SURGEONS of STEEL
Winter 2018 - Volume 12; Issue 4
WASHING AWAY 2018 HAPPY NEW YEAR!
In this issue 10 Essential Steps to Protect your Data Estate Planning Awareness Protecting Your Assets from Unfair Competition Follow TDMAW
President's Letter Consider Advertising in the
Surgeons of Steel
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elcome to 2019 everybody! It truly is an honor and privilege to be elected to serve as the TDMAW President for another term. It is exciting to see some of the new initiatives roll out that the board of directors has been working on for a few years. At the same time some things don’t happen as quickly as any of us would like them to. As I put a wrap on 2018 I like to think of it as the year manufacturing came back. At the tail end of 2016 and through 2017 we picked up momentum but in 2018 we were back. Manufacturing added the most jobs it has in 20 years, saw an incredible resurgence in U.S. made metals and energy, and the most importantly the “supplier” came out of the shadows and into the spotlight. For as long as I can remember the “supplier” has been mentioned as a side note in the news, beaten by the OEM’s for unrealistic pricing and lead times, and cast-off to the side for lower cost countries if we couldn’t meet their demands. The “supplier” is now a focus and used as a position of strength for our politicians. We are beginning to get power back with the giant OEM’s we have been serving for decades. Our return to the spotlight is bringing back good paying jobs and the return of the middle class. Our return to the spotlight has really shined a light on glaring problems that need to be tackled soon. Now let’s talk about 2019. This year we have divisions in politics that are going to frustrate us. We will continue to have a shortage of the skilled employees we desperately need. We have an immigration problem that needs to be solved. We will have some trade wars settled and some get worse. We will see inflation in production costs, our national debt and health care costs continue to spiral out of control. Now that we have the spotlight, we need to put some pressure on our distant employees in Washington and Madison. We need to hold them accountable for getting our healthcare system under control, keeping us safe, reforming immigration, and looking after the futures of our next generations. We need them to uphold the values and laws of our Constitution instead of trying to change it. The TDMAW will do its best to hold our representatives accountable, while working with other trade associations; every member company, sponsor & partner has an opportunity, with every visit by our representatives to your shop floors, to do the same. We have muscle and it’s time to flex it. I wish all of our companies a very successful and safe 2019!
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Editorial Calendar: Interested in submitting an article for the Surgeons of Steel? Email your 500-700 word, Microsoft Word document to TDMAW at ToolMaker@TDMAW.org. Deadlines to submit articles are: Winter Issue: January 1 Spring Issue: April 1 Summer Issue: July 1 Fall Issue: October 1
Kirk Kussman President, TDMAW 2018 kkussman@aztalan.com (920) 342-9455 2 | TDMAW HQ (262) 532-2440
www.TDMAW.org
Table of Contents
2019 Board of Directors
President’s Letter .................................................................... 2
President – Kirk Kussman Aztalan Engineering Inc. 920.648.3411 | kkussman@aztalan.com
TDMAW Annual Member Meeting ........................................... 6 MATC Students Join TDMAW at December Meeting ................ 8 10 Essential Steps to Protect your Data ................................ 11 Tools to Succeed................................................................... 12
Vice President – John Thomann W-Steel & Grinding, Inc. 262.252.3630 | john@wsteel.net Treasurer – Brian Nuetzel Matzel Manufacturing, Inc., 414.466.3800 | Briann@mzmatzel.com
Federated Insurance: Estate Planning Awareness .................. 13
Secretary – Chris Ernster eTek Tool & Manufacturing 262.377.4150 | chris@etektool.com
Online Directory Helps Wisconsin Manufacturers Identify In-State Suppliers ..................................................... 14
Chairman of the Board – Pete Kambouris Wisconsin Engraving Company 262.786.4521 | pckambouris@wi-engraving.com
Federated Insurance Question of the Month: Concurrent or individual FMLA Leave for Spouses? ............... 16 Protecting Your Assets from Unfair Competition ..................... 17 Beware of Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing ................................... 18 TDMAW 2019 Partners and Sponsors.................................... 19
KYLE J. HAUG Vice President Business Banking 262-703-3726 Member FDIC. ® and Huntington® are federally registered service marks of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated. Huntington.® Welcome.TM is a service mark of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated. ©2017 Huntington Bancshares Incorporated.
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February 5 5:30-8:30 PM
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March 5
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In the Know 2019 Board of Directors Elected The voting for the 2019 Board of Directors was finalized at the Annual Meeting on December 4, 2019. The slate of officers included: • Chris Ernster of eTek Tool & Manufacturing • Pete Kambouris of Wisconsin Engraving • Kirk Kussman of Aztalan Engineering • Brian Nuetzel of Matzel Manufacturing • John Thomann of W-Steel & Grinding, Inc. All five board nominees served on the 2018 TDMAW Board of Directors and were unanimously approved to serve again, in 2019. Kirk Kussman will serve as President; Pete Kambouris, Chairman; Brian Nuetzel, Treasurer; John Thomann, Vice President and Chris Ernster, Secretary. We are grateful for their thoughtful leadership of the TDMAW and the time they volunteer to help make our association the best it can be. Welcome New TDMAW Member, DMT Workholding! DMT WORKHOLDING is located at 210 Slinger Road, Slinger, WI 53086. The company contact is Scott Bower, who may be reached at scottb@dmtworkholding.com. We welcome DMT WORKHOLDONG and look forward to getting to know them better! BotsIQ WI Robotics is in need of volunteers. As many of you know, TDMAW has been a longtime supporter of BotsIQ. Bots IQ is robotics education program that is a spinoff from the popular BattleBots TV show. High school students build combat type robots and compete against other teams to see which team has designed and built the best product. We have several members who have dedicated time, over the years, to help set up the competitions, cheer-on the competitors and/or mentor student teams. The time commitment is small, but the rewards can be great. Those involved with BotsIQ are helping to inspire and encourage future manufacturers and engineers. They are developing relationships with kids that could be their future employees. TDMAW is seeking a few people to get involved. The next competition is scheduled for Saturday, April 6, 2019 at WCTC. If you are able to help set up on Friday or be there on Saturday, please contact TDMAW member John Puhl of JP Pattern. John can be reached at: (262) 782-2040 or johnp@jppattern.com.
TDMAW logo apparel now available for sale through the new TDMAW Lands’ End store. Show your pride of membership by ordering embroidered, logoed items through the store. The store link and a sample of the embroidered logo may be found on the TDMAW website, TDMAW.org. TDMAW does not receive proceeds from your purchases but encourages you to promote the association through the use of logoed apparel or other items. TDMAW Lands’ End store link: https:// business.landsend.com/store/tdmaw/ TDMAW thrives in large part due to it’s fabulous volunteers! Consier getting more involved with your Tool & Die Association by serving on a committee. It is not a large time commitment and often the group is simply looking for new ideas and opinions from its committee members. If you are interested contact headquarters: ToolMaker@TDMAW.org.
REMINDER: TDMAW 2019 Dues Renewals were due on January 1. If you missed the deadline contact TDAMW Headquarters to request an invoice or supply a credit cared number. Thank you for your continued support through membership! BotsIQ Competition toolmaker@TDMAW.org | 5
TDMAW Annual Member Meeting • Our Partner E.L. Simeth funded several scholarships, given to students currently enrolled in a Tool & Die or Machining program at any accredited Wisconsin Technical College. This scholarship is ongoing and offered every semester – help us spread the word; we could use more applicants. • Partner MSC donated several 11-drawer Kennedy Toolboxes which were awarded to deserving students, chosen by their technical school instructors. Mahuta Tool helps with the storage and distribution of these toolboxes. Thank you, Mahuta Tool Corp!
L-R: Pete Kambouris, Chris Ernster, Brian Nuetzel, John Thomann
T
hank you to those members who attended the TDMAW Annual Member Meeting, immediately preceding the dinner meeting on Tuesday, December 4th, at Alioto’s in Wauwatosa. The meeting consisted of finalizing the voting for the 2019 Board of Directors. The 2019 Slate of Officers was unanimously approved and is as follows: President, Kirk Kussman of Aztalan Engineering Vice President, John Thomann of W-Steel & Grinding Secretary, Chris Ernster of eTek Tool & Manufacturing Treasurer, Brian Nuetzel of Matzel Manufacturing Chairman, Pete Kambouris of Wisconsin Engraving We thank these members for volunteering their time and talents and leading our association into the future! Pete Kambouris shared highlights & accomplishments from 2018, which are as follows: • We began the year with a strong manufacturing economy, stock indexes at record levels, news of FOXCONN coming to Wisconsin and promises of deregulation.
6 | TDMAW HQ (262) 532-2440
• Challenges continue in the areas of developing, attracting and retaining employees. • We had great meetings throughout the year including: » A Sussex IM Tour where it was interesting to view a plant outside of our specific industry. » Breakfast with ThomasNet where we discussed sourcing insights. » Thinking outside the box TDMAW members were invited to a lunch with Partner Therm Tech’s customer, to connect suppliers with a new customer. » A Face of Work Panel Discussion to address various recruiting ideas & resources and the differences between generations. » Succession Planning meeting with Sponsor: Attorney Marc Loden of VonBriesen. » Tour of Acieta to learn more about how members can incorporate robotics into their businesses. • Mike Mallwitz was inducted as an Honorary Member, well deserved, as with all our Honorary Members!
• In June we had a soggy but fun June Outing. This annual event includes a choice of golf or charter fishing on Lake Michigan and all join together for dinner and prizes at the end of the day. We will be returning to Silver Spring Golf Club next year, but moving the day to a Thursday in hopes of seeing more people on the golf course! • TDMAW contributed to Watertown High School to help make capital improvements and purchases and support their newly enhanced manufacturing curriculum. Jesse Domer, the instructor there, whom many of you may know, works tirelessly to help build enthusiasm, for the industry we love, among educators, students and parents. • TDMAW signed on as a sponsor of MSOE’s BAJA SAE team, a student group that works to engineer and manufacture rugged vehicles. • The Summer Outing Sporting Clays event, held in August, is becoming a major TDMAW event and attracts attendees that we don’t often see at other TDMAW events. This is important to us. We look for ways to engage everyone – not only our valued core members. • Several Kurt Vises have been purchased in memory of longtime TDMAW member Jerry Persik. These vises will be engraved with the TDMAW logo & will say “in fond memory of Jerry Persik” and will be www.TDMAW.org
donated to Wisconsin technical colleges. Jerry spent 18 years teaching at WCTC along with running his own shop. We are fortunate to have Jerry’s twin brother, Jim, owner of Milwaukee Fabricators, with us here tonight. • TDMAW offered financial support to SkillsUSA manufacturing teams from Wisconsin who traveled to compete at the National level. Al Weiss is VERY involved in SkillsUSA and volunteers a lot of personal time to assist with their competitions. He would very much like to have interested parties connect with him to find out how they can help. • TDMAW has several members who volunteer to help with the BotsIQ robotics competitions. This volunteer pool is becoming shallow and John Puhl would love to know about anyone willing to volunteer a few hours of their time once or twice a year.
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• Two new companies joined the association. We are thrilled to have American Machine & Gear Works and MGS Manufacturing Group and encourage current members help promote the association and refer others to join. • TDMAW advertised in the Manufacturing Today publication that is shared with middle and high school students across the state – the ad featured the many manufacturing career opportunities that are available to those choosing to go into manufacturing. • John Puhl, owner of JP Pattern, encouraged members to become involved with the BotsIQ Robotics program by: supporting the program financially, mentoring students, helping machine parts for students and/or volunteering at the competitions. John reminded members that this is a great way to develop relationships that could potentially be your future employees. [Contact TDMAW Headquarters for more information.] The meeting was adjourned and immediately followed by a dinner meeting with Historian, John Gurda who presented: Milwaukee: A City Built on Water.
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toolmaker@TDMAW.org | 7
By Alex Eminovic First Place I was never really a fan of school, so, when I realized that I had a minimum of four years of school in front of me — I was not thrilled. When my friends were all worried about writing college applications and scholarship essays, all I wanted to do was look for parts for my car. I have always enjoyed taking things apart fixing them and reassembling them. My Junior year of high school my dad told me he was going to take me to work with him and share with me some of the different things he did as an Engineer. He wanted to see if I had any interest in being an Engineer. When I went to work with him that day, I met his coworkers and got a firsthand view of what he did. Near the end of the day, he took me to the tool room to show me how the deigns end up becoming real parts, I came across a Tool and Die degree offered at Gateway Technical College. This made me think of my grandpa, he was a Tool and Die Maker and the day I walked through the Allen-Bradley tool room. I felt that this is what I wanted to do.
MATC Tool & Die students join TDMAW at the December meeting.
MATC Students Join TDMAW at December Meeting
T
he TDMAW Development Committee, which oversees workforce development initiatives, scholarships, apprenticeships and technical training for members, approved funding to help offset the cost of transporting MATC manufacturing students to the September International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS), at McCormick Place, in Chicago. Students were exposed to the premiere manufacturing technology show in North America, which hosted over 2,400 exhibitors. After the trip, students were asked to write an essay about their experience at IMTS. They wrote about why they chose manufacturing as a career, what impressed them the most about IMTS and what their manufacturing career goals are, post MATC graduation. The top four essays were selected by their instructors and those four students were invited to join TDMAW members at their December meeting, as our guests. The Development Committee wanted to offer the students an opportunity to meet TDMAW members, leaders in the Wisconsin manufacturing industry. The student guests shared their essays with the group and each received a financial award to help offset the cost of their education. Awards ranged from $250 to $75. We thank all of them, along with their instructor, Dale Howser, and wish them all much success in their future endeavors.
8 | TDMAW HQ (262) 532-2440
Manufacturing has lots of different opportunities, but the one thing that they all have in common is the constantly evolving technology. The best place to experience all of this new technology is at a IMTS. My mind was blown by the sheer number of different processes that could be used to manufacture parts, from the advances of 3D printing to be able to print metal parts and additive manufacturing which enable companies to pilot early designed parts before heavily investing in a finished tool. Advances in sand casting of parts to tight tolerances with a fairly smooth surface finish a few years ago was unheard of. These new technologies impressed me, as evolution continues at a faster and faster pace, but also the very old processes are being continuously updated to be more cost effective. The down side of the trip is not being able to see everything you want to see and due to the heavy flow of customers the booth vendors did not always have time to answer our questions. At the International Machining Trade Show, I was exposed to the wide range of opportunities or a career in manufacturing. The day trip I took down to the IMTS left me with more questions on different processes being used and still in development in the manufacturing field. After returning from the trip, I started to think about the different opportunities available in Tool and die trade from tool construction to design to even Tool project program Managers. After the show I feel there are many paths that I can take as I grow and that there are many different paths I could pursue. My initial goal after graduation from MATC is to be accepted into a Tool and die Apprenticeship. My hope is that in three years, to be close to completing my Apprenticeship. My 10-year goal is to be specializing in mold making and training new candidates to get the excited about the opportunities in the trades. I will always keep and eye open for new opportunities since the trades will always have new and interesting opportunities due to the integration of technology, which will not be slowing down but increase in the future.
www.TDMAW.org
By Dustin Layton Second Place
By Antonio Hill Third Place
From the time I was young, I have loved to work with my hands. All the jobs I imagined having involved making things: houses, furniture, planes, and even satellites. It was natural for me to take things apart, sort the pieces and put things together or simply assemble something new with what I had at my disposal. I was fortunate to have the men in my family be machinists and mechanics, so working hard and figuring out problems for oneself seemed a normal way of life I like everything about manufacturing. From the initial planning and designing stages, through the physical manipulation of material into something useful I am still fascinated by the fact that I can take engineering information and transform raw material into what was intended simply by using tools and my mind. They say that the career you should have is the one you would do for free, I have found that to be true for myself in regard to working in the shop.
As I graduated high school, I thought I was well on my way to be an accountant. I had always been very good with numbers and believed accounting was the best way to utilize that talent. It didn’t even take a semester to realize how mind numbingly boring and unproductive that felt for me. After a few years of experiencing what life had to offer, I had landed an entry level position at a manufacturing company. Even though I started at the bottom as a saw operator, my eyes quickly opened to see the opportunity that lie ahead of me. Not only did I get the chance to utilize my knack for numbers, I actually felt proud leaving work knowing that I had produced something with my hands. It was the first job that I held that I looked forward to waking up for in the morning.
It would seem obvious, but the volume of exhibits at IMTS was the most notable. Fortunately, my instructor, Pat Yunke suggested we plan out our trip to maximize the limited time at IMTS. I am glad that through this planning I was able to see all areas of the show and talk to representatives for some companies doing interesting things. Once such company specialized in cold drawing complex shapes. It was impressive the amount of detail which could be achieved, and the representative was generous to discuss the process with me. It was a benefit to have so many different aspects of manufacturing represented in one location. Having so many technologies present really impressed upon me the importance of, at a minimum, having a basic understanding of what is available in manufacturing. I think this is important because it can help solve problems for customers and allow me to fulfill my obligation to my employer in the future. I have an idea which I think would make the show very interesting in the content of education. The concept would be to take some companies from each are of manufacturing at the show and arrange them in the manner which a product would flow through a manufacturing facility. At each stage of production, there could be options for each operation. I think this would be effective to teach attendees of the show how technologies both established and new can be leveraged to create things in an efficient way. This spring I will be finishing a degree in Tool and Die Making and a second in Mechanical and Computer Drafting with an add on 3D Modeling Certificate at MATC. I will be starting company research soon and hopefully have employment lined up when I finish school in May. I have been developing a website to function as a portfolio of both important school projects as well as past employment projects. Post MATC I will be pursuing employment opportunities which will offer me the ability to work in a dynamic and supportive shop. It is important for me to be challenged so I can improve in both my professional and personal life. This will help me to grow into the best man I can be and in turn the best employee I can be. Setting three years from now as a waypoint, I would like to be established as a trusted employee at a good company in one of the branches of Tool & Die Making. I will hopefully be able to continue taking some college night classes as well, slowly working towards an engineering degree. Being able to figure out whatever is asked o me is important, college being one technique in accomplishing that. In then years, I hope to have carried over my excitement about manufacturing, continuing to provide good service to my employer. With this momentum, I would like to be well on my way to having the capable home shop to pursue my ideas and help with the ideas of others. I am generally a curios person and I have many areas of interest. A personal shop being the most effective way for me to advance my skills and knowledge in the long term. I have a significant amount of work in from of me for the next nine months in order to accomplish my college objectives. My plans for progression over the net decade will require much work as well as lead to a buy life. I accept this as a necessity to have the fulfilled life I want as well as respecting myself.
The first aspect of the IMTS that I noticed was how overwhelmingly vast the show was. Not just in overall size of the show, but also the numerous facets of manufacturing that were also included. There were your big name companies showing off their latest and greatest high production machines with flashy displays and pretty faces to grab your attention, but what I noticed amidst the glitz and glamour was the various smaller companies who found their niche with specialized techniques and machines. While many companies require a large number of machines, a large workforce, and big contracts to keep running, I find myself interested in smaller companies who specialize in only making a few intricate pieces. Working with companies who have small part runs usually equates to higher precision, higher education, and more often than not … higher pay. Being a bit of a self-proclaimed perfectionist, I invite the challenge. With the wealth of knowledge that the IMTS had to offer, it is a bit daunting to retain the influx of information presented. My only hope is that with further educating myself in the manufacturing processes, that future returns to IMTS will yield yet more insight into such a prosperous field. With my current plans to become a programmer, I only see that as a short tern goal. Once I have that under my belt, I would like to jump up on the next rung of the ladder. May that be learning CAD/CAM or taking a path towards becoming a parts engineer. What I am aware of is that education cannot stop after my first 2 years at MATC. As my education continues, I’m assuredly positive that I will find another aspect of machining that I will want to further my knowledge about. What excites me about this field is that in ten years I may be learning a machine or technique that hasn’t even been invented yet. Maybe I’ll be the one who invented it. I don’t want to re-invent the wheel, but I’m not opposed to finding a better way to machine it. toolmaker@TDMAW.org | 9
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10 Essential Steps to Protect your Data
Article submitted by TDMAW Partner, SWICKtech There are various ways to calculate the cost of losing work stored on computers. Perhaps the easiest way to get a gut feel for the cost is to think for a moment about how long it would take to replace lost work. How many people would have to spend how many days to create everything from scratch? Here is a simple 10-step plan for making sure they do not have to. 1. Have a Strategy You will not know what approach is right for you until you have answered these questions: 1. How long can you go without the lost data? 2. Will you be making full backups or incremental or differential backups? 3. How quickly will you need data restored? 4. What devices will you use? 5. How secure do your backups need to be? 6. How long do you need to keep the data for?
2. Prepare for the worst If the building burns down, your onsite backups might go the same way as your primary systems. You should think about offsite or cloud backups as part of your plan. 3. Get help You might not have all the answers or even all the questions. Contact an IT service provider that has expertise in data backup. 4. How much can you afford to lose? Catalog which data would have the biggest impact if you were to lose it. Organize data into categories and work out how old you are happy with the backups being in each category. 5. How long can you go before your data is restored? The answer to this question will be different for each of the categories of data you identified. This will help in your decision about what backup systems you need.
7. Choose your device What will you backup onto? This is an area where it is worth taking advice. 8. Set up your file backups If you are working with an IT company, you should be able to use their expertise to make sure you’re set up correctly. If not, look for vendor tutorials that walk you through the process. 9. Take a picture Do not just set up to backup data. Image backups capture your whole system so that you can restore everything. That includes your operating system, applications, settings, bookmarks, and file states right before disaster struck. 10. Check and double check Your system is no good to you if it is not working. Check and check again that you are capturing usable backups in the format you are expecting.
6. Consider your applications Not only does your solution need to fit your business needs, but it also needs to suit the applications you run.
toolmaker@TDMAW.org | 11
Tools to Succeed
Dear Ken Mahuta, I’d like to send you a thank you for the tool box that you donated to the school. It’s been something I’ve noticed and has definitely been a goal I’ve been trying to work towards throughout my schooling. I didn’t have a nice toolbox specifically designed for tool and die equipment up until this point, so this will be a huge help. It’s so nice to see companies and organizations such as Mahuta Tool, MSC, and the Tool and Die Machining Association of Wisconsin go out of their way with things like this, It’s definitely very welcome. I have a coworker who has been using the toolbox you donated to the school daily. I’m sure they are all put to good use, as I will with mine. Again, thanks so much for the Tool Box. Sincerely, Jake Engelking
Tools to Succeed North American Sales, Support, & Training Center for Logopress3 Software www.DieDesignSoftware.com (262) 938-9316
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Thank you to TDMAW Partner MSC Industrial Supply, who donates several 11-drawer Kennedy Toolboxes, each semester, which were awarded to deserving students as chosen by their technical school instructors. TDMAW member, Mahuta Tool Corp, helps with the storage and distribution of these toolboxes. Thank you, Mahuta Tool Corp!
Tool, Die & Machining Association of Wisconsin, I just wanted to thank you and let you know that this semester’s recipient of the Kennedy toolbox is Jake Engelking. Jake is very deserving based on his quality of work, achievement’s, and attitude as a student in our two year ‘Tool & Die’ program at WCTC. Thank you once again for being instrumental in acquiring these tool-boxes to be awarded in recognizing outstanding students in our program. Dennis Pollari Tool & Die/Moldmaking Instructor Manufacturing Technology 262.691.5422 | Room I-123A 800 Main Street | Pewaukee WI 53072 www.TDMAW.org
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Estate Planning Awareness
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ince 2008, the third week of October each year has been designated National Estate Planning Awareness Week. This event, held October 15–19 this year, promotes estate planning and reinforces its importance to individual and family financial wellbeing. According to a 2017 Caring.com survey, only 42 percent of U.S. adults currently have estate-planning documents, such as a will or living trust.* For those with children under the age of 18, just 36 percent have a plan. Whether or not an individual has a will varies significantly by age, with younger generations being the least prepared in the event of a premature death. So what is estate planning and why is it so important? Estate planning is the process of outlining how someone wants his or her assets to be managed and transferred after death. In an estate plan, an individual can: • designate who should receive which assets and when. • choose who will make financial and medical decisions if he or she is unable. • decide who should care for children.
• include provisions to help minimize estate taxes and other settlement expenses. • provide guidance to one’s family about wishes for his or her funeral, burial, or end of life care. For a business owner, estate planning also includes succession planning — who will take over a business in the event of death or disability. The owner can decide if the successor will buy the business or inherit it. Families can reduce conflict by creating a plan that equalizes shares of an estate between family members who are involved in the business and those who are not. A complete estate plan may include a wide range of documents, such as a will, trust, financial power of attorney, medical power of attorney, and living will, and for business owners, a funded buy-sell agreement. Why do so many people not have an estate plan in place? Individuals cite a variety of reasons for not having one, from cost, to not knowing where to go to create a plan, to just not getting around to it. Without a will or trust, the state will determine who will receive an individual’s assets after death. It may be a spouse and/or children, but how much will go to each of them varies from state
Percentage of adults without a will: Baby Boomers (ages 53-71) 40% Generation X (ages 37-52) 64% Millennials (ages 18-36) 78% to state, especially if the children are from a prior relationship. Children will receive their share when they reach the age of majority (18 or 21, depending on the state), regardless of whether or not they are prepared to handle it. A court will help decide who is best suited to raise children (it might not be the person an individual would have chosen). Assets will not be protected from heirs’ creditors, future spouses, or behavioral issues (for example, alcohol or drug abuse, gambling, or lack of motivation). The absence of planning could be even more disastrous for a business. Statistics show that less than onethird of family businesses survive from the first to the second generation and even fewer (15 percent) survive another transition. Without an identified buyer and negotiated terms for a sale in a signed (and funded) buy-sell agreement, a family could end up selling the business for pennies on the dollar or liquidating the business and selling the pieces for a fraction of their value.
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Online Directory Helps Wisconsin Manufacturers Identify In-State Suppliers Article submitted by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC)
Is your company featured on WIsupplychainmarketplace.com? It should be. WIsupplychainmarketplace.com is an online directory of Wisconsin manufacturers designed to help you reach new customers by connecting you with buyers seeking new suppliers. Whether you are a tier-one, tier-two or tier-three manufacturer, WIsupplychainmarketplace.com will increase your visibility to companies seeking the products and services you provide. The site was developed by regional economic development organization New North and funded by a federal grant and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC). It was designed to promote local suppliers seeking to diversify their customer base and has become a go-to resource for Foxconn and other companies looking for reliable supply chain partners. “Users of the Supply Chain Marketplace can make direct contact with companies within the database whose capabilities match their requirements, or they can post requests for proposals and have automated notices sent to potential suppliers,” explains WEDC Key Business Liaison Jela Trask. In addition to promoting sales between existing instate businesses, the Supply Chain Marketplace helps WEDC and its statewide economic development partners market Wisconsin’s manufacturing capabilities to large OEMs seeking to relocate or expand their operations. Economic developers and corporate location decision-makers can also use the directory to identify supply chain strengths in specific industries, which in turn helps introduce Wisconsin manufacturers to new opportunities. Creating a listing for your company on WIsupplychainmarketplace.com is easy. By registering your company on the site, you will create a profile that includes basic company and product information, including SIC codes, industries served and certifications attained. This information is used by marketplace “buyers” to identify the suppliers that best fit their needs. You also have the option of including images and videos within your profile to further convey your company’s value proposition. 14 | TDMAW HQ (262) 532-2440
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WEDC and regional and local economic development partners promote the use of the Supply Chain Marketplace to manufacturers at all points within their business development marketing strategies. In addition to the statewide directory, localized versions of the platform are featured on regional economic development websites throughout the state. To help guide the development, implementation and evolution of the Supply Chain Marketplace, statewide industry leaders have formed a supply chain workgroup that includes subject matter experts, including industry representatives, academic partners and stakeholder associations devoted to helping Wisconsin manufacturers of all sizes take advantage of global market opportunities. “The Supply Chain Marketplace can help Wisconsin manufacturers increase their exposure and diversify their customer base. Those improvements build these companies’ resiliency in turbulent markets,” says Buckley Brinkman, executive director and CEO of Wisconsin Center for Manufacturing and Productivity. Today, the Supply Chain Marketplace features more than 2,000 listings of Wisconsin manufacturers who benefit from the exposure to new supply chain opportunities.
At von Briesen, we’ve transformed the traditional law firm into a modern platform for legal innovation. Combining our industry leading expertise with innovative technology, we take a collaborative and creative approach to problem-solving the most complex matters. The result? Game-changing advantages for our clients. To learn more about our law firm, visit vonbriesen.com or contact: Marc Loden at mloden@vonbriesen.com or 608.661.3962.
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For more information about the Supply Chain Marketplace or for guidance on how best to take advantage of the directory, contact Jela Trask from WEDC at 608.210.6759 or jela.trask@wedc.org.
As a leader in supply chain solutions, we at MSC believe in local people solving local problems.
Our members want to hear from you! Consider submitting an article for the Surgeons of Steel quarterly magazine. Contact Headquarters for details.
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Concurrent or individual FMLA Leave for Spouses? QUESTION: We have two employees who are husband and wife. One is requesting FMLA due to needing surgery and recovery. The other spouse is requesting FMLA for the surgery and then shortly after to care for her and then intermittent leave to transport her for follow-up visits. Are their leaves handled as individual employees each eligible for the 12 weeks?
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RESPONSE: As explained below, each employee is entitled to a full complement of FMLA leave if he or she is otherwise eligible. While spouses who are eligible for FMLA leave and are employed by the same covered employer can be limited to a COMBINED total of 12 weeks of leave during any 12-month period when the leave is taken to bond with a newborn, adopted or foster care child, or to care for an employee’s parent with a serious health condition, the same is not true when one spouse/employee has a serious health condition and the other is needed to provide him or her with care. See Leave for Pregnancy or Birth for more information. Thus, if the married couple working for your organization both meet eligibility criteria under the Act, then each can take 12 weeks of leave individually for the respective occurrence (i.e., where “one is requesting FMLA due to needing surgery and recovery” and the “other spouse is requesting FMLA for the surgery and then shortly after to care for her and then intermittent leave to transport her for follow-up visits”). The employer should process the leave requests individually with appropriate documentation as the case may be (i.e., including the Certification of Healthcare Provider for Employee’s Serious Health Condition and the
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2.Implement your security mindset. Developing nexessary employee handbook policies and train employees so they understand what information within the business is considered proprietary and must be maintained as confidential. Mark documents, paper and electronic, which contain sensitive information “confidential” or “proprietary,” and limit access to sensitive information to those employees with a need to know the information.
Protecting Your Assets from Unfair Competition Article Submitted by TDMAW Sponsor, Sally A. Piefer, Lindner & Marsack, S.C.
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nfair competition is a general phrase that can apply to a variety of business practices that can hurt your business. In the employment setting, unfair competition is commonly believed to apply to the following types of illegal conduct: (1) violation of a non-competition or non-solicitation agreement; (2) misappropriation of a company’s confidential information or trade secrets, (3) violation of the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, and (5) a breach of the duty of loyalty by employees while still employed with the company. Employees, confidential information and trade secrets are often considered some of the most valuable assets of a business – they are often considered integral to having a competitive edge in the marketplace. Confidential information and trade secrets can, of course, be subject to threats from outside the business through theft, hacking or commercial espionage. However, the biggest threat to the loss of this information often comes from inside the business. Employees often have access to valuable knowledge about customers and a company’s financial and strategic business information – business development, marketing, new products, R&D, etc. – all of which will be an attractive asset to any competitor or to an employee wanting to venture out on their own. In this challenging economic climate, there has never been a greater need for employers to protect these assets. There has already been significant growth in recent years in the number and type of legal disputes about misuse of confidential information and trade secrets and other forms of unlawful competition by employees and competitors. Changes within the workplace have also given rise to new challenges in protecting confidential information and trade secrets, particularly the growth of new technology and employees who bring their own devices to work. In light of these growing threats, what are the best employment practices to combat the loss of your top assets? 1.Develop a security-based culture. Management needs to buy in to the fact that employees, customer relationships, confidential information and trade secrets are valuable assets which require protection, and that there are both external and internal threats to protecting these assets. Companies have to develop protocols to protect these assets from both internal and external threats.
3.Employ reasonable restrictive covenants to protect sensitive information and relationships. These agreements, if narrowly and appropriately drafted, can protect against direct competition, solicitation of customers, solicitation of employees, and the protection of your confidential information and trade secrets. Agreements must be narrowly tailored to the specific employee and the type of threat that he or she poses, and must be in place for a reasonable period of time. You may need to implement different versions for different levels of employees within your organization. 4.Decide whether you need to implement visitor limitations. Determine whether you need to have visitors/vendors sign confidentiality agreements or whether you need to protect visitors/vendors from accessing sensitive areas of your operation. 5.At the end of the employment relationship, conduct appropriate follow up. Retrieve all company property from departing employees. Determine how to handle employees who have company information on their personal electronic devices. Consider sending a letter reminding the employee about the post-employment obligations owed to the company. Check the departing employee’s email and companyprovided cell phone for suspicious activity – emails/sensitive documents being sent to a personal email address, deletion of entire folders or documents or suspicious text messages. Discuss how to address with legal counsel. If you find that you have a cause of action against a former employee or a competitor, taking these steps can help protect your proprietary information, but it will also boost your litigation success and send an appropriate message to other employees or competitors considering similar behavior. toolmaker@TDMAW.org | 17
Beware of Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing Article submitted by an Anonymous TDMAW Member
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that will abandon assumed ethical conduct in order to grow their businesses.
e have been manufacturing parts for a number of years, thinking that we are doing a good job of protecting our company’s assets from theft by our plant visitors and vendors. Although we did not have formal confidentiality agreements in place with our vendors, we have developed trust over time and had the impression that we were only working with ethical vendors. This trust, that has been bonded by a number of years of doing business, has allowed us to get fooled into a false sense of security. Although we took reasonable care to not disclose our customer’s names and special processes, we neglected to protect our most asset: our people. We operated under a false impression that a vendor would NEVER attempt to hire our personnel. Unfortunately, we recently lost one of our key employees to a vendor that we have been working with for 30+
years. In addition, it has now come to our attention that the same vendor has made informal offers of employment to three other employees who are key to our organization. This has been a rude awakening to the fact that there are people out there
Please do not make the same mistake as we have. Protect yourselves by having confidentiality agreements in place, not only with your value-added contractors, but all the vendors that frequent your facility. Make sure that these agreements specifically include non-solicitation of employees. Be cautious about vendors exchanging personal phone numbers with your employees. Although the phone number exchanges expedites information, it adds another layer of vulnerability. Most importantly, be aware: Your employees are your most valuable asset. Hiring, training and maintaining employees will continue to be our biggest challenge, moving forward. Please consider this as a reminder that there are people out there that will abandon ethical business practices, and will attempt poach your most valuable asset.
Join TDMAW on Tuesday, March 5, 2019 for dinner and a behind the scenes tour of the Harley Davidson museum. Learn how Harley Davidson recreates & engineers’ parts from and for historic motorcycles, and tour the museum while networking with your friends from TDMAW. Event sponsorship opportunities available. Visit TDMAW.org for sponsorship details. Event registration details coming soon. 18 | TDMAW HQ (262) 532-2440
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2019
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Partners
Computer Services for Business
Supplies/Full Line
Swick Technologies Gary Swick | (414) 257-9266 www.swicktech.com
Heat Treating ThermTech of Waukesha, Inc. Kirk Springer | (262) 549-1878 www.thermtech.net
E.L Simeth - Milwaukee Steve Simeth | (414)771-9270 www.elsimeth.com
MSC Industrial Supply Sales | (262) 703-4000 www.metalworking. mscdirect.com
Insurance—P&C, Health & Workers Comp Federated Insurance www.federatedinsurance.com
Sponsors Red Level Sponsors
von Briesen & Roper, S. C. Marcus Loden | (608) 661-3962 www.vonbriesen.com
White Level Sponsors Morris Midwest Eric Grob | (414) 586-0450 www.morrismidwest.com
Blue Level Sponsors Alro Specialty Metals Inside Sales | (800) 365-4140 www.alro.com
Citizens Bank John Schmitz I (262) 548-0208 www.citizenbank.com
Bell-Well Sales Co. Tom Schoenecker (262) 781-3670 www.bellwellsales.com
Fox Valley Metrology Kit Krabel | (920) 426-5894 www.foxvalleymetrology.com
Cincinnati Tool Steel Co. Ronald Cincinnati (800) 435-0717 www.cintool.com
Huntington Bank Kyle Haug | (262) 703-3726 www.huntingtonbank.com Lindner & Marsack, S.C. Sally Piefer | (414) 273-3910, www.lindner-marsack.com
Tushaus & Associates LLC Jared Knoke | (414) 774-1031 Ex 245 www.tushauscpa.com
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W175 N11117 Stonewood Drive Suite 104 Germantown, WI 53022
Join us for the February 5, 2019 TDMAW Dinner Meeting: Talent Resources for Wisconsin Manufacturers! Panelists: Vincent Rice, Vice President of Sector Strategy Development at WEDC, Susan Koehn, Director of Talent Initiatives at Milwaukee7 and Scott Jansen, Executive Vice President/COO of Employ Milwaukee.
Visit TDMAW.org/events for details and registration