provides hands-on and virtual training for partners to design, install, maintain and service the company’s storage and retrieval system.
With robots getting less expensive and the workforce shortage showing no signs of relenting, industry experts predict continued growth in automation. Nationally, 70% of companies are increasing investments in technology, according to Przybyszewski, and 50% of the NH companies he surveyed plan to automate in the next five years.
“Given our low unemployment rate and population levels, hiring for manufacturing jobs is challenging across the U.S., particularly in New Hampshire,” says Clark at Hypertherm. “We will continue investing in automation and evaluate new AI and robotics technologies.”
Says Roy of AutoStore, “In New Hampshire, we see tremendous opportunities for growth and innovation in the automation sector, which is one of the reasons why we decided to locate our U.S. headquarters here. The manufacturing sector is a key component of the state’s economy, and the adoption of automation and robotics will be critical in maintaining and enhancing this role while addressing ongoing labor challenges.”
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