U.S. military veterans are finding post-service success at machine tool builder Fives Machining Systems, putting their troubleshooting skills and technical experience to work in field service and customer support positions. Since 2014, the company has hired nearly 20 former members of the various military branches at 10 field service locations throughout the U.S., as well as accepting veterans into its apprenticeship program.
"Finding qualified individuals is important to Fives as we continuously invest to build our network of field-based service technicians," said William Weier, director of human resources for Fives Cincinnati. "These folks serve on our 'front lines' in critical roles supporting our machinery in customer plants worldwide, and we've found that veterans bring well-developed mechanical and computer skills, discipline and the ability to be good team players, which are critical to our technically demanding business.
"We currently have three veterans in our apprenticeship program," Weier continued. "The program is certified through the state of Kentucky and apprentices earn a very competitive wage, with pay increases every 6 months as their skills increase." Going forward, veterans who enter the apprenticeship program will come in as advanced apprentices and will be required to complete a 1-year program versus a 4-year program for other apprentices.
Based on previous positive experiences with ex-military employees, Fives attends armed forces job fairs to recruit veterans. "Today's high-tech manufacturing requires a strong skills set, and we use extensive outreach pathways to secure the best and brightest candidates available, including active recruitment of military personnel whose enlistments are ending," said Weier.
With this military background, the field service technicians quickly ramp up to provide service for the company's machine tools, including the Cincinnati, Giddings & Lewis and Liné Machines products.
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