Iván Hernández Dalas: Veteran leads Isembard efforts to reshore U.S. manufacturing

Isembard is working to enable U.S. reindustrialization. Source: Isembard

For production to be effectively brought back to the U.S., small and midsize enterprises need at least as much help as large automotive or electronics manufacturers. Justin Baucum, a U.S. Army Special Forces veteran, found the Isembard distributed approach to manufacturing to be just what he was looking for after a career in the military and doing consulting work.

“I was brought in as Employee No. 1 in the U.S. as a general manager for Texas,” he told The Robot Report. “I wanted to do something where I felt a sense of purpose like going back to my time in the military, where it’s very mission-centric.”

“In February, I had a conversation with the founder, Alexander Fitzgerald, and he framed it as a diminishing supply of the Western manufacturing base and national capabilities,” Baucum recalled. “I did a little research following that conversation, and I became alarmed by all the trends I saw at a macro level. The mission of Isembard to forge industrial acceleration was one thing that attracted me.”

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MasonOS connects machines and workflows

London-based Isembard offers the proprietary MasonOS platform, which it said can connect robots, five-axis CNC machines, and automated workflows. The company has designed its software to help cut costs, shorten lead times, and enable smaller manufacturers to get the benefits of franchise support rather than lose their independence.

Justin Baucum, leader of the U.S. arm of Isembard

Justin Baucum, general manager of the U.S. arm of Isembard. Source: Isembard

“We’re aware of themes like reindustrializing and reshoring, which are great concepts, but I hadn’t seen a lot of activity a few layers down, with people on the shop floor, getting their hands dirty making things,” said Baucum. “Isembard’s fist site had just gone live when I was interviewing, and now we have four facilities that are pretty much maxed out for capacity for the foreseeable future.”

He acknowledged that making complex things such as semiconductors is harder than simply programming a 3D model into a machine but noted that manufacturers of all sizes are trying to do more with less human input. Isembard’s goal is to free workers from time-consuming tasks such as checking documentation or material flows so they can focus on their craft and quality, Baucum explained.

“We want [the U.S.] to be the place that actually everyone sends the most difficult things to because we have the capability,” he noted. “It’s going to take some reps, but we’ve learned from those early stages, and we’ll just continue to refine as we go forward with more deployments.”

Isembard franchise offers consistent service, market access

While the franchise model is commonly associated with fast-food chains, it can be applied to help mom-and-pop machine shops across the U.S., said Baucum. Smaller manufacturers represent a fragmented market but can benefit from a distributed network, common operating procedures, service quality, and speed of delivery, he added.

Isembard has opened a U.S. office in Dallas.

Isembard has opened an office in Dallas to support U.S. franchisees. Source: Isembard

“If folks started a business, they wanted some degree of autonomy, but I think most will agree that we’re stronger together, particularly when going after larger customers or aerospace and defense contracts,” Baucum explained. “They’d retain ownership of an Isembard-branded facility but get all the benefits of our resources. It allows for our customer base, rather than trying to manage 100 individual relationships, to interface with a single brand and be certain that they’ll receive the same level of service.”

Services could include help with marketing, allowing franchisees to even out demand across the network and year, and eventually help them select and invest in automation.

“I ran a Chick-fil-A franchise and got soft skills from Amazon operations, which is the premier place to learn supply chain,” said Baucum. “With my background in the military, I have experience working to solve not just one little thing but to elevate everybody.”

Veterans bring focus, teamwork to industry

“There’s something called PCCs and PCI, or pre-combat checks and pre-combat inspections. One’s for equipment, and then one’s for the human beings,” he said. “And the concept is basically, when you are going to go out on a on a military operation, before you leave the last safe position in the field somewhere, you go through this exercise where you’re like, ‘Does everybody have their guns? Does everybody have all of their ammo? Do you have all the things that you need to be successful?'”

“When I was in leadership positions, I physically checked each person and touched the equipment,” Baucum added. “I trusted the people, but I was also doing my due diligence. The same thing will come into play as we launch franchisees. We’ll have a deployment team that will spend time before and after to make sure they’re up and running successfully. Folks will go through the learning curve at different rates, but we’re not saying, ‘Here’s our brand; we’ll send you work, and good luck.’ It’s very much a partnership.”

Isembard plans to continue staffing up facilities in both the U.K. and U.S. to support its franchisees. Baucum will be speaking at a 51 Vets event this week, where he will share how the experience of veterans can benefit U.S. manufacturing.

“Every unit, regardless of whatever branch you’re in, you go through some sort of selection process, and then you have to pass your training, and then you get to be operational,” he said. “There was a moment in my selection process where I was physically crawling to continue forward momentum. That’s basically the sort of grit you need to have for doing something like making things.”

“But in those moments, you can realize what the end goal is, whether you’re on the franchisee side and you’re building a business for yourself and your family, but it’s also part of something that’s larger,” said Baucum. “We’re bringing back a capability that has eroded in this nation, and then we’re also making things for like hypersonics or parts for autonomous vehicles, and you’re able to see those in real time.”

“They’re on the front page of the news, and you’re like, ‘Hey, we we made that or made some portion of that,’ he concluded. “I don’t think you find that in a lot of a lot of different businesses. There’s nothing wrong with having, like, a lawn care business, but it may be lacking in terms of having a big purpose. I think that’s very attractive to the veteran population.”