Hotstart Hosts Association of Washington Businesses State of Manufacturing Address

On October 4th, Hotstart had the honor of hosting at our headquarters the first annual State of Manufacturing Address. Kris Johnson, President - Association of Washington Businesses, gave the address during a stop in Spokane for the annual Manufacturing Week Bus Tour. In the 7th year of the AWB bus tour, the addition of the address allowed Kris Johnson and Terry Judge, Hotstart CEO, to have a fire-side chat discussing the challenges and opportunities manufactures in Washington face in the next decade. 

During the chat, Judge celebrated the employees of Hotstart sharing that "any organization is only as good as it's people." Additionally, Judge highlighted the benefits and competitive advantages manufacturers like Hotstart can focus on to recruit and retain employees -  consistent schedule, robust benefits, and opportunity for growth.  During Johnson's address, automation in manufacturing was featured as a way to make improvements in factory and production roles. Judge pointed out that for Hotstart, automation doesn't only have to be on the factory floor, it can be in the office as well.  He highlighted the recent automation of a data entry role that freed up time of an employee to learn and do more, "providing more job fulfilment that helps people" rather than have them stay in mundane and repetitive roles. 

When asked what it would take to have Hotstart double it's business by 2031, Judge pointed out opportunities for the state and companies to look for commonality in policy. "Washington State prides itself on being a leader in energy efficiency," said Judge. "We (Hotstart) do so much with energy efficiency. If we could combine our efforts, help the state be an even bigger leader in energy efficiency, and show other states how they are doing it with Hotstart products, we could grow together and be an even bigger leader."

The full State of Manufacturing Address can be watched below as well as on the AWB website.