Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Welcome to Business Steps Up, a presentation of Hiali, one of the recognized voices in Long island business. We'll focus on cutting edge topics important to the Bi county region and beyond. So sit back, relax and listen to some of Long Island's most influential business leaders here on Business Steps Up.
[00:00:18] Speaker B: So good morning everyone and welcome to our Facebook and LinkedIn friends to this edition of Hiali Business Steps Up. This series started actually through Covid when we began to take a look at, you know, what are some of the organizations and companies that were helping out through Covid, both with face masks and many of the things they were doing. And it became so popular we kept it up. So no exception today, very excited to have John Giordano and Kevin D with us. John's from Citroen Cooperman and Kevin is with and Kevin I want to get it right American workflow software company. So welcome. They are both active members of the HIALI and proud to say committee co chairs of our manufacturing and international trade committee. So for those of you watching, The Hiali has 12 very active committees and they really are these gentlemen and the other volunteers are our frontline leaders and they're really helping us engage our members. So as you listen to what we're saying, we'll be talking about obviously manufacturing and international trade today. Please think about how you can get involved.
So let's start with John. I'm going to start with you, I'm just going to ask you introduce yourself and tell us a little bit before we talk about manufacturing. Tell us about Citroen Cooperman.
[00:01:40] Speaker C: Thanks Terry. Thanks for having us on and it's been a pleasure working with the HIA over the years and fortunate enough to start co chairing with Kevin here in the Manufacturing International Trade Committee here at the hia. Citra Koopman. For those of us that don't know us, we're a full service accounting and advisory firm with local offices here on Long island in both Melville and Jericho.
Traditional services that any CPA would bring, audit, tax. But where we really differentiate is the advisory solutions we could bring to companies. I mean we are a core middle market firm so we work very closely with middle market businesses. Closely held, family owned, private equity backed all throughout the gamut, various different entity styles, corpse partnerships and various different industries. So here at the firm, I co lead our firm's manufacturing distribution industry which is one of our second largest here within the firm. So we have a lot of core competencies within that space. But again our advisory solutions and really the handholding to the middle market is really where we differentiate. So thanks for having us, really appreciate it.
[00:02:39] Speaker B: Thanks. How about you Kevin?
[00:02:42] Speaker D: Thank you very much. Good afternoon and happy happy Friday. I'm Kevin Daveji and I'm with American Workflows Enterprise Software company. We are a business software publishing and distribution company nationwide. So we are specializing various business software systems for manufacturing and other industries. We are specializing machine maintenance management, quality and compliance management as well as CRM, customer relationship management and also business process digitization and automation. These are our basic expertise areas in enterprise software business.
Also I've been with HLI since 2018. Time flies. So it's been exciting journey with HLI and HLI manufacturing and international Trade Committee. So we work just like John mentioned. I work very close with John. We organize and facilitate education events to help support Long island manufacturers. Also in a way it also reflects on the nation as well in US Manufacturing. So we create and organize events to help support US Manufacturing Long Island Manufacturing and we focus on certain subjects such as we'll talk more about today. Hopefully we'll focus on talent acquisition retention as well as AI technologies and manufacturing technology in general as to help manufacturers get the latest information through our our group via hala.
[00:04:15] Speaker B: Great. And you know, as I, as I listen to your introductions, I think to myself the process end and the technology end, what a great combination that is right for a manufacturing and international trade for not only our focus but for the committee itself. So said to you guys before, can't thank you enough. You know, you have day jobs and you volunteer with us on a, on what feels like a daily basis when you do your planning. So we really, really appreciate, appreciate it. So you know, as we look at manufacturing, as you look at the landscape of manufacturing, there's roughly about 3,000 right now manufacturers on Long Island. So a heavy presence. We know that, we understand the importance of it. So talk to us a little bit about first how you were introduced to manufacturing and, and what that looks like for you in your daily business. So I don't know. Who wants to go first?
[00:05:10] Speaker D: John, please. Yeah, no problem.
[00:05:12] Speaker C: Yeah, I can jump in for sure. So yeah, as I stated in our opening, I'm, you know, I'm a cpa. You know I joined an accounting firm right out of school. So the bridge to manufacturing, how did I get there and how to make that primary focus of my, my career, my development and now I lead the industry here at the firm because of, you know, my experience in doing so, but how I got here. So when I first joined my firm, you know, you start as A staff. And you come in and, and you do a lot of work in various different industries. You know, you don't really specialize right away.
So a couple of cohorts that I started working with, they started working in, you know, real estate, you know, some in staffing and other service type entities, some in construction. And I got assigned to do, to do some inventory observations at client sites, you know, as a young staff person. So I really enjoyed when I first went in there, you know, something that makes tangible products, you know, being around customers that, that really contribute to the economy in terms of bringing market, bringing items to market, you know, and going there and seeing the warehouses, seeing the manufacturing floors and seeing getting that behind the scenes peak at that really piqued my interest and said, look, if I'm going to be stuck behind a desk doing accounting, you know, at least one of my client sites, I want it to be interesting, I want it to be fun. You know, I want to see something actually happening rather than just meeting, you know, I love meeting with people. I mean, this is the people industry, right? It's, it's, it's, it's accounting, but it's people industry. And I really just enjoyed, you know, the, the conversations we would have with them and, and understanding how their business works and, you know, how they think about their business and how really the passion that they have for it as well, I think is pretty, pretty intense. Like if you're in manufacturing, like you, you live it, you breathe it and. Yeah, so that was my real introduction to it and just working with those types of clients. You know, I remember being suspended on a, you know, on a forklift doing inventory counts on the top shelf, saying, there's no way this is compliant with anything OSHA or anything like that. But we were doing it, it was a long time ago, so. But it was, it was good. It was. And like I said, that passion within me, you know, as I said, if I'm going to be an accountant, which I, you know, I love that too, I want to work on clients specifically in that. And I grew my practice in that and you know, I took a senior leadership role here at the firm just to continue my focus in that area and become an industry expert. So.
[00:07:28] Speaker B: Yeah, and you know, I agree with you, John. I mean, when we've taken tours of manufacturing plants, it is absolutely amazing what's being made. And you know, even when you take a look at this Long Island Innovation park at Hop Hog, we have a, you know, a company that has won several Emmys because they make cameras, you know, Hollywood. And it just things you wouldn't even. It's very, very interesting and extremely entrepreneurial. Absolutely.
[00:07:57] Speaker C: Well, we could see it from a firsthand because when we run our committee meetings, you know, we really pushed for manufacturers to have us on site and, and the events that we can shameless plug for any manufacturers out there. We'd love to have you host us. So please reach out to Terry and the HA team if you want us to host at your facility. But we really do get our biggest turnouts because of that. Because people want to see manufacturing. They want to see it, they want to be there, they want to tour the plant, they want to see all the innovation that's happening because it's, you know, some of it's wild. I mean when we had the robotics in the HIA office with the, you know, the, the pallet mover, I mean it was, it was, it was crazy. And then we were gse, ge, Aerospace to start off January again. We get big turnouts for that because people are interested and there's no better way to really show off the innovation here on Long Island. Having these manufacturers open their doors to us and have us come in and host an event there and really, you know, pride themselves in the work that they do here. So.
[00:08:50] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, yeah. And again there's a lot of great things being manufactured, so absolutely. Our members love it as well. Thanks Kevin, how about you? How did you get introduced? You remember how you got introduced to manufacturing in general?
[00:09:03] Speaker D: Yes, absolutely. So I have about three decades of business experience myself. So my background is business and marketing fundamentally. And my first job, I started my career professionally in 1994. So first time I started to work for a group group they were specialized in food and beverage and textile. That was my first job. So I was in more in numbers. So was in finance department back in the time and I was, I started to be really curious about how the things are running operationally. So I was always visiting manufacturing department. I was talking to engineers trying to understand they are usually they like to be heard and they always have great ideas from, from business point of view. So that's how I actually got it introduced after that I work for a company in ceramic tile business and then I got into distribution and then I got into pulp paper and packaging industry. And during that time pulp paper and packaging is really heavy industry that basically makes paper. When we say paper we are talking about packaging paper like Amazon boxes or Heat Jim paper for example as we use it. So I was there as a marketing and Sales director in one of the companies, Papermates that I was working for. And they started me, they started to invite me to their manufacturing meetings weekly basis. So I became the voice of custom, voice of the customer. So anytime that they need to take some actions manufacturer wise and they were asking me, you know, how the customer will think, how the market will think or if I have any feedback in, in general. So there I was more getting to the manufacturing and the engineering of paper and pulp processes. I was talking to manufacturing engineers on weekly basis. So I was learning a lot. And just like John mentioned, so even though these we are in industrial times, there is a lot of machinery and equipment involved. The human, the people involvement and the effort that they put is amazing. And you get that excitement. So they are sort of, they're a type of artist in a way. They create it by utilizing the machinery and equipment. So seeing that enthusiasm also gives me, also motivates me for the manufacturing in general. So let me look at Long island and the region here in general. Just like you mentioned, we are talking about about 3,000 employees, 3,000 manufacturers and we are talking about 70,000 employees. This is a big market and an important for our region, also important for our nation. So just like John mentioned earlier, our goal is to make sure manufacturers in Long island they are also notified and they learn about what is going on in the market in general and what is coming up say that maybe an AI they may be at the technology in manufacturing in general. It is because times are changing because of the geopolitics. The importance of US manufacturing is more than before. So that also is the case in Long island as well. Utilizing AI, using manufacturing technologies to improve productivity in addition to safety. These are critical to be competitive in the marketplace. Not only in US, also globally. Right. So we like to focus on these subjects always in our manufacturing committee at Hili HLA is a great mission being in the, in the Innovation park in Hak also us being part of HALI as manufacturing and international trade committee. This is an important mission that we are doing our best to deliver and drive in the Long island area.
[00:12:49] Speaker B: Yeah. So you know, it's interesting as the three of us talk about this and I think we all feel the same way. That artist is a great way to describe it, Kevin. You know. Absolutely. I mean these are people that live for. Sometimes they're in a family owned business, a second generation, but they live for the creation of X, whatever X is. Yet. Yet. You know, when, when we're across the dining room table and we're talking to our kids. Right. We're not. Manufacturing is absolutely. In most households anyway, not the first thing that's mentioned.
And I really have always found that interesting because it's such a creative field. But again, parents in general aren't necessarily. And I think some of it could be the perception of, at least from a young professional, they might not feel like they can make as much money as they can by being something else. That could be some of it. But talk a little bit about that, because I think that has a lot to do with the talent pool and what happens with kids, how they decide, you know, whether they're going to go to college or the trades or things like that. So what have you seen, John, I'm going to start with you. You have a lot of manufacturing customers, right, that you're dealing with?
[00:14:04] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:14:04] Speaker B: What have you. What have you seen in that area? What are the struggles in terms of workforce development?
[00:14:11] Speaker C: Well, let's start with where you started, like, you know, talking about around the kitchen table or dinner table. Right. You know, it is probably not something that comes up as much or as out as often. You know, for a long time in this country, you know, higher education has been like, really what's been driven, you know, and I think a lot of that is driven from the high school levels on.
I'm fortunate enough in working with the HIA and running the committee. You know, we get introduced to various different programs here on the island. You know, Nassau boces, Suffolk Community College, all the programs they're running. Stony Brook has a tremendous program. There's apprenticeship programs available. But, you know, when you're going through the high school levels, yes, they make boces available for sure. But I think a lot of. A lot of the direction is usually towards the higher education, the universities and the colleges.
One of it, I think, is the experience, like the college experience that kids want to go through.
I think some of it also is, you know, the parents want to be able to, you know, boast their kids going to, you know, pick Alabama, Tennessee, you know, whatever. And they just want, you know, it's a prideful thing. It's nice to know, you know, and to be able to post and share that information, especially when the kids put in a lot of work and hard, hard efforts to get there. But it's not really something that's talked about because I think there is. There's more to be learned about it. You know, that's why we like to have our sessions on the manufacturing flushes. People could see, like, it's not, you know, it's not that assembly line of, you know, tightening one bolt and it goes to the next guy, he tightens the other. Bol. No, there's a lot more to it. And I think the tie ins with the local universities hopefully will change that stigma a little bit over time because there are various different avenues to get in. I mean, the apprenticeship programs are paid internship. Like a lot of people come out of school with all this debt and go in and have to work an internship that's, you know, barely paid a little play and then wait for that offer to come full time. But apprenticeship programs, you basically get paid to learn a trade and you could walk away with it. And sometimes that even supplements colleges and whatnot. So there's various different avenues and it all comes down to just, just getting more people out there and seeing it, I think. Yeah, I hope that addressed the question.
[00:16:18] Speaker B: No, you did. I mean, and listen, I, I've seen us make, particularly over the last three years in business, I've seen us make much more aggressive strides in that area because of the Suffolk Community Colleges and because of Megatronics and you know, because of many of the, the programs that are going on. Kevin, how do you want to weigh in on that or how do you feel about.
[00:16:42] Speaker D: Yes, absolutely. So.
Well, while manufacturing is evolving, also the relationship between manufacturing and the community also the next generation is also evolving as well. So in these times, for example, especially encouraging next generation to go to manufacturing industry. So there are a lot of things that we can do and we are doing. So one of the things, for example, is to make sure parents are notified. They are, they are, they are informed as to what is going on in manufacturing in Long island in terms of evolution of the manufacturing, what type of technologies are using. Also the old image of manufacturing being in a tough working environment. And, and also that is also changed. That also changed. It's come a long way now when you go to manufacturing environment. It's nice, organized. Also anything that you learn in terms of trade or knowledge, whether that's coding, whether that is operating a machinery, equipment or a method that, you know, we need all these talent for manufacturing actually. So also in terms of computerizing the manufacturing processes, it also come a long way. For example, now manufacturing runs with machinery and equipment supported by software systems. Even one of the most difficult jobs in manufacturing environment is machine maintenance. So the maintenance crews are always on the field fixing machinery, equipment, break and fix or prevent maintenance. That happens to be one of our expertise. I have insights in this. So now with the help of AI, the Software predicts the health of the machine months earlier. So the possibility of downtime is almost zero.
So this can, you know, give an idea to our audience as to how the manufacturing environment has come a long way and it's been changing. So having a. Having the coding knowledge language, whether you are coding in C Sharp or you can operate the software systems also very important for manufacturing. And also in manufacturing we need different talent. You don't have to go to college all the time. If you have a trade, if you can operate a machinery, equipment, cnc, software, community college. It has a great training programs for example, to put the trainees into the job positions, for example. That is also another option. I mean going to college is always encouraged. But then these are also, you know, other avenues that can be also explored. And you know, it can be an option too. In terms of being a machine operator, very important. We talk to manufacturers all the time in Long island. They have hard time finding CNC operators, machine operators. Some operators are being retired, about to be retired. So they are trying to get new generation to positions to make sure they are trained, they are ready to operate these machinery equipment. So the link between manufacturing and the new generation is critical. That is important for the, for, for the sustainability of manufacturing in Long Island. Also good for our region as well. They don't have to leave the region necessarily. We have schools, colleges, education, training, also manufacturing positions available.
So in that sense Long island has a great opportunity and new generation is also. They also have a great opportunity. Being in this region is also a fortune. That's great. So we should, you know, you will.
[00:20:06] Speaker B: You alluded to in that.
That I think the thing we want to remind everybody of is, you know, when you're, when you're looking at manufacturing companies, you're right, it's more than a factory line, it's more than a machinist. It's. There's an accounting department. You know, there, there are management opportunities. There are. I mean it's a business just like any other business for many of the young professionals or someone who's reinventing themselves. So I think that's equally as important. So you brought up AI twice. So let's talk about it because I'm very exc. Excited by the way. I use chat GPT because I'm old. So I'm excited about it.
[00:20:45] Speaker D: Absolutely. I'll just, I'll just continue, John, if I may. Yeah, appreciate it. Thank you. So, well, let me talk about AI of course. I mean this is very popular subject and it is changing our life and it will change our life fundamentally. So that is, that is a fact. And how it's going to change, what's going to be, we'll see. But then in terms of manufacturing, of course. So there are AI technologies available specifically for manufacturing.
So when during the manufacturing operations, safety is important, productivity is important. At the same time, you need to also make sure you have the supply chain in place. So these are all connected like a chain in a way.
Nowadays, the AI technology in general getting more accessible and affordable for manufacturers. When I say manufacturers, I'm not just talking about large manufacturers. Even small and mid sized companies can afford it now. They just need to be informed that these technologies are available. As I mentioned earlier, machine maintenance is one of them. If you have a machine and equipment, you need to maintain it. It's just like us taking care of our car. If we cannot take care take, if we don't take care of our car finally, eventually it'll break down somehow. Same mentality, same analogy for the, for the machinery and equipment. They need to maintain machine and equipment periodically. And with the AI technology it goes to predictive maintenance. So machine and equipment can be predicted in terms of their health and a little bit of detail. So the machine vibration, the temperature, the pressure of the machine, it gives an idea to AI based on past data which it is still learning. And it can predict that machine will be in need of maintenance three months earlier. Three months. So three months earlier you can put together your man, machine and material to main to perform that maintenance operation. For example, this is one example. And then we look at, for example, customer relationship, finding new markets, increasing the sale and expanding the market. A is also right now accessible and affordable. Using a CRM system is a good tool. CRM systems are affordable nowadays and with that they can analyze the markets accordingly. They can communicate with their target market with the help of these CRM technologies, for example. So the, so this technology, AI itself is not new. I joined an event before the technology goes all the way to 1950s, but now it is more affordable and accessible. And that's a great opportunity for manufacturers in Long island and in the nation.
[00:23:23] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, listen, we're talking about efficiencies, right? I mean, and that's, I think for the audience an important point because you know, when we talk to any type of organization about AI, there's a lot of fear involved, right? People feel potentially that it's going to take away their job. But really what it's about is getting to the end game potentially sooner, with a lot more information in a In a, in a more efficient, you know, fashion. So, John, I'm going to turn to you because I know Citroen Cooperman does a really good job of an extensive manufacturing survey. And I remember reading it, I can say last year I read it.
[00:24:04] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:24:05] Speaker B: Is it out yet this year?
[00:24:07] Speaker C: No, we're ready to go to market with it to, to start eliciting responses for our 2025. So.
[00:24:12] Speaker B: Okay, we're really excited.
[00:24:13] Speaker C: We're just in the final stages.
[00:24:15] Speaker B: Good.
[00:24:15] Speaker C: Deliverable will be probably about May again just as it was.
[00:24:18] Speaker B: So I remember last year reading two things that came out of the survey. One is high costs. We know that, right. That that always impacts any organization, particularly manufacturing. And how critical reminds me of AI, right, how critical technology is and to keep up with the technology of it. So talk to us a little bit about.
Since this survey this year isn't done yet. But, but talk to us a little bit about what you're seeing in manufacturing, what their biggest challenges are.
[00:24:52] Speaker C: Yeah, I mean, you know, just to stay on the technology front. You know, as Kevin was alluding to with AI, you know, a lot of are interested to know that, you know, the manufacturing space is one of the, is really targeted a lot by cyber criminals and whatnot. And it's because of a lot of the data that's there. Like everybody would say, well, what would somebody want with my small little manufacturing company? Well, it's about data and, and manufacturers retain a, a tremendous amount of data throughout the supply chain. So with that there could be a lot of disruption through cyber, but not to stay on. My point of going through that is to just stay on the data topic in terms of how much it could be used to their advantage. You know, Kevin was talking about AI, but there's also, you know, key metrics that they could use to operate your business.
[00:25:40] Speaker B: Right.
[00:25:41] Speaker C: You know, we have products that, that run through the erp. We make a lot of ERP implementations during the year to get people off some of these older outdated systems and onto these newer ERPs that could do a whole lot more in terms of what is it, you know, evaluating the key metrics. Right. Power BI is a term that's thrown around a lot and it ties into a lot of these newer ERP systems. We have, you know, whether it be forecasting or, you know, look at sales projections, demand, managing the demand, managing workflow, all that can be automated and help to run the operation better. You know, you said before that people are afraid of AI taking their jobs. It's. We don't see that as much, I mean AI is filling a void of jobs that they can't find people anyhow. And it's creating an opportunity for them to take jobs in house and upskill workers to do a little bit more of a more value added job like getting rid of some of these mundane tasks and having AI handle those, whether it be processing paperwork or you know, AP invoicing and stuff like that and taking those people that are in those positions and finding more ways that they can add more value to the company and bring more of a human element to other aspects. But yeah, we see a lot in terms of you know, the utilization of power bi in forecasting predictive sales, predictive demand processing, you know, in terms of working with suppliers and when they're going to need shipments, you know, managing lead times and stuff like that. So a lot of that data that's housed in these newer ERP systems, if you know how to operate it could seriously add efficiencies to the business.
[00:27:16] Speaker B: Yeah, and absolutely the tours we've taken and the manufacturers that you know, particularly one of them here that that has 12 locations, they're using a lot of that technology to again I go back to efficiency to run, you know, much more efficient. So we only have a few minutes left. Believe it or not. That one quick. I feel I don't know how you two.
[00:27:38] Speaker D: Yes, yes. Time flies.
[00:27:40] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:27:41] Speaker B: I do want to touch on two things. One is you know a new administration, a lot of executive orders coming down the pike. Obviously one of them being tariffs that that impact manufacturers can impact them in a very large way. So let's talk a little bit about that. What have you seen and how that a spin off on that is supply chain. Right. So we saw a lot going on in supply chain or lack thereof it through Covid and what have you seen happen with that? So let's start with the tariffs. They were late. Right. So Kevin, you wanna from an international trade.
[00:28:19] Speaker D: Yes, absolutely, yes. So the in international trade of course right now we are in really in a connected world in a global trade environment. So tariffs are being implemented in different forms. So this is not something new. But nowadays it looks like there is more and there may be more. That's how it looks as well. So. So what happens is it is going to affect the flow of the products coming in, coming out. That's going to affect it also it's going to affect the cost in terms of the consumers because when you have the tariff it's going to basically build on the product's cost and it's going to reflect on the end users eventually, so that reflect on the pricing as well. In terms of operations also, this may also be an opportunity. Sometimes tariffs also supports local manufacturing. There may also be an opportunity for us as well. So we'll see how it's going to play out. In general when we look at it, especially in Long island, for example, we have aerospace companies, life science companies, food and beverage companies. So any product subject to tariffs, any manufacturer that we have in our region is also an opportunity for us as well to increase the production.
So that is one way of looking at it. Another way is that of course, the supply chain from COVID years to now, it's come a long way, no doubt about it. Now it's, it's better than before, so it's more connected, it's more, it is safer, it's more sustainable. That is how it looks. So that also is a good news in terms of manufacturing as well. But the tariffs also the environment that it's going to create in terms of international trade is changing. So for that we have tools, right? We had before education events. So the, the trade department as well as New York State, they have tools and they have online available portals that manufacturers as well as distributors can get information as to what tariffs are being implemented, what is, what is going on in terms of latest news. So, you know, it is important to be informed, to make sure, you know, we can make the right decision.
[00:30:41] Speaker B: Yeah. So, you know, it's interesting. We had an event yesterday morning. It was a post, post election event with a lot of CEOs in the audience and we were talking about tariffs and one of the things that came up was how important it is to continue to build manufacturing on Long island and in New York State. Like they're doing two big chip chip factories and things like that. How absolutely critical that is. So when you look at chips even that are made in cars, you know how important that is. There's so many chips with a lot of the technology in the cars. So definitely. So John, how about you? What do you, what do you, what's your take on that? What are you seeing just in terms of the tariffs and the supply chain?
[00:31:25] Speaker C: Yeah, I, I definitely think it's going to cause a little stress and animosity initially once it gets underway. You know, as a country, we've been operating the way we operate for the last number of years. We did see it with the current administration's previous administration.
That makes sense. The last time President Trump was in, he did start implementing some tariffs. But yeah, There could certainly be an increase to the end using customer or an alternative to that could be that, you know, they'd be looking for some of the manufacturer absorb some of that cost to not have.
[00:31:53] Speaker B: Right.
[00:31:54] Speaker C: You know, some of that. So it could affect the profitability of some of the, the manufacturers here in the US Causing again for them to take another look at where they're getting the supplies from to diversify nearshore.
Obviously everybody would love to onshore it but we all know that to bring manufacturing back, you know, takes a lot of investment whatnot. And hopefully this is that, that, that push to get everybody moving in that direction. But also I think it, it'll give another opportunity for companies to look to diversify where they're getting product from to get to more nearshore.
Not so much dependent on high tariff areas because again it could be one of those things where we don't want to continue to increase inflation. So the, the government might look for some of those manufacturers to absorb some of that cost which could be detrimental to, to them. Yeah, so it's definitely going to be a balance and monitoring it throughout. I know, you know, here at the firm we monitor it very closely. We work with supply chain professionals to kind of monitor it. Subject matter experts. We're hopefully going to do, you know, a webinar or two down the road addressing it because it's on a lot of people's minds. It could seriously impact the way people do business here in the States and, and even abroad because you know, a lot of our customers have operations overseas and whatnot. And I know you mentioned chip manufacturers. You know, that's probably the, the largest aspect of manufacturing that gets imported. I'm not quoting numbers here. This is just my opinion of working the industry. But, but, but chips is probably one of the major things that, that people import from overseas. So to get some of that more here in the States would be a tremendous stride in, in moving manufacturing back here.
[00:33:31] Speaker B: Yeah. So could be a good topic for the Manufacturing and International Trade Committee. I don't know, but why don't we leave on that. So, so tell us a little bit of some, a little bit about your 2025 plans with the committee and what you feel that looks like you've been having some great tours. I have to compliment both of you. Really. So talk about 2025.
[00:33:53] Speaker D: Yes, absolutely. Well, so at the HALA Manufacturing and International Trade Committee our mission is to support and also grow, help grow manufacturing in Long island and the region. So having this important mission, we organize educational events on monthly basis so this year for 2025, we're going to be focusing on technology as well as AI. Also we'll be focusing on compliance and GMP compliance and safety processes that can be applied and must be applied in manufacturing environment. Also, we'll be organizing events especially for internship programs as well as apprenticeship programs. How manufacturers can utilize those to make sure next generation also can take place in manufacturing. So these are important subjects that we like to focus on. John, if you like to add any other insight, please feel free.
[00:34:53] Speaker C: Don't look, you know, like I said earlier, you know, we're always looking for more manufacturers to help us host and showcase all the innovation they have going on within their manufacturing facilities. It helps with that turnout. But yeah, our goal is education and bringing topics to light that manufacturers want to hear about. So if there's anything out there, you know, Kevin and I service the industry. So we, you know, we have a pretty good pulse on what people are looking to hear about.
But it always helps to. To get new innovative ideas and it's our job to, to populate the room and get subject matter experts to address those. I know we're gonna have hopefully somebody with some OSHA background give an update on OSHA audits. ISO compliance is another one that we have on our pipeline. Obviously trades. Trades tariffs is another area. We had somebody speak on that last year. I think it was our June or July meeting last year. We had somebody come in. Yes. Which got a very good reception. So we'll try and bring him back in and stuff like that. So, yeah, and just to remind, I don't think Kevin mentioned. I'm not sure if Kevin mentioned it, but with a third Thursday of every month. Third Thursday of every month. Check the Hil hili's calendar on the website for the events. Third Thursday of every month.
[00:36:05] Speaker B: Great. Thank you guys and thank you so much again. I mean, I hope what you've heard, if you're listening, is how important manufacturing is number one right to this region, to our young professionals, to creativity and, you know, what we build and how we build it and really how proud we are of Long island and New York State and what comes out of that. So, guys, thank you again. Really appreciate you volunteering with us and leading the way in your businesses as well. Thanks again everyone for. Have a good weekend.
[00:36:40] Speaker C: Good to see you, Kevin.
[00:36:41] Speaker D: Thank you. Same year. Thank you.
[00:36:43] Speaker A: Business Steps up is a production of hiali, one of the recognized voices for business on Long island and a powerful voice and economic engine for regional development. Check back for more interesting thought provoking episodes with some of Long Island's most influential business leaders. For more information, call us at 631-543-5355 or log on to hia-li.org.
