Manufacturing Month Special edition of the
Thursday, Oct. 4, 2018
‘I won’t have to struggle anymore’
A welding degree is a ticket to a better life for three area women By David Dolmage Newton Daily News While the image of “Rosie the Riveter” may have been a staple of World War II era propaganda, women are still a distinct minority in the welding industry. According to a 2013 study completed by the United States Department of Labor, female welders make up less than two percent of welders nationwide. That’s a number Jared Kingery, the welding instructor at DMACC’s Newton campus, would like to change. According to Kingery, who cited research that shows women often have better hand eye coordination than their male counterparts, women often make better welders. “We’ve got to get the women interested, we just don’t have enough
guys doing this,” Kingery said. Why welding? Kingery rattles of the statistics one by one, pointing out the nationwide shortage of welders, estimated as high as 300,000 as well the opportunity to make a good living. On a daily basis, Kingery said he gets calls from employers who are looking for welders to hire. After a career working on an assembly line at Maytag Kingery said he knows firsthand how lucky his students are. “We’re getting it out in front of them now. We didn’t have this when I went to high school,” Kingery said. “That’s why I went to work at Maytag. I needed to pay the bills.” In Newton, DMACC offers students two pathways towards earning a welding degree: high school students in Jasper County can enroll in the
community college’s Career Academy Program, as well as starting the welding program after they’ve graduated. High school students who start the program their junior year can easily obtain a two-year degree from DMACC less than a year after graduation, Kingery said. Students who complete both years at the Career Academy will have earned 21 college credits, only 15 credits shy of the 36 credits needed for a welding diploma from DMACC. Once they’ve graduated from the program, there’s a constantly growing job market for welders. Kingery said he’s had many local businesses reach out to him, some companies are offering a starting salary of more than $45,000 per year for a certified welder. WELDING | 4C
David Dolmage/Daily News Autumn Sutton of Newton, practices welding with an oxy-acetylene torch in the welding lab at Newton’s Des Moines Area Community College campus.
Lifelong Labor: Brad Holloway reflects on 42 years at Thombert By P.M. Brannock Newton Daily News If you’ve ever seen a combine slice through rows of corn or watched a forklift rearrange a warehouse, you probably weren’t looking at the system of wheels, tires and belts that keep the machinery chugging along tirelessly. If you had examined the wheels and tires when the machines stopped, you probably would have noticed a serial number beginning with a “T.” The “T” stands for “Thombert, Inc.,” the 72-year-old manufacturing company in Newton that leads the market in polyurethane tires and wheels for forklift equipment and rubber-tracked agricultural mid rollers. The products begin with the heavy metal castings around which machine operators pour a brightly colored or shiny black polyurethane elastomer called Dyalon to create the wheels and tires. Burly men and a few intrepid women in T-shirts, work pants and thick-treaded boots push the product through the process. They measure and correct for concentricity with robots that look like Disney-Pixar creations. They hang castings coated with Smurf-blue adhesive to dry on racks Millennials use for displaying doughnuts at parties. A few zip from task to task aboard Segways on steroids. Rock music from the genre’s golden
age thumps from retro box speakers. Lathes trim excess polyurethane from wheels, and synthetic curlicue ribbons fly through the air. The heat from curing ovens tuned to precise temperatures and overwhelming noise that reverberates from the worn concrete floor to the cacophonous ceiling might render this a young man’s job, but a handful of employees on Thombert’s production floor have watched the company grow for over four decades. Brad Holloway’s gnarled knuckles tell the story of someone who has seen the evolution of ergonomic mechanization within the facility: Someone who packed thousands of boxes and loaded and unloaded hundreds of semi-trucks manually before increased mechanization lifted some of the manual burden. He’s Thombert’s longest-tenured production worker. Forty-two years ago, Holloway stepped through Thombert’s doors for an initial interview. A few days later, Bob Smith, a partner in the company, called him back. “I had been working in the restaurant business for six years, and he asked me why I was getting out of the restaurant business,” Holloway says. “I told him that I wanted to make more money.” The answer must have satisfied
Smith because a supervisor called Holloway in for a third interview. At 19 years old, Holloway began working at Thombert as a janitor. “I was the youngest one here. Everybody else was around 40, so that was very intimidating but once I got to know the guys and stuff, I fit right in.” He still spends weekends fishing with friends he has made throughout his time with the company. Over the decades, Holloway moved through jobs in almost every aspect of Thombert’s production process. He’s poured Dyalon around castings. He’s shaved ribbons of polyurethane off rubber tires to even their sides. For 35
years, he filled orders to ship across the country. Holloway can remember a Thombert before the trappings of technology breathed life into what had been only futuristic ideas: Wall-E-esque robotics and Star Trek like computers. In his early years, Holloway hopped into Bob Smith’s El Camino and drove the truck, HOLLOWAY | 3C
P.M. Brannock/Daily News Brad Holloway takes a break from work to pose outside Thombert, Inc., in Newton.
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www.newtondailynews.com | Thursday | Oct. 4, 2018
TPI celebrates 10 years in Newton Manufacturing company continues to grow, expand
By Jamee A. Pierson Newton Daily News
Christopher Braunschweig/Daily News Jason Benson, chief financial officer at Cline Tool, tours the custom tool factory portion of the Newton-based company’s headquarters while its workers are on break. Cline Tool is one of the largest custom tool manufacturers in the United States.
At the cutting edge 70-year-old Cline Tool a manufacturer for others By Christopher Braunschweig Newton Daily News
of.
Cline Tool has a lot to be proud
Apart from its 70-year history as a Newton-born custom tool manufacturer and distributor, the company takes pride in maintaining a cognizant approach to a constantly evolving industry, finding solutions to customer problems and having established itself as one of the largest custom tool manufacturers in the United States. Chief Financial Officer Jason Benson said what distinguishes Cline Tool apart from similar companies is its dual identity as a custom tool manufacturer and full-line industrial distributor. That mix, he said, does not ordinarily exist in the marketplace, which is what makes Cline Tool so special. “They’re two very different businesses in reality,” Benson said. “They go together, but they’re very different.” Cline Tool’s Newton headquarters, sequestered in the north side of town just a few blocks away from Berg Middle School, reflects that business model. Salespersons and management representatives share a roof with machinists and engineers but are separated into two sectors: an office-style work-
Christopher Braunschweig/Daily News David Braafhart, a computer numeric controlled machinist at Cline Tool, demonstrates during his break how an SL70 head fits onto a custom-made piece for an offset milling tool.
Christopher Braunschweig/Daily News Above: Jason Benson, chief financial officer at Cline Tool, places a slab of metal onto a desk to demonstrate what a piece looks like before it is cut into. Right: A Cline Tool machine expels coolant in the factory portion of the Newton-based company’s headquarters.
space and a vast factory equipped with intricate and lively machinery. President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Long, who began his tenure at Cline Tool in 1987, said the distribution division represents about 700 different com-
panies and sell their products into the market. Simply put, Cline Tool provides and sells everything a factory setting needs to operate — from safety supplies to cutting tools and maintenance items. CLINE TOOL | 3C
Every milestone is significant for a company in an ever-changing business world. TPI Composites recently celebrated 10 years in Newton, having joined the community at a time when it was needed most. “The effect TPI has on this community can’t be measured in just a few words. They brought back life to a community that many thought would never recover from the loss of Maytag,” Frank Liebl, executive director of the Newton Development Corporation, said. “TPI is a great corporate citizen, management personnel serves on various boards throughout the community, and the amount of community service provided by TPI employees is staggering. The growth in housing, retail sales and the overall economy is due in part to TPI, Newton’s largest employer.” With more than 1,000 employees, the largest U.S.-based independent manufacturer of composite wind blades for the high-growth wind energy market supporting global wind turbine manufacturers does more than just produce blades. Through a variety of avenues, the people of TPI are making an impact in the community each and every day. “TPI Composites goes above and beyond for their associates who live and work in our community and the surrounding area. They encourage their associates to get involved in the community by volunteering at different events, getting involved in different organizations, and giving back to those in need,” Newton Mayor Mike Hansen said. “One example that stands out is with a number of their associates living in the Marshall-
town, Pella and Bondurant areas, TPI and the associates came together to package over 45 totes with water, snacks, trash bags, cleaning supplies and other helpful items. TPI has also provided information on work shifts, DART transportation, opportunities to volunteer and much more.” From building a 316,000 square foot facility in Newton in 2008 to expanding its operations by 100,000 square feet in the former Maytag Plant 2 to manufacture composite bus bodies last year, TPI is continuing to grow in Newton along with adding hundreds more employment opportunities. “Opening a facility in Newton is a real positive thing,” Liebl said. “Job growth in the community is in part from companies that are already here and that is so positive for the city of Newton.” With clean energy on the rise, TPI is continuing to move forward both in the community and the industry. “TPI has more than five decades of innovation and expertise in manufacturing large-scale composite structures of the highest quality at a competitive total delivered cost to our customers,” TPI Employment and Staffing Manager Reggie McDade said. “Our advanced composites manufacturing technology allows us to build near aerospace grade parts at industrial prices. TPI’s advanced composite technology and manufacturing expertise have also been applied to create firstof-their-kind composite solutions in the transportation markets. TPI Iowa Operations has been in the community since 2008 and growing that entire time.” Contact Jamee A. Pierson at 641-792-3121 ext. 6534 or jpierson@newtondailynews.com
Did You Know? Newton’s Total Potential Labor Force: 384,974 (entire Laborshed Area) Manufacturing take up the highest percentage of the labor force in Newton at 14.5% TOP MANUFACTURING EMPLOYERS IN NEWTON* TPI Composites Inc — 1,000 Trinity Structural Towers — 250 Graphic Packaging — 130 Thombert Inc. — 125 *As of January 1, 2018 — Source: www.newtongov.org
IOWA MANUFACTURING • Iowa is home to approximately 6,080 manufacturing firms. • Manufacturing contributed $34.0 billion to Iowa’s economy in 2016, representing 18.4 percent of the state’s total gross domestic product (GDP). • Iowa ranks seventh among all states in its percentage of GDP from manufacturing. • The manufacturing sector’s 220,989 jobs accounted for 10.6 percent of Iowa’s total employment in 2016. There are 2,256 in Jasper County alone. • More than half (53.4 percent) of Iowa’s manufacturing jobs are located in its non-metropolitan counties. • Earnings from manufacturing jobs account for 12.1 percent of total earnings in Iowa’s metropolitan areas and 24.0 percent of total earnings in non-metropolitan regions. • The average manufacturing job in Iowa paid $56,080 in wages and salaries in 2016. • Iowa exported $10.35 billion worth of manufactured goods to other countries in 2016. — Source: Iowa State University
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Boxing Out
Orrin Shawl/Daily News Garrick Raridon, a second pressman with Graphic Packaging International at 1204 N. 15th Ave. E. in Newton, works on the press recently.
Orrin Shawl/Daily News Employees work on the floor at Graphic Packaging International at 1204 N. 15th Ave. E. in Newton, recently.
Graphic Packaging continues to thrive in Newton By Orrin Shawl Newton Daily News If you check the bottom of your cereal box, you might find the logo from a worldwide company that has a plant in Newton. Graphic Packaging International, 1204 N. 15th. Ave. E., is responsible for much of the packages in which food products are sold all around the world. Dave Mahern, plant manager at Graphic Packaging in Newton, said his company is one of the largest manufacturers of paperboard products in the world. “We do everything from cradle to grave. We have tree farms. We do recycle board. We do virgin board. We print, cut, glue and ship the
final finished product to the customers,” Mahern said. “We’ve also recently been getting into cups and plates and paper-based products for the food service industry.” From the Newton location, their products usually get shipped to places in Canada and New Mexico. They also tend to ship boxes to well-known food companies such as Kellogg’s and Digiorno’s Pizza. Mahern and Gayle Kingery, human resources manager at Graphic Packaging, both said they makeup about 70 percent of a grocery cart, containing food boxes made from Graphic Packaging. “Chances are if you break down your box and recycle it, and you look on the bottom,
chances are you’re going to see the Graphic Packaging logo on it,” Kingery said. “The majority of what we make, food is going to go into.” The plant has been in Newton since 2011. It was originally a Walter G. Anderson plant until Graphic Packaging bought the business in 2016. According to past reports by the Newton Daily News, the worldwide organization made a $20 million investment in the plant, allowing for more job opportunities. Mahern said a big reason why Graphic Packaging invested in the plant was for its upto-date equipment. “This plant has the newest equipment for the industry in the world, really,” Mahern said. “You don’t see
Cline Tool Continued from Page 2C “The other side of our business is custom tool manufacturing — we design and build tools for use in CNC (computer numerical control) machines,” Long said. “There are some things where there isn’t standard tooling available to utilize, so we would make a custom tool to help (other companies) manufacture that component.” Cline Tool is a manufacturer that helps other manufacturers. For instance, if John Deere wants to make a transmission for one of its tractors, the corporation would most likely contact a manufacturer like Cline Tool to design and create a tool to machine the transmission in order to actually produce it. Benson said it’s not a concept most consumers think about when they see a tractor on a lot of a dealership. “If you see a tractor, you don’t think about how every piece of that tractor has been machined out of a piece of steel,” Benson said. “You don’t think about the toolmaker that had to make the hole in an engine for the cylinder.” The people who do think about that kind of stuff, he added, are the kind of people Cline Tool wants on its workforce.
Holloway Continued from Page 1C stuck in adolescence 10 blocks to the Newton Foundry tucked in behind the Maytag Company to pick up the castings. “They came in barrels,” Holloway says. “They’d grab all the barrels with the forks and pick them up, and they’d throw them in the back of the El Camino. Of course, I’m going back, and the front end is like this,” he indicates the upward tilt of the vehicle’s nose with his hand and laughs. After the forklift unloaded the barrels from the back of the El Camino, Holloway
Christopher Braunschweig/Daily News Jason Benson, chief financial officer at Cline Tool, points at a custom indexable boring bar, one of the many custom-made tools manufactured at the Newton business.
“That’s who we like to employ here,” Benson said. “People who like mechanical stuff. People who are working on cars and things. People who have a mechanical nature. People who are curious and want to know how things work and how to fix things and make things.” Designing and manufacturing custom cutting tools is how the company got its start in Newton in 1948, a reputation Cline Tool has retained for seven decades. As the manufacturing in-
would stack the castings, one by one, by hand. When he started working in shipping, he remembers that gaping holes were worn through some floors of freight boxes that semi-trucks crated up to the dock. Holloway would either cover the spots with sheets of a metal plate or navigate the forklift around the cavities. “I was young. It didn’t bother me. It was just bizarre the way we did things,” laughs Holloway. “Nowadays, you wouldn’t be allowed to drive a semi like that.” By the end of Holloway’s 35 years in the shipping department, he tapped away
plants with this equipment. All the printing press is brand new. All the finishing lines are brand new. “If you walk into a normal printing plant, you would see 30-40-year-old equipment usually that people maintain and just try to keep up,” Mahern added. Many of the machines, such as their press, are now connected remotely to the internet to contact companies overseas, to utilize their machines and diagnose their problems and can call the employees to instruct them on how to repair them. That saves the company time and money since they don’t need to wait for someone to travel to their plant to fix it, Mahern said.
The plant in Newton is operated by 130 employees, about 85 percent of which live in Newton, Kingery said. Garrick Raridon, a second pressman at the plant, said he is one of the people responsible for making sure the press is operating the way it’s supposed to. “I feed the sheets through the paper before they get printed on,” Raridon said. “I’m also in charge of all the inks. Making sure we don’t run out of ink and keeping it stocked.” Raridon has worked his way up to that position since starting out as a production assistant 2.5 years ago and has loved every moment of it. “It’s cool because everybody is tight-nitt, so you kind of know every-
dustry grows and advances, Cline Tool adapts and stays ahead of the curve, evolving its methods and technology to better meet customer needs. “There are so many product lines out there and so many unique products that fill needs that it’s overwhelming,” Benson said. “On the custom tool side, we’ve had to become very diverse in our product offerings. We don’t specialize in any one thing. We do certain things really, really well. A customer is going to come to us with a problem — a part they need made in a certain amount of time — and we help them design tools to do that.” Since its inception, Cline Tool has extended its reach and opened three more facilities in Houston, Texas; Rockford, Ill.; and Asheville, N.C. Long and his group purchased Cline Tool in 2010. During that time, the company was operating under 28 employees. Today, that number has increased to just under 100 workers across all four locations; about 65 of which remain in the Newton headquarters. What has been the key to Cline Tool’s longevity? Benson cites its workforce. Everyone, from the management to the employees, he said, truly believe in providing the ultimate customer experience and finding solutions for busi-
at a keyboard coordinating Thombert’s software with customers’ programs to create custom labels and order lists. “The different software is constantly changing,” Holloway says. “These younger kids, you know, they were born with computers in their hands. That would be the biggest challenge, the computer work.” Holloway has watched the plant meet the challenges that changing technology, stricter regulations and increased demand for the product created. Today, workers no longer mix and pour Dyalon by hand; a shot system injects the polyurethane blend housed in a whopping 40,000-pound tank.
body really well in the department,” Raridon said. “It’s just a wonderful place to work. Even outside of work, we hang out and get along.” One of those other employees is Jennifer Wright, a production assistant who helps with making sure the packages are glued properly, aligned, folded accurately and ready to be shipped off. Wright said one of her favorite parts of working at Graphic Packaging is the company’s close proximity to her home and getting along with her coworkers. “I work five minutes from home, literally,” Wright said. “They treat us well.” Contact Orrin Shawl at 641-792-3121 ext. 6533 or oshawl@newtondailynews.com
nesses it works with, including local names like Thombert, TPI Composites and Gates Corporation. In doing so, Cline Tool has expanded its custom tool manufacturing and distribution duties to include complete project management, tool reconditioning, integrated supply programs and comprehensive engineering services. Quality requirements are tight these days, Long said, as is staying ahead of the technology and providing diversified services to other businesses. “It’s an ever-changing world and it takes continuous reinvestment in the business, especially when you start looking at 3D printing and the five-axis machining,” Long said. Despite the shifting landscape, Cline Tool has had to adapt to over the years, the one thing that has not changed is its stay in Newton. And it’s not going anywhere any time soon. “We loving being in Newton. We’ve had people that started here young and retired here many years layer. We’re a good place to work and we care for our employees a lot. We care for our community a lot, too,” Benson said. “It’s important for us to be here.” Contact Christopher Braunschweig at 641-792-3121 ext. 6560 or cbraunschweig@newtondailynews.com
Five freight trucks — complete with sturdy floors — now leave from the plant dock carrying neatly packed boxes of wheels and tires to Crown Equipment Corporation alone. Computers have revolutionized the shipping process. At its core, however, Thombert remains the same company where Holloway immediately felt at home and formed fast friendships. It still provides steady jobs with benefits for individuals hoping to improve their work schedules and wages so that they can spend more time with their families. “I think it’s a good example of how a company can stay in
business as long as what it has and grow but still remain a good place to work,” Holloway says. Thombert’s production line not only forges wheels and tires that outlast the others on the market, it molds dedicated, diligent workers committed to the company and to preserving the functionality of the “made in the U.S.A.” stamp. These individuals help keep the wheels turning at farms, warehouses and shipping companies across the nation. Contact Phoebe Marie Brannock at 641-791-3121 or pbrannock@newtondailynews.com
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www.newtondailynews.com | Thursday | Oct. 4, 2018
Pros and Cons: What are the haves and have nots for small town manufacturers? By Mike Mendenhall Newton Daily News
In Prairie City’s industrial park, Reg Holt’s employees at Green Acres Hay Feeders Unlimited are welding and shaping light-weight aluminum hay feeders faster than at any time in the company’s history. “We have revamped a lot of the products that we have to make it more manufacturing friendly. That’s my background. We’re bringing a better product to market, (and) we’ve added quite a few other products as well,” Holt said. “ We’ve been increasing our inventory about four times to maintain and bring that product to the customer in a timely fashion.” Green Acres was founded in Clarinda by now-Prairie City City Councilman John Lee in 2002. In 2012, he moved the business to Jasper County. At its peak under Lee’s leadership, the small rural business sold about 2,200 feeders between the move and January of this year. That’s when Lee sold the business to Holt, president of Available Material Handling. Lee stayed on as full-time sales and marketing consultant while Holt grew the business. After the sale, Green Acres became part of a company that operates manufacturing centers in five Iowa counties, most in smaller rural communities. As a manufacturer of agricultural products, Holt sees advantages to basing his company in rural Iowa near their market, but they’re still subject to other economic forces that have hurt small-town economies in recent decades. “Employment is difficult anywhere with low unemployment rates. As you know, agriculture is a very, very tight market right now,” Holt said. “What we’ve done in Ag is increase our marketing all the
Mike Mendenhall/Daily News A worker welds a cattle hay bail feeder at Green Acres Hay Feeders unlimited in Prairie City. Owner Reg Holt says small town manufacturers have to understand their markets as well as be able to attract quality workers to the area in order to be successful.
Mike Mendenhall/Daily News Green Acres Hay Feeders Unlimited former owner and founder John Lee discusses his agricultural components at the plant in Prairie City. Lee sold his manufacturing company to Available Material Handling earlier this year.
way around to maintain what we’re doing.” Iowa Workforce Develop-
ment released the most recent employment numbers for the state Sept. 21. Iowa currently
has a 2.5 percent unemployment rate, the second lowest in the United States. Jasper County is even lower at 2.4 percent. A near fully-employed workforce poses challenges for any company, but Holt said for small town manufacturers that have an even smaller pool of workers than cities, those numbers present more of a struggle. Holt sees Green Acres at an advantage being a commutable distance to the Des Moines-metro area. Another plus to being a manufacturer in a small town has to do with smaller city government. Holt said it’s much easier to get access to community leadership in a town of 1,700 and to navigate city bureaucracy. “Obviously, the further you get away from the larger population, the easier it is to deal with cities,” Holt said. “The
infrastructure is smaller, so it’s easier to get to the top. “We’re wanting to push more toward (our) Jasper County and Prairie City location because it’s a decent size location with a lot of hard surfaces and it has a lot of access,” Holt added. “But I think the main thing we’re concerned about is that we keep the people in the city happy. But the residents of Prairie City and these smaller communities need to realize if they want their communities to thrive and they want to have a downtown, they have to have an industrial part to allow these small towns to grow. If you don’t have industry, you don’t have local jobs, then you don’t have a local restaurant or local entertainment.” Contact Mike Mendenhall at 641-792-3121 Ext. 6530 or mmendenhall@newtondailynews.com
David Dolmage/Daily News Third semester welding student Amanda Llanes lays a bead down in the welding lab at Newton’s DMACC campus. Llanes, who wants to join the pipefitter’s union after getting her degree, hopes a welding career will give her more financial freedom.
Welding
Continued from Page 1C Like Kingery, many of the students in the college-level program are looking for a fresh start. After all, he’s been in the same place many of his students are. When he lost his job at Maytag,, he enrolled in the welding program, graduating in 2007 with his degree. Shortly after, he started teaching classes at the community college. Kingery’s trio of women welders may come from different backgrounds, but they share a common goal; each woman sees welding as the ticket to a better life. With a welding degree Amanda Llanes is hoping to discover a wealth of opportunities that’ll take her beyond
her job working at a factory in Pella. She’s hoping to join the pipefitter’s union as a traveling welder, something she believes will improve her financial outlook. “I just want to get all of my student debt cleared out, just to not have to struggle anymore,” Llanes said. With starting salaries for welders coming in at more than $40,000 a year, Llanes’ refrain is one her female classmates know all too well. All three of Kingery’s students said earning a welding degree would substantially increase their quality of life. For Dudley, who works as a shift supervisor at Shugar’s Supermarket in Colfax while living at home with her parents, a welding certificate will double her income. “It’ll have a huge economic impact for me,”
Dudley said. “Once I get a job, I can get out on my own. I won’t have to struggle anymore.” Emma Dudley, a Colfax native, graduated from high school in 2016. Initially, she thought she wanted to become a nurse, but after taking classes at DMACC in Newton, she realized it wasn’t the right fit for her. “I couldn’t see myself doing it as a career,” Dudley said. “I didn’t want to hate what I’m doing for the rest of my life.” Instead, she decided to pick up an oxy-acetylene torch and become a welder. Although they’re located in the same cluster of buildings on DMACC’s Newton campus, the two program are miles apart. Dudley’s traded her nursing scrubs for a heavy leather jacket,
David Dolmage/Daily News Emma Dudley of Colfax works on a welding project in the welding lab at Newton’s DMACC campus. Dudley, who quit nursing school to become a welder, said she chose welding because she didn’t “want to have a job (she) hated for the rest of (her) life.”
steel-toed boots and welding helmet. For Llanes, a Knoxville native who’s nearly finished with the program, a job as a welder represents a way out. Llanes, became a convicted felon at 17 and found herself with few job options beyond fast food when she was released from prison. “Since I got out of prison, the only jobs I could find were in fast food or in a factory,” Llanes said. “Welding is a stepping stone for me.” The promise of a big
payday down the road is more than enough incentive to encourage the women to stay in the program, despite the challenges they encounter. In a male dominated industry, all three women said they’ve struggled to connect with many of their male classmates. During breaks, the male students often hang out together. It’s a circle that Dudley described as “intimidating” to break into. Even though they don’t always feel included outside of the classroom, all three agreed
Kingery goes above and beyond to make them feel welcomed inside the classroom. “He treats everyone the same, whether you’re a boy or a girl,” Dudley said. “He encourages everyone, he helps everyone.” Kingery easily shrugs off the assumption that women can’t be welders. He’s worked diligently to encourage women to join the program. He knows they might have reservations, but in his eyes, they have unique advantages many of their male counterparts can’t touch. The biggest advantage — most of them have never welded before. “They’ve got zero bad habits to break. They’re starting out at ground zero,” Kingery said. The experience they gain working in DMACC’s welding lab will help students lay the foundation for a career, whether it’s working in a factory or becoming union welder. Even though his students often say they’re not interested in factory jobs, Kingery said it’s hard to ever rule anything out in life, reflecting on his former career at Maytag. “Who knows where it’s going to lead for anyone,” Kingery said. “Fifteen years ago, if someone told me I’d be a welding instructor, I’d have laughed in their face.” Contact David Dolmage at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532 or ddolmage@newtondailynews.com