Many manufacturers struggle every day trying to find – and keep – the best employees. At Ace Metal Crafts, we have focused on providing a mix of tangible and intangible benefits that together create the Ace Experience for our employees. This experience is really more of a culture that begins with finding the people who value what our company values – even if they don’t have a specific manufacturing background.

We learned early on during our Lean Journey that it’s difficult to teach people to be flexible, to embrace change and to relish their roles within a larger team. It actually is easier teaching manufacturing techniques or specific machinery tasks.

So, we have focused on creating a culture where employees are challenged to learn new things, approach problem-solving differently and participate in the growth of our company. Today we have a dynamic, driven and flexible workforce – on two shifts.

Understand it and own it.

Communication is at the heart of all we do. Every day we share information – from project expectations to company strategy and financials – so every Ace associate understands the importance and value of their daily decisions. That sense of ownership is central to how we continuously improve our processes and deliver quality the first time through.

Knowledge is not the only empowerment part of the Ace culture. There are opportunities for our associates to flex their leadership muscles, such as the Cell Point Leaders program. And enhance their professional skills and specific manufacturing skills through training and cross-training. Our empowered people also participate on teams that make key decisions about customer projects and company direction.

We’re creating a culture that embraces change.

We’re building a world-class manufacturing environment, We’re creating a learning culture that empowers people, values honesty, fosters good communication, and eliminates the traditional barriers. All within our custom job shop.