Ask HK Systems to name some of the biggest challenges it faces as a manufacturer of automated materials handling systems and the answer may surprise you.

It's not engineering or sourcing quality parts. Rather, it's finding enough skilled technicians with the right balance of mechanical skills and electronics know-how.

"More and more applications today involve technology like PLCs (programmable logic controllers), lasers, computers and software," says Todd Sermersheim, vice president of customer service for HK Systems (800-457-9783). "Technicians still need mechanical skills, but they really have to understand electronically how these systems work so they can troubleshoot them. Finding the people with those skill sets is fairly challenging."

And HK Systems isn't the only one with this challenge. "Our end users all have similar challenges," says Sermersheim, "especially if we put systems in areas with poor school systems and lower levels of education."

There is a new reality cutting across manufacturing: Education counts more than ever. At the same time, the number of skilled workers retiring from the workforce far exceeds the number of young workers with the skills to replace them.

To close that gap, some forward-thinking companies are partnering with community colleges, high schools and even the government to create a curriculum geared toward today's manufacturing floor (See sidebar - "Partners in education," below).

What's most significant about these initiatives is that the colleges and high schools aren't acting on their own. Rather, these programs are collaborations between educators, industry leaders and government.

"Manufacturers are on our advisory board and driving our curriculum," says Cliff Richardson, president of Red Rocks Community College in Lakewood, Colo., (303-914-6600).

In fact, to gain industry support, Red Rocks hired its new program director from industry and not academia. "This is coming from the needs of industry, and we think that's unique compared to other programs out there," says Richardson.

There's no question: Times have changed.

Part of that change is tied to the knowledge vacuum created as skilled older workers leave the workforce, a phenomenon some are calling "The Great Crew Change."

"Many of our customers have told us they'll lose 30 to 40% of their skilled tradespeople in the next three to five years to retirement," says Gary Mendles, a senior trainer with FlowServe (972-443-6500), a manufacturer of industrial pumps, valves and seals used in manufacturing plants. Meanwhile, Mendles adds, it can take up to five years experience before new operators are ready to step in and take the place of the retiring employees.

Another challenge is that the requirements of the job and the plant environment have changed.

"Go into a plant with a Six Sigma initiative, and operators on the line are being asked to compute means and standard deviations and plot them on a graph," says Russ Meller, a professor of industrial engineering at the University of Arkansas. "My dad was an autoworker, and he was never asked to plot anything."

The proliferation of computer-controlled processes is also a factor. "It's one thing to play a game on your computer," says Chuck Beck, the director of the process technology program at Red Rocks. "It's quite another to manipulate something on a screen that will cause something to happen in the plant that you're responsible for."

Maintenance personnel are now technicians, another important change. "In the past maintenance required a physical knack – if you were dealing with a bolt, you gave it a twist with a wrench and then another twist to see if it was OK," says Bob Plain, program coordinator in business and industry services for Guilford Technical Community College in Jamestown, N.C. (336-334-4822). "Today, because of programmable logic controllers, you're doing more troubleshooting. With a PLC, you either have the right code or you don't."

Finally, there is a new attitude on the plant floor, with a much greater emphasis on the ability to think critically and problem-solve rather than just follow directions. Plain calls this the initiative quotient.

"Today's workers are being asked to contribute to lean manufacturing, quality improvement and safety initiatives," he says. "In those settings, you have to know when to listen and when to speak, and when asked to report you have to communicate good information."

To meet those needs, manufacturers are turning to educators, especially community colleges. About 18 months ago, for instance, several Denver-area energy companies approached Red Rocks Community College about creating a program for process manufacturing technicians.

"They told us that people can no longer come out of high school and work the line because the technology requires some knowledge of math, science, communications and health and safety," says Richardson. "They also told us they couldn't afford to do the training on their own."

As Richardson talked to more local industries, he discovered there was a need for at least 300 to 500 newly trained employees over the next three to five years. "That convinced me to invest in these programs," says Richardson.

The curriculum developed at Red Rocks teaches the underlying principles required in a plant today. "We're teaching basic plant operations that can be transferred to any industry," says Beck, the program director. Those include basic principles of how machines, pumps, control loops and pipes work with an emphasis on plant safety. But the school also teaches problem-solving and diagnostic skills, as well as team-building skills.

Red Rocks is also implementing an industrial maintenance program that will train students in multiple disciplines. "In the old school, electricians and mechanics were two different crafts," says Beck. "Today, companies are looking for multi-skilled workers, like a mechanic who also has some competency in motor controls, PLCs and electronics. That allows him to solve some problems without having to call in an electrician."

The first class, which was held this past spring, had six students. But, Richardson says nearly 60 students have already signed up for next fall.

Guilford Technical Community College is teaching many of the same skills taught at Red Rocks. But Guilford is also emphasizing the soft skills that are so important today.

"We have a whole section on the business of manufacturing," says Plain. Those classes may cover concepts like lean manufacturing or how a manufacturing plant contributes to a company's bottom line. "We want people on the floor to understand how their jobs contribute to the business of the company."

Going forward, Plain believes that lifelong learning will be a requirement for anyone on the manufacturing floor just as it is in the executive suite. "Tomorrow there's going to be a manufacturing breakthrough that will require new knowledge and skills," he says. "A company will take the work to where the workers are, whether that's here or Beijing."