Brenner-Fiedler: Riverside Innovation Spotlight
City of Riverside's Innovation Spotlight on Brenner-Fiedler
[Transcript]
There’s been a lot of talk lately about keeping manufacturing jobs in the U.S. Brenner-Fiedler, a company based in Riverside, California says it’s doing just that by hiring engineering students from local colleges and universities and focusing on automation.
Joe Manalastas, Senior Mechanical Engineer:
"A lot of the labor costs in California are going up, so automation, I think, is going to be a key factor in keeping manufacturing in Riverside."
The company has been creating and retrofitting devices for medical, industrial, and manufacturing industries. Using a team of engineers and fabricators, they create or modify existing equipment to make the customer’s device perform better, faster, and safer.
Joe Manalastas explains how they helped a recent client.
Joe Manalastas:
"We designed them an ergonomic table that allows them to automatically test three valves at a time. We made two of those tables a day, and now we can test six valves at a time and can easily increase their throughput by 700%."
When they’re not using robots or automation to help customers save time and money, they’re busy recruiting local talent at career fairs or being part of manufacturing day.
They focus on STEM students, who are skilled in science, technology, engineering and math because those students might become future interns or employees. Recently, they opened their doors to show students what a career at Brenner-Fiedler is really like.
Mallayana Bradley, Marketing Manager:
"We basically showed them what our facility was like inside. We taught them about manufacturing, we taught them about production, and we taught them about engineering."
The company recognizes that the industry needs to recruit more women. Not only do they have women in key positions, but one of them has a message for young women who are considering a career in STEM.
Rocio Hernandez, engineering project manager:
"There are a lot of opportunities out in the world with the new automation lines, new robotics coming through. Follow your dreams, make sure, be determined. There’s nothing really out there that will actually stop you if you’re really determined."
To find out more about the innovative products and solutions being developed by Brenner-Fiedler, contact Info@brfa.com