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	Making Rotomolding a Desirable Career by Robert Dunne Mrs. Johnson: Class, tell us what you want to be when you grow up. Suzie: A doctor Johnny: A lawyer Mary: A teacher (smart girl!) Bobby: A rotomolder specializing in rotational design Mrs. Johnson: A what? It's no surprise that Mrs. Johnson hadn't heard of rotational molding. In fact, the real surprise here is that her student had heard of it and aspired to join the industry as a career. Kids today have far less exposure to manufacturing than previous generations enjoyed, and close to zero exposure to rotational molding. With many American manufacturers closing their doors or moving overseas, what little exposure they get is often in school as part of an environmental unit study deriding manufacturing as an unnecessary evil. If we're to survive and thrive, we need to promote manufacturing and specifically rotational molding as an attractive career choice. We need to demonstrate we're still relevant. For me and many others reading this column, entering rotomolding just might have been a given. My father began rotational molding when I was 12. He had worked in compression molding of rubber with his father. My other grandfather managed a company with 27 different manufacturing firms. At every opportunity, I tagged along with my father or his employees and couldn't wait to report on my adventures each night at the dinner table. Most of my classmates also had a parent who worked for a manufacturer and we shared our various experiences at work. I developed an understanding of the impact manufacturing has on our world and our way of life. I began to respect it and the people involved in it as well as the processes and the everyday products that were produced. But now our economy is transitioning to a service-based economy with fewer and fewer manufacturers operating with far fewer people and overseas economies are transitioning from agricultural to manufacturing. I wonder how most American kids will ever become exposed to manufacturing, let alone see it with the same awe and fascination that I did. K-12 education today, with its current focus on standardized testing, is unlikely to add plastics design and engineering to a curriculum struggling to teach reading and basic math. If kids are not exposed to manufacturing, how will they know if they would enjoy or excel in such a career? The promotion of liberal arts and other four year degrees at the expense of technical education also steers talented future manufacturers away from potentially rewarding careers. Even with my overwhelmingly pro-manufacturing upbringing, I still studied accounting in college and graduated from law school. I do remember a call from my father just after graduation, which prompted me to consider rotational molding again. He asked what I wanted to do with my life. I remarked, "What I want to do, Dad, is take factory tours for a living! Manufacturing is so fascinating!" He brought me back to reality indicating that there is no gainful employment fitting such a dream! You are going to have to reconsider and be practical! Now that I visit our factories and tour others on a regular basis, I've realized that I have an opportunity - and even a responsibility - to share my fascination of manufacturing with the next generation of potential rotomolders. It's not a purely altruistic feeling of giving back to the community. Rather, I see education as a prerequisite for this industry to maintain its status as a going concern. We're losing the next generation and need to present rotational molding as an attractive career path worthy of study before our own doors must be closed. With a relatively healthy economy and full employment, many college graduates can instantly enter the field of their choice at a good salary without paying any dues at the bottom rung of the ladder. Combine that with the lack of promotional support from public education and the media bias against manufacturing and we're left with a shrinking, pool of skilled labor and few new entrants. And this shortage of qualified, trained, interested workers is afflicting many levels of manufacturing in nearly every free market economy all over the world. A recent Chinese government survey, for example, revealed that 23% of toys manufactured there with its relatively unskilled labor failed to meet quality standards so importing workers from overseas is no long term solution for quality-conscious organizations. For us as rotomolders, this means there may be difficult times ahead. In this scenario, the value of our trained employees will increase considerably, employee retention costs will become the watchword of the day and we'll have to invest far more in training programs to bring unskilled labor up to the task. Without enough skilled, experienced operators, product quality may suffer as reject rates rise. Material usage costs will increase and deliveries may be delayed. If this were to happen, many of the gains we've made vs. other processes over recent years would be lost as OEM's return to other processes. Then guess how many new rotomolding materials will be introduced each year. There are concrete things we can do to attract talented people to rotomolding! First, we can support the fine institutions that already have people dedicated to promoting the cause of rotomolding worldwide, such as these: SPE Foundation: The foundation offers scholarships to students studying for a career in the plastics industry. Additionally SPE sponsors essay contests and several outstanding student chapter awards. For a list of local chapters, see www.4spe.org ARMI (Association of Rotational Molders International): Annual student design competition spotlights talented, young rotomolders. See www.rotomolding.org. ARMA (Association of Rotational Moulders Australasia, Inc.): student design competition. See www.rotationalmoulding.com ARMO: via member alliances, AFR (Association Francaise Durotomoulage)- Student design competition recently presented in Berlin. The presentation was an overwhelming success. These major associations also offer memberships and cooperation with colleges and universities worldwide to involve students with rotational molding companies. For example, ARMI and SPE recently worked closely with the Pennsylvania College of Technology to found the Rotational Molding Center of Excellence. This organization has assisted scores of companies on a regional basis with market research, workforce development, internships and technical issues. On a more local basis, we can offer mentorship and co-op programs to involve students in rotomolding. We can host open houses and tours for school trips, science camps and other organizations, as well as for the local media. It is truly rewarding to see a student's eyes sparkle with inspiration and an awesome opportunity to guide that inspiration to rotomolding. While guiding a plant tour recently, I recounted an old news story about how rotomolding saved the life of a little girl. She was hit by a car while driving a ride-on toy coupe after she veered into the street out of control. Remarkably, she was completely unhurt, and the coupe completely undamaged. In a metal, red wagon without a supportive roof, she might not have been so lucky. It is infrequent that rotational molding is considered life saving technology. But rotomolding does and will offer compelling opportunities as a career choice, such as operating some of the most advanced manufacturing equipment in the world while incorporating creative expression, problem-solving, IT and business skills on a daily basis - and enjoying the satisfaction of seeing a product through each stage of design through manufacturing and delivery. Our company has supported mentoring programs and we will support the programs established as described above. As a parting line, I invite everyone in the industry to do the same. If you have ideas for promoting rotomolding as a career worldwide, I would love to hear from you. Send comments to Bob Dunne at rdunne1@usa.net.