CARPENTERSVILLE – TMA member OTTO Engineering has made a major investment in the future of manufacturing – by building a new manufacturing center and locking arms with the Technology & Manufacturing Association’s training program.
One of the first apprentices is married to a longtime OTTO employee, and her story and OTTO owner Tom Roeser’s is featured in the Chicago Tribune:
For Vicki Kelsey, a career in the trades was a natural next step after growing up on a horse farm.
“I love being able to say I made something with my own hands and my mind,” the Huntley resident said. “And growing up farming I was always very involved with working with my hands. I also did blacksmithing for a while. That was very labor-intensive. It’s incredibly fulfilling to build something with your hands and have that pride and say, ‘This is something I made.’”
Roeser describes OTTO’s investment in the new 30-acre training center:
“Our tech center is one of the most advanced ‘factories’ in America,” he said. “We have made a significant investment in the future support of manufacturing in America. The most important investment that we have made, however, is our investment in human capital.”
Investing in human capital … anyone associated with manufacturing understands exactly what Mr. Roeser meant. Automation is crucial, robots are cutting edge, but valuing and placing resources into the humans that program, oversee, service and maintain automation is “the most important investment.”
Read the rest of the Chicago Tribune story HERE.
