Manufacturer converts interns to full-time staff

Jeff Somple, the president of Mack Molding Co. Inc., cringed every time he passed a conference room where a bright and energetic college intern was typing and shuffling papers between two stacks flanking her keyboard.

Somple went to the person the intern reported to and asked what she did for the Arlington, Vt.-based injection molder and contract manufacturer.

"I was told data entry and I thought, 'I'm bored watching her; she must be so bored doing it,'" Somple said. "We needed a more formal program. It was my lightning bolt moment."

Seven years later, the internship program at Mack Molding is a robust form of job training and job recruitment focused on assigning 16-20 interns a year to projects, not tasks. From developing quotes in the sales office to helping set production parameters on the factory floor, students do what Somple calls "real work" for 40 hours a week at $15 an hour.

Mack Molding interns also get a gym or golf club membership so they can socialize after hours and on weekends.

"I want them to see themselves maybe living and working here," Somple said.

Many are. Mack Molding now employs 19 of its former interns. In recent years, the business has been retaining 20-25 percent of its interns. That's important for the company, which hired 100 people last year and has about 40 positions open right now, including 10 to be filled by engineers or high-level technicians.

Young workers are in big demand everywhere with the tight labor market. At the same time, Mack is growing so Somple and his team try to "convert" as many interns as possible to full-time employees after they earn their degrees.

Founded in 1920, Mack Molding supplies molded plastic and fabricated metal parts to a variety of markets, including medical, industrial, transportation, energy, business equipment, defense and consumer goods. The company is a subsidiary of the privately held Mack Group Inc., which also consists of Mack Prototype, Mack Technologies and Synectic Engineering.

Sales reached $470 million in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2019, according to Somple, making Mack Group one of the top injection molding firms in North America.

"All divisions are growing at the same time, which is unusual," Somple said. "Usually one might be struggling. We've been fortunate. You perform well, you get more opportunities; but a lot of it is being in the right place at the right time and American manufacturing kind of having a renaissance."

A major growth area for Mack Molding involves eletromechanical assemblies for robots, 3D printers and Class III medical devices, Somple said. The corporate tax reductions in 2017 have helped, he added, pointing to the tax rate drop to 21 percent from 35 percent. A lot of businesses redirected the money to new technologies, programs, tooling and equipment.

"There's a quiet resurgence in manufacturing," Somple said. "It's been going on for a while. But I think it's taking a while for people to catch up to the new reality so it has been hard filling positions."

Also, for years, young adults were discouraged from going into manufacturing. They were told it's a dying industry with China getting all the work, and some saw factories close and relatives lose jobs. Mack's internship program is helping change those perceptions.

"It has been wildly successful even though it is hard to attract people to manufacturing in general," Somple said. "Once we get them in the door and they see what we're doing, they realize, 'Wow, this isn't my grandfather's molding company.' It has been really rewarding for me."

To make the switch to a project-based program, Somple told company managers and engineering mentors if they wanted an intern, they would be applying to him and his staff. They needed to have a project in mind and a desk and a computer ready.

Mack Molding interns would not be making coffee, getting pizza or shuffling papers in conference rooms.

"I told the managers you have a to-do list on your desk and there's that thing, No. 7, that's been sitting there for three years. You never get around to it. It's important, but it's never going to rise to the one or two things you have to do today, so it never gets done. Turn that into a project," Somple said.

They did, and interns have helped prototype new surgical instruments, create virtual work instructions for operators and work on production time studies.

"Like everyone else, we're under constant pressure from customers to optimize our process.

These students have the ability to come in and look at a production line, take measurements, suggest improvements and remeasure," Somple said. "The time studies see where we are efficient and where we need to get better. It's real work."

At the end of the summer, interns give presentations on their projects to Somple and his team, which they can add to their portfolio to share with prospective employers.

"We're giving these students a real asset in their toolbox as they go out and try to get a job," Somple said.

Of course, Mack management would like to see a lot of those interns submit job applications to them. To keep in touch with the interns, the company hires them back over Christmas and spring breaks — not so much to do specific projects, but to make extra money and fill in for vacationing employees.

Mack managers make overtures to some interns in the first quarter.

"We kind of assume now that we can hire three to four of the graduating seniors. That's about how it has worked out. We convert probably 20-25 percent," Somple said.

Former interns now work in the human resources, finance and sales departments, but most are engineers. The company needs manufacturing, electrical, design, quality, tooling and material engineers.

"If you have a mechanical or electrical engineering degree, you can do any number of jobs at a company like Mack," Somple said. "You're not boxing yourself into a thin niche."

For the underclassmen, Mack encourages interns to return by being flexible with their summer hours for family vacations, ROTC training and other events and activities. The company also offers lunch-and-learn sessions on Wednesdays, organizes field trips to other Mack facilities and pairs interns with mentors in their 20s.

Somple said the word has gotten around: If you want a good internship, check out Mack. Some students sign on for two or more summers.

"I thought one student was an employee," Somple said. "He did four internships and a co-op. He worked here for like 1 ½ years. He converted. We hired him last year."

The interns attend colleges mostly in the Northeast. Many live in Vermont, but this summer's group of 20 also came from Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and New Hampshire. Some of their parents have summer places in Vermont, which defrays their living expenses.

Unlike some job offers, Somple said Mack managers feel confident hiring former interns. They know what it's like to live in a small town as well as the company culture and work pace.

"The internship program is helping grow our workforce," Somple said. "It's becoming a main form of recruitment."