Northeast State and the Regional Center for Advanced Manufacturing (RCAM) continue regional partnerships with employers as new students join the group apprenticeship program.
Fiber Innovation Technology, Inc., (FIT) associate Jeff Hulbert signed his name to the apprenticeship program agreement at the company’s Johnson City headquarters in August. RCAM staff, Apprenticeship Tennessee, and Northeast State President Dr. Bethany Bullock welcomed Hulbert as the newest apprentice in the mechatronics technician occupational track. Hulbert brings a wealth of knowledge into his work.
“I’ve always been a hands-on type of person,” said Hulbert. “At Christmas I was always taking my toys apart, seeing how they work and reverse engineering them.”
RCAM and Northeast State worked with the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Apprenticeship to create the Group Registered Apprentice Program. The program sought out advanced manufacturing partners such as FIT to train registered apprentices and fulfill regional workforce needs. As the apprenticeship sponsor, RCAM provides the academic structure and training processes for employers to take advantage of this workforce development model.
Technicians such as Hulbert keep the FIT facility’s day-to-day manufacturing operations running. The company produces a variety of synthetic fibers for numerous applications in the textiles and nonwoven materials industries. FIT currently employs 68 team members at its Johnson City facility.
“We are looking for multi-craft individuals,” said Cameron Miller, general manager at FIT. “The apprenticeship option is working well for us.”
Miller said the company remained fully operational throughout the COVID-19 pandemic supplying fibers used in manufacturing masks and personal protective equipment. He also said the recovering economy translated into rising demand for their products. The new economy’s demand for raw materials and costs required multi-skilled and savvy personnel to keep operations humming.
Miller said combining an associate’s electrical and mechanical skills streamlined the company’s operations and costs. The move also translates into higher wages for those apprentices.
The mechatronics technician track combines the best of electrical and mechanical technology skills into one discipline. The mechatronic apprenticeship pathway requires completion of 8,000 on-the-job (OJT) training hours and an additional 1,000 classroom learning hours. The OJT requires 2,000 hours in Machine Operation; 1,000 hours of Installation of Machinery & Equipment; and 2,500 hours of training in both Maintenance of Machinery & Equipment and Repair of Machinery & Equipment. Other registered apprenticeship occupational tracks include industrial manufacturing technician; CNC machinist; carpentry; and metal buildings.
FIT partnered with RCAM and Northeast State in 2018 to become an Authorized Training Agent (ATA) under the DOL apprenticeship guidelines. Companies earning the ATA designation qualify to provide relevant on-the-job training for employees selected to enter the apprenticeship program.
A New York state transplant, Hulbert recently moved to the area and came on board at FIT. Prior to moving to Tennessee, he owned a machining business that specialized in crafting specialized niche market parts for a variety of manufacturing clients. Those skill sets caught the eye of the FIT operations team. Hulbert made an ideal candidate to pursue the apprentice certification.
The diversity of industrial equipment maintenance and problem-solving required by a mechatronic technician fits Hulbert well. He possessed the professional skill sets to test out of the OJT requirements and fast-track his apprenticeship pathway from four years to two years.
“I don’t like doing the same things over,” said Hulbert. “The various challenges you face may be a water leak issue, electrical issues, or mechanical issues with a machine. You solve whatever the problem may be to keep them from losing any production time.”
Hulbert’s colleague at FIT and fellow apprentice Matt Worrell graduated from Northeast State earlier this year with his associate of applied science degree in Electrical Technology. He entered the apprenticeship program in 2018 and remains on schedule to received his DOL apprentice certification. His advice to any new apprentice is simple: seize the moment.
“Get as much out of it as you can and take all the knowledge you can from the instructors you have,” said Worrell, who recently advanced into a management position with FIT. “Jeff is very bright, energetic, and will do very well as an apprentice.”
Northeast State and the Regional Center for Advanced Manufacturing (RCAM) continue regional partnerships with employers as new students join the group apprenticeship program.
Fiber Innovation Technology, Inc., (FIT) associate Jeff Hulbert signed his name to the apprenticeship program agreement at the company’s Johnson City headquarters in August. RCAM staff, Apprenticeship Tennessee, and Northeast State President Dr. Bethany Bullock welcomed Hulbert as the newest apprentice in the mechatronics technician occupational track. Hulbert brings a wealth of knowledge into his work.
“I’ve always been a hands-on type of person,” said Hulbert. “At Christmas I was always taking my toys apart, seeing how they work and reverse engineering them.”
RCAM and Northeast State worked with the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Apprenticeship to create the Group Registered Apprentice Program. The program sought out advanced manufacturing partners such as FIT to train registered apprentices and fulfill regional workforce needs. As the apprenticeship sponsor, RCAM provides the academic structure and training processes for employers to take advantage of this workforce development model.
Technicians such as Hulbert keep the FIT facility’s day-to-day manufacturing operations running. The company produces a variety of synthetic fibers for numerous applications in the textiles and nonwoven materials industries. FIT currently employs 68 team members at its Johnson City facility.
“We are looking for multi-craft individuals,” said Cameron Miller, general manager at FIT. “The apprenticeship option is working well for us.”
Miller said the company remained fully operational throughout the COVID-19 pandemic supplying fibers used in manufacturing masks and personal protective equipment. He also said the recovering economy translated into rising demand for their products. The new economy’s demand for raw materials and costs required multi-skilled and savvy personnel to keep operations humming.
Miller said combining an associate’s electrical and mechanical skills streamlined the company’s operations and costs. The move also translates into higher wages for those apprentices.
The mechatronics technician track combines the best of electrical and mechanical technology skills into one discipline. The mechatronic apprenticeship pathway requires completion of 8,000 on-the-job (OJT) training hours and an additional 1,000 classroom learning hours. The OJT requires 2,000 hours in Machine Operation; 1,000 hours of Installation of Machinery & Equipment; and 2,500 hours of training in both Maintenance of Machinery & Equipment and Repair of Machinery & Equipment. Other registered apprenticeship occupational tracks include industrial manufacturing technician; CNC machinist; carpentry; and metal buildings.
FIT partnered with RCAM and Northeast State in 2018 to become an Authorized Training Agent (ATA) under the DOL apprenticeship guidelines. Companies earning the ATA designation qualify to provide relevant on-the-job training for employees selected to enter the apprenticeship program.
A New York state transplant, Hulbert recently moved to the area and came on board at FIT. Prior to moving to Tennessee, he owned a machining business that specialized in crafting specialized niche market parts for a variety of manufacturing clients. Those skill sets caught the eye of the FIT operations team. Hulbert made an ideal candidate to pursue the apprentice certification.
The diversity of industrial equipment maintenance and problem-solving required by a mechatronic technician fits Hulbert well. He possessed the professional skill sets to test out of the OJT requirements and fast-track his apprenticeship pathway from four years to two years.
“I don’t like doing the same things over,” said Hulbert. “The various challenges you face may be a water leak issue, electrical issues, or mechanical issues with a machine. You solve whatever the problem may be to keep them from losing any production time.”
Hulbert’s colleague at FIT and fellow apprentice Matt Worrell graduated from Northeast State earlier this year with his associate of applied science degree in Electrical Technology. He entered the apprenticeship program in 2018 and remains on schedule to received his DOL apprentice certification. His advice to any new apprentice is simple: seize the moment.
“Get as much out of it as you can and take all the knowledge you can from the instructors you have,” said Worrell, who recently advanced into a management position with FIT. “Jeff is very bright, energetic, and will do very well as an apprentice.”
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