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PODCAST

Factory of the Future Podcast

AW Schultz & Alexandria Burek

Welcome to Factory of the Future brought to you by AW Schultz and Alexandria Burek.This podcast is focused on the intersection of technology and manufacturing, discussing emerging trends across multiple industries. You will find the topics covered are far reaching and are created to inspire everyone from the factory floor worker up to the executives running the organizations.AW has spent 20+ years helping organizations transform maintenance and reliability programs, hosting workshops and training

business management

All Episodes

41:09

#90: The Leadership Playbook for Tech Rollouts

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/10/06

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E90, The Leadership Playbook for Tech Rollouts Join us as we discuss: - Four leadership styles: adaptive, servant, transformational, authentic - Matching leadership style to the phase of a tech rollout - Authenticity vs. professionalism as a leader - Early leadership mistakes and lessons learned And so much more. Connect with A.W. Schultz Email: aw@awschultz.org Personal Website: https://www.awschultz.org/ Link...

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38:45

#89: Documenting the Family Recipe: Systematizing...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/09/29

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E89, Documenting the Family Recipe: Systematizing Your Operation with Adi Levit Join us as we discuss: - Tribal knowledge and what actually defines a business - Knowledge traps and single points of failure - The prioritize, capture, optimize, implement process - Treating applicants like customers And so much more. Get in touch with our guest: E-mail: adi@bizsuccesscg.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adiklevi...

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19:13

#88: Closing the Skills Gap: Apprenticeships, AI, and...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/09/16

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E88, Closing the Skills Gap: Apprenticeships, AI, and New Career Paths Join us as we discuss: - The Department of Labor's goal of 1 million apprenticeships by 2030 - AI, job displacement, and emerging roles - $162 million in new apprenticeship funding - The role of community colleges and universities And so much more. Connect with A.W. Schultz Email: aw@awschultz.org Personal Website: https://www.awschultz.org/ Linke...

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34:57

#87: Bryan DeBois on Autonomous AI vs. Generative AI

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/09/01

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E87, Bryan DeBois on Autonomous AI vs. Generative AI Join us as we discuss: - Why generative AI stays off the plant floor - Industrial knowledge graphs as the foundation for grounded AI - Infrastructure assessment as the starting point for AI readiness - An aging workforce and the race to capture expert knowledge And so much more. Connect with A.W. Schultz Email: aw@awschultz.org Personal Website: https://www.a...

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33:31

#86: Securing Your Data Supply Chain: Cybersecurity...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/08/18

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E86, Securing Your Data Supply Chain: Cybersecurity Law Meets the Factory Floor with Dr. Steven A. Wright Join us as we discuss: - Preventive legal strategy as a cybersecurity risk mitigation tool - Deepfakes, data poisoning, and data suppression as emerging threats - Operational technology as a growing attack surface — the Colonial Pipeline lesson - Quantum computing and the next wave of risk And so much more. You can find our ...

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27:10

#85: The Labor Shortage Myth: Why Manufacturers Can't...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/08/11

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E85, The Labor Shortage Myth: Why Manufacturers Can't Find Workers Join us as we discuss: - Accessing a broader labor pool of people with real-world commitments - Matching labor capacity to actual demand, not forecasted averages - Why staffing to averages creates burnout and drives attrition - Rated worker pools without the traditional temp-agency headaches And so much more. Get in touch with our guest via email: mhorine@veryabl...

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29:00

#84: Mineral War: How China Weaponized the Supply...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/08/04

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E84, Mineral War: How China Weaponized the Supply Chain That Feeds Manufacturing with Tomasz Nadrowski Join us as we discuss: - Why there is no manufacturing without critical minerals - China's export controls across 24 mineral sectors — and how they became a weapon - Low-hanging fruit: brownfield restarts, red mud and tailings recovery, smelter refurbishment - Antiquated permitting and the decades-long timeline problem with gre...

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36:29

#83: When AI Speeds Up Everything and Causes Burnout...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/07/28

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E83, When AI Speeds Up Everything and Causes Burnout in Humans Join us as we discuss: - Victoria Kunova explains how AI drives burnout when companies chase productivity gains over transformational value - The case for measuring success by human skills AI can't replicate rather than raw output volume - The organizational barriers to transformation—challenging the status quo, embracing risk and failure, and integrating new initiativ...

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34:23

#82: Why Anonymized Feedback Beats AI Resume Screening

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/07/21

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E82, Why Anonymized Feedback Beats AI Resume Screening Join us as we discuss: - How AI automation of technical roles is forcing a redistribution of manufacturing talent - Christian introduces TrueGem, an HR tool that builds defensible, auditable hiring by anonymizing reviewer feedback and structuring evaluations—deliberately not using AI for initial screening - Why organizations must shift from technical skill checklists to evalua...

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22:24

#81: AI or Bust: Five businesses, Five Ideas

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/07/14

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E81, AI or Bust: Five businesses, Five Ideas Join us as we discuss: - Rapid-fire AI ideas across industries - Same business; two different approaches: using AI for measurement accuracy and quality control versus automated before-and-after marketing campaigns - Autonomous AI agent communities And so much more. Connect with A.W. Schultz Email: aw@awschultz.org Personal Website: https://www.awschultz.org/ LinkedIn: http...

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34:44

#80: Kate Assaraf on Local-First Manufacturing and...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/07/07

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E80, Kate Assaraf on Local-First Manufacturing and Conscious Consumerism Join us as we discuss: - Sustainability as a fluid concept, not rigid rules - Why DIP avoids Amazon, Target, and hidden shipping plastic - How a team of seven cracked the secret to salon-quality bars that last - Building a company culture that puts people and quality first And so much more. Shop Dip: dipalready.com Connect with A.W. Schultz Email: a...

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39:24

#79: From Solitary to Advanced Systems: Christian...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/06/30

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E79, From Solitary to Advanced Systems: Christian Torres on Decision Intelligence Join us as we discuss: - Manufacturing inside Unicor - ISO internal auditing & Lean Six Sigma - Founding Stark Analytics & the rise of decision intelligence - The four types of analytics: descriptive, diagnostic, predictive, prescriptive - AI as both opportunity and threat in manufacturing And so much more. Get in touch with our guest: Busin...

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19:45

#78: 2030s– The Decade of Dark Factories

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/06/26

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E78, 2030s– The Decade of Dark Factories Join us as we discuss: - Dark factories & lights-out manufacturing going mainstream - Skills-based hiring vs. the four-year degree - Labor shortages driving advanced automation - Part-time work re-entering the market And so much more. Connect with A.W. Schultz Email: aw@awschultz.org Personal Website: https://www.awschultz.org/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/awschul...

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21:46

#77: Manufacturing's Future: Why Automation Is No...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/06/16

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E77, Manufacturing's Future: Why Automation Is No Longer Optional for U.S. Plants Join us as we discuss: - Why AI data centers may head to orbit—SpaceX's solar-powered data center test and the Anthropic–SpaceX partnership - The energy and supply chain squeeze: storage challenges, reshoring momentum, and continued reliance on Chinese minerals for semiconductors and batteries - Automation as a mandate, not a choice—how labor shortag...

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21:46

#76: How COVID, Reshoring & AI Reshaped U.S....

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/06/09

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E76, How COVID, Reshoring & AI Reshaped U.S. Manufacturing in the 2020s Join us as we discuss: - How COVID-19 exposed supply chain vulnerabilities and triggered a reshoring surge—roughly 360,000 jobs returned to the U.S. by 2022, a 53% jump - On-the-ground pandemic realities: safety protocols inside plants, plus the personal cost and professional growth that came with working through COVID - AI's transformative pull on the fac...

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32:31

**Special Guests** #75: From Food Truck to Robot...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/06/02

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E75, From Food Truck to Robot Barista: How P!ng's Founders Are Automating the Coffee Drive-Through Join us as we discuss: - From iRobot and Amazon Robotics to a food truck rush: how Rob's operator experience exposed the drive-thru bottlenecks p!ng now solves - Hub-and-spoke model: central kitchens serving multiple pods, plus the Cometeer flash-frozen coffee partnership - Infrastructure and scaling realities—power, water, solar pot...

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34:40

**Special Guest** #74: Grid-Scale Battery Storage:...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/05/27

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E74, Grid-Scale Battery Storage: Inside Inlyte Energy's Iron-Sodium Tech Join us as we discuss: - Antonio's path from Stanford's Chueh Group and the Activate Fellowship to launching a utility-scale battery company - How Inlyte's iron-sodium battery uses a ceramic membrane and abundant materials like iron powder and table salt to deliver safer, cheaper grid storage than lithium-ion - The manufacturing differences between iron-sodiu...

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44:56

#73: Reinventing the Safe: Oscar Hedaya on Building...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/05/19

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E73, Reinventing the Safe: Oscar Hedaya on Building Smart Security with The Space Safe Join us as we discuss: - Oscar's "aha moment": why he set out to modernize a product category that hadn't meaningfully evolved in 30 years, and how The Space Safe combines touchscreens, cameras, and connected software - Inside the build: manufacturing partnerships in Asia, quality control measures, and protecting innovation through utility paten...

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55:24

**Special Guest** #72: Leading with Character Across...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/05/13

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E72, Leading with Character Across Cultures: Björn Vikard on Global Manufacturing Spanning 12 Countries Join us as we discuss: - Managing unionized operations in India - Stories of how Björn advocates for women in manufacturing - Building an industrial park in Sri Lanka from scratch - The importance of self-awareness and listening skills required for effective leadership And so much more. Register Now for our Upcoming Indu...

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20:17

#71: Unionization Crossroads: Ethical Leadership in...

Factory of the Future Podcast ·

2026/05/05

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Factory of the Future, E71, Unionization Crossroads: Ethical Leadership in Manufacturing Join us as we discuss: - Core tension between operational efficiency and protecting workers’ safety and rights - Two extreme approaches: actively obstructing unionization and fully embracing it - The “Mediated Ethical Bridge” framework with prioritization on transparency, open dialogue, and proactive workplace improvements - The smarter long-term play: prepari...

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90 results

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