Tag Archives: Manufacturing Extension Partnership

New Mexico Seeks Manufacturers for Mfg Day 2019

Posted on by

Students touring Insight Lighting in Rio Rancho. Article by Roger Makin.

Manufacturing is a key contributor to New Mexico’s economy, producing state-of-the-art electronics, industrial and residential building products, food and beverages, and a variety of everyday and seldom-seen components.

Economic developers are keen to attract manufacturers to the state because of the well-paying jobs that are created. Local leaders anticipate increased tax revenue, especially when local products are exported beyond city limits and bring new money into the community to enhance public services. Continue reading →

Manufacturing Make-Over Reaps Rewards for Albuquerque Business

Posted on by

C. Aaron Velasquez knew it was time to modernize the equipment and processes his family’s metal-plating business had used for four decades, but he wasn’t sure where to start.

An industry contact introduced him to New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NM MEP), a nonprofit that trains manufacturers in lean principles, value-stream mapping and other methodologies that help businesses increase profitability and competitiveness.

Theta Plate, a second-generation, family-owned Albuquerque-based business, specializes in electroplating of precious metals for industrial and commercial uses, such as friction reduction and conductivity enhancement in electrical and computer components and applications that improve the radiance of costume jewelry. Continue reading →

Businesses Set Sights on Cybersecurity

Posted on by

Jennifer Kurtz, cybersecurity expert at MEP. Article by Jason Gibbs.

Jennifer Kurtz quickly boils down the reasons small businesses should care about cybersecurity.

You want to keep your business, your reputation, your customers, your money and your people. You don’t like getting sued. And you want to sleep well.

Pretty hard to argue with that.

Kurtz, the Cyber Program Director at Manufacturer’s Edge, a Colorado-based nonprofit that works to boost the competitiveness of Colorado manufacturers through that state’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership, shared her expertise with attendees of New Mexico MEP’s Manufacturing Day activities in Albuquerque last October. During the New Mexico MEP Manufacturing Summit, ‘Thinking Machines and Smart Workforce,’ Kurtz addressed the impact of cybersecurity, breaches and data theft.

Kurtz told the New Mexico MEP attendees she uses the phrase “Biz Burglary” when discussing what happens when phishing, ransomware or security breaches result in data being stolen or compromised. And, she says, it has led to financial loss and, in some cases, businesses having to close entirely. Continue reading →

Historic Farm Pursues Innovation with Help from NM MEP

Posted on by

Los Poblanos’ Lavender Hand Salve; Article by Jason Gibbs

With a history of agricultural experimentation dating back to the 1930s and a storied tradition reaching into the depths of New Mexico’s territorial history, Los Poblanos has bridged the centuries and now, with the assistance of New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NM MEP), continues to preserve the past and pursue innovation.

The land surrounding Los Poblanos was, sometime around 1716, made a part of the Elena Gallegos Land Grant which surrounded and shaped what is now Albuquerque and was first mentioned in the 1790 Census as one of six settlements in Albuquerque’s North Valley. Continue reading →

New Mexico Set to Celebrate Manufacturing Sector

Posted on by

Technology Leadership High School students during the Sandia Science and Technology Park Manufacturing Day 2015 tour

More than a third of young people studying for vocational and technical careers have no contact with potential future employers before they graduate, and only 12 percent have seen the inside of a manufacturing facility.

That conclusion, from a 2016 study by the Manufacturing Institute, lends urgency to Manufacturing Day, an annual event designed to educate the public about modern U.S. manufacturing and to attract young people to this fundamental industry.

Manufacturing Day, or Mfg Day as it’s typically known, actually lasts more than a month in New Mexico. Sponsored by the nonprofit New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NM MEP), Manufacturing Day introduces students and job seekers to manufacturing careers by inviting them to tour factories and facilities where people make things. Continue reading →

Quest for Perfection Can Be Profitable

Posted on by
Jennifer Sinsabaugh

Jennifer Sinsabaugh, Operations Director, NM MEP

New Mexico businesses that want help becoming more efficient frequently call on the New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partnership — a nonprofit agency of the U.S. Commerce Department that helps small and mid-sized U.S. businesses create and preserve jobs, become more profitable and save time and money. In New Mexico, where most businesses are small, MEP services are used by doctors’ offices, machine shops, small farms and agricultural operations, and businesses that serve the oil and gas industry.

MEP uses multiple techniques to help businesses increase profits by standardizing production and administration to provide continuous improvement that eliminates waste and strives for perfection.

Continue reading →

Candy Company is Sweet and Lean

Posted on by

 

Jennifer Sinsabaugh, Operations Director, NM MEP

When Clovis-based Leslie Candy Company was purchased by Greg Southard in 2002, the 50-year-old company was using trusted manufacturing processes and recipes to create peanut patties, brittles and haystacks for distribution to supermarkets, convenience stores and specialty boutiques throughout theUnited States.  Southard invited New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partnership into the organization to review how things were flowing on the manufacturing floor.

Today, Southard still uses the company’s savory recipes and traditional cooking methods, but he now runs a lean shop with streamlined operations. “New Mexico MEP came in, watched our processes and provided feedback and solutions,” said Southard. “Based on their recommendation, we implemented an incentive program for our frontline employees, which resulted in a production increase of 25 percent, while lowering overall operating costs. New Mexico MEP helped us to look at our processes in a new way,” he said.

Continue reading →