November 15, 2023 • 39 mins
Picture this: you're an apprentice with a knack for tools and building, and one day, you find yourself being a director at a company that's revolutionizing the construction industry. Welcome to the world of Andy Lambert, director of Product for One Key and Construction Technology at Milwaukee Tool. Lambert's remarkable journey is not just a testament to his tenacity and passion, but it's also a peek into the heart of Milwaukee Tool and its determination to reshape the construction landscape.
Ever wondered what it would be like if your tools could communicate with each other? OneKey, Milwaukee Tool's innovative solution, has made this a reality. Its robust Bluetooth tracking network, featuring asset ID tags and geo-fencing capabilities, is turning heads in the industry. But what's even more astonishing is how the company is harnessing the power of data and AI. From utilizing machine learning algorithms that enhance safety measures to optimizing resource use, Milwaukee Tool is truly at the forefront of construction technology.
But what does the future hold for the construction industry? According to Lambert, it's all about collaboration. Whether it's unions, trade associations, recruiters, or government agencies, everyone has a part to play in tackling workforce challenges and creating safer environments through the use of tools, drones, sensors, and wearables. And let's not forget about the profound impact of AI. With its potential to improve construction automation and predict maintenance and quality issues, AI is a force to be reckoned with. Tune in for an exhilarating exploration of technology's role in construction, seen through the lens of Lambert's experiences and Milwaukee Tool's innovations.
Contact the Future Construct Podcast Produced by BIM Designs, Inc!
- BIM Designs, Inc.: minority-owned, US-based, union-signatory preconstruction technology firm, offering turnkey BIM modeling, laser scanning, coordination management, and other VDC solutions to the AEC industry.
- Schedule a free consultation: sales@bimdesigns.net.
- Subscribe to our weekly blog and our Future Construct Podcast
- Suggest a podcast guest
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
All right, welcome to Future Construct.
I'm Mark Oda and the CEO of BIMDesigns Inc and guest host of
Future Construct.
Today I'm hosting Andy Lambert,director of Product for One Key
and Construction Technology atMilwaukee Tool.
Welcome, andy.
Thank you for making the timeto join me.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Great to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
I also want to thank Milwaukee Tool at large for
their incredible support,sponsorship and presence at so
many industry events.
Andy, as a union signatorycontractor, I've personally seen
Milwaukee sponsor and have metmany Milwaukee reps at United
Association and theInternational Association of
Sheet Metal, air Rail andTransport Workers Association,
(00:48):
golf tournaments, the annual UAinstructor training program in
Ann Arbor, michigan, evolves,mep Force annual conference and
industry conferences all aroundthe country, not to mention the
many tool walls I've seendonated by Milwaukee Tool at so
many of the local union traininghalls nationwide.
All of these apprentices andjourneymen learn their craft and
(01:10):
become their industry subjectmatter experts using Milwaukee
Tools.
I'm just so grateful for thetremendous support of Milwaukee
Tool and I really have seen theimpact on the entire
construction community.
So thank you, andy, and thankyou to Milwaukee Tool.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
Yeah, definitely, I know it goes both ways right.
It's support from the industryback to us as well and it's
definitely a great partnership.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
With that, Andy, I'd love to learn about your
background, your story andeducation and the path that took
you to Milwaukee.
Tool.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
Yeah, it's been a crazy one, I will say that, and
at times it didn't seem to makesense.
But kind of, when you look backit's like, oh, maybe it did.
I'll admit, since I was littleI've always really loved tools
and building stuff.
Sometimes, to the annoyance ofmy parents, I would find just
(02:05):
scrap pieces of wood in my dad'shammer and just go out and try
to build up a fort wherever.
But leaving high school,something I wanted to do was get
into the trades.
So I went down to the IBW 494here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,
and I'll admit, I thought that Iwas going to go down there and
(02:27):
be like yeah, you can be anelectrician.
Come on over and, to my dismay,it's actually a process that you
have to go through.
You take the test, which, againto my dismay, it was like
science and math and English.
It says nothing to do withbeing an electrician, but I took
it nonetheless.
And then you go up in front ofsome NECA executives for a
(02:49):
formal interview and I rememberthat was probably one of my most
nervous times, mostly because Iwanted to be an electrician so
badly.
So I remember vividly thatentire interview.
Thankfully I got my Eagle Scoutas a young kid and some of the
NECA representatives reallyappreciated that, but they could
(03:12):
see my passion, although thiswas back in 2001.
So the unfortunate news I heardwas business was slow and they
were maybe not puttingapprentices out that year, and
if they did, it'd be maybe 20.
And oh yeah, by the way, thelist is about 600 people long.
So I kind of left my headbetween my legs just being like,
(03:35):
ok, maybe this won't happen.
And then a month later I got acall and I was out as an
apprentice.
So they in fact put 20 peopleout.
I was one of them and I kind ofreally enjoyed being a
tradesperson and learning thetrade as an apprentice, going to
the schooling at night and hada ton of fun.
(03:55):
The projects I was able to workon were really things that you
look back on and you go past abuilding today and you're like,
yeah, I worked on that, I put upthat fixture and I pulled the
wire through that building fromhospitals to schools, to
churches, even malls.
Unfortunately, work reallyslowed down.
(04:16):
There was a downturn inMilwaukee before the big
downturn and we're struggling tofind days to work.
So that's kind of when Idecided I appreciated my skills
that I had attained there but Iwanted to go back to school and
get a degree in business BecauseI thought in the back of my
head, maybe I could be acontractor myself someday.
(04:37):
So I went to school, poundedthrough a four-year bachelor's
degree in all things accounting,the reason being I thought it
was the hardest business degree.
I think it was.
But I left being like, yeah,I'm never going to be an
accountant, that's just not forme.
But being a drummer in a band, Ihad some friends that also had
(04:59):
a counter-degrees but worked inconstruction, erp software and
got me an end to a company,konto Technologies, out of
Milwaukee, and I was able totake that internship and really
make it into a career.
So I ended up getting offered afull-time job where I was doing
(05:20):
ERP implementations.
It allowed me to travel NorthAmerica, get in the field and
the back office of contractorsand implement enterprise
solutions and I learned a tonabout how contractors businesses
are run and a lot of thecomplexities around that you
know, from a finance andaccounting to construction,
payroll, to job costing, projectmanagement, service management,
(05:43):
tool and equipment managementyou name it right, because an
ERP is, you know, trying tomanage the gamut of needs for a
contractor.
And I took about five yearsthere, then worked in account
management, did some salesengineering, built a kind of an
LMS program for our end usersand was the director of
(06:04):
construction technology, or whatwe call an application of
construction technology, whichwas really just sales
engineering focused.
But it was then that I was.
I started meeting some folks atMilwaukee Tool at, actually you
know, some of the trade orgs Ithink it was MCAA that actually
kind of got in front of some ofthe right people.
(06:25):
It's been a couple years goingback and forth with Milwaukee
Tool about some opportunities,went in for an interview and
immediately decided like hey, Ithink this is the next chapter
of my career and that was aboutfour years ago and I haven't
looked back.
It's been a.
It's been a wild ride.
I'm still technology focusedhere at Milwaukee Tool.
(06:46):
More on the digital side, youknow, like one key, our smart
tool and inventory managementplatform, as well as just really
understanding you knowtechnology throughout the
industry and with Milwaukee Tool, really you know wanting to be
a solutions provider, not justthe Power Tool company.
It's interesting justnavigating throughout the
organization, workingcollaboratively, cross
(07:08):
functionally, in understandingthe application of technology,
the latest technology you knowand how we can utilize it
internally as we develop moreand more products.
So that's where we are today.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Yeah, thank you so much for sharing, andy.
I really enjoyed hearing aboutyour background and I am excited
about speaking about where weare today, digging in a little
bit about the past there andbeing an Eagle Scout.
My younger brother is actuallyan Eagle Scout, so I have a lot
of pride and you know how muchwork it takes to get there.
Speaking to all the other EagleScouts, or potentially Eagle
(07:41):
Scouts, what do you, whatrecommendation would you have or
type of approach would you sayis advice for those individuals?
Speaker 2 (07:50):
I'd say I've.
Every time I've been in a jobinterview and it hasn't been
that many times obviously, it's,you know, probably becoming an
electrician, Penta or MilwaukeeTool.
It was always.
It has always come up and itwas one of those things that
just kind of differentiates youfrom the crowd.
I think those that are familiarwith the process of becoming an
(08:12):
Eagle Scout are aware of youknow that it's not easy.
My advice for anyone that's inscouting is don't wait until the
last minute, because I turnedin my final paperwork three days
before my 18th birthday, so Iwas at the very last minute and
there was no going back afterthat.
Either everything was in orderor it wasn't.
(08:33):
So I had to make sure all myT's were crossed and I dotted,
and thankfully they were.
But I definitely look back atthe skills attained in there,
from leadership to working as ateam, soft skills, hard skills,
you name it.
It was definitely a goodprogram to be in and you know I
(08:54):
always look back on those skillswith appreciation.
And it was funny even at myMilwaukee Tool interview I
interviewed with three people,two of which I found out then
were Eagle Scouts as well.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
That's amazing.
Thank you very much for sharingthat, andy, and a little shout
out to my younger brother, ryan,for the accomplishment as well.
You also mentioned MCAA, anddid I understand, or hear you
correctly, that you learnedabout Milwaukee Tool at an MCAA
event?
Speaker 2 (09:26):
Yeah, it was.
I've been in the industry forover 20 years now and just out
of nowhere, you know, you juststarted seeing Milwaukee Tool
and just doing everything really, like you had mentioned, being
an integral part, you know, tothose trade organizations, those
events and, being from, youknow, born and raised in
Milwaukee, wisconsin, it wasjust like that came out of
(09:50):
nowhere, you know, and now Iknow why that was and how we did
that right, because we've beenin business since 1924.
We're coming up on our 100thyear anniversary and you look
back at the history, really, thedisruptive innovation, you know
, driving solutions and safetyand productivity came probably,
(10:15):
you know, the 2013,.
You know kind of timeframe waswhen it, you know, really
started and a lot of that is atrue testament to our leadership
team and you know, whenMilwaukee Tool was bought and
the leaders that came in, it wasjust a good, a good reset, you
know, for the organization andeven since I've started here,
just the massive growth in thenew product development engine
(10:37):
that we've created and thepartnerships you know, that we
can continue to invest in.
It's been an amazing experiencefor me and, I think, the city
of Milwaukee and the company asa whole.
Speaker 1 (10:50):
That's beautiful, and I'm also so grateful for the
MCAA and SMACNA institutions andassociations that they are, for
the sponsorships and thepartnerships that they create in
the community, especially thecommunity that they build.
So, so, so pleased andcelebrating their
accomplishments throughout themany decades.
Well, I'd love to dive deeperinto your role and talk about
(11:15):
one key and then getting intothe future after this short
break.
Andy, does that sound good?
Speaker 2 (11:19):
Sounds great.
Speaker 1 (11:24):
Hello and thank you for your interest in our firm.
I'm Mark Odin, ceo of VimDesign Zinc.
Our firm is one of the largestpremier single-service union
signatory, with over 25 NationalUnited Association and sheet
metal workers locals utilizingUS-based detailers.
For over six years, our unionmembers have provided
(11:46):
high-quality Vim detailingdeliverables, coordination,
schedule, constructionmanagement and project controls
consulting services for over 100projects to construction
companies working in largecommercial projects in the areas
of education, government,hospitality, healthcare,
biopharmaceutical, semiconductor, entertainment, as well as
(12:08):
mixed-use residential andcommercial buildings.
We have become subject matterexperts in not only the
execution of using Vimtechnologies but also the
management of the Vim process.
We have proven to be dependableconsulting professionals with
strong communication skills,leadership skills and
technically sound backgrounds.
We hold ourselves accountableto the highest ethics, where our
(12:30):
core values are quality,performance, trust and ethics,
solutions-driven innovation,teamwork, community engagement,
ownership of commitments,diversity and inclusion.
Vim Design Zinc can help yourconstruction, general
contracting, engineering orarchitecture firm by providing
expert tradesmen who know how toprecisely design, model and
(12:54):
manage your systems, as well asdependable consulting
professionals who can makestrategic and timely decisions.
We are Vim professionals,industry experts, strategic
thinkers whom align people,processes, technology and
metrics.
Contact us at sales atVimdesignsnet for a consultation
and to discuss your projectneeds.
(13:15):
We'd love to work with you.
Thank you, welcome back toFuture Construct.
I'm here with Andy Lambert,andy, so I want to dive into
your current role at MilwaukeeTool.
What exactly is OneKey and howdid that product come to life?
Speaker 2 (13:35):
Yeah, onekey is a digital product of ours as well
as IoT, but it's a smart tooland inventory management
software product.
It came about in late 2015,early 2016.
It was really a solution in thesearch of a problem back then.
It was industry first, from acompany like ours, and it was
(14:00):
really leveraging IoT technologyand power tools through
connectivity.
We knew we wanted to do thatwhere the smart tools and how we
could leverage connectivity inthe tool space.
But from a user experiencestandpoint, we also knew that we
needed that software userinterface.
(14:23):
We had embedded Bluetoothtechnology into the electronics
packages of our tools.
It was when we launched.
It was about seven power toolsat the time.
Then just an easy little appiOS, android and web that
allowed you to keep a tool listof the tools that you own, which
allowed you to connect up tothe tool and really customize
(14:44):
the tool settings, whether it'sRPMs, torque Control or even how
long the work light stays on.
But we also were able totransmit through that Bluetooth
advertisement some locationupdates on the tool.
And then you had your littleapp that you could manage that
list of tools.
But since that time it's reallyevolved.
(15:07):
Our user segments go fromindividual user that bought a
OneKey tool and downloaded theapp to interact with that tool,
all the way up to the largeenterprise which is managing a
fleet of tools in multiplelocations some 50,000 plus
inventory items that they'remanaging in the app.
So the product has reallyflourished.
(15:31):
I'd say it started as a solutionin search of a problem.
The industry is now realizingthe problems that are fit quite
well for our solution and wecontinue to invest.
We have over 85 connected toolsnow in all three battery
platforms, from M12 to M18 toour MX Fuel Light Equipment
lineup, and our enterprisesoftware continues to grow in
(15:55):
features and functionality.
And our tracking and locationservices engine is probably the
industry's strongest crowdsource Bluetooth tracking
network.
And a couple other productscame along the way our little
Bluetooth tracker that you couldput on anything, our asset ID
tags, which are justconstruction grade barcodes and
then lately just understanding.
(16:17):
We're collecting a ton of datathrough either connected tools,
tracking and location servicesor inventory management.
We really wanted to extend thevalue proposition because we're
really seeking to driveaccountability, visibility and
operational efficiencies aroundtool management that extends
into these other businesssystems and we're not just a
data silo.
(16:38):
A lot of times we're not thesource of truth for data.
So, getting into more and moresystem integrations, whether
it's on the location servicesand network side, or the
operation side with projectmanagement, bim, you name it.
So we've been leveraging ourexternal API to really start
(16:58):
creating more workflowefficiencies through integration
partnerships.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
That's absolutely incredible.
I'm impressed with thetechnology platform that you
have created and the foundationthat you're building at
Milwaukee Tool.
It's really impressive to seethese live technology platforms
be applied to these tool usecases.
Like you're saying, managing afleet of over 50,000 tools, and
how technology wraps up into allof that.
(17:24):
I've heard about thegeo-fencing capabilities of some
of the tools.
What does one key fit into thegeo-fencing and theft protection
?
Speaker 2 (17:36):
Yeah, and it definitely helps with that
protection, but just generalawareness and visibility of
where your assets are at anypoint in time.
It's interesting, as we'reresearching with end users, A
lot of times they think thatthey have loss when really they
have lack of visibility.
So the geo-fencing capabilityis something that we introduced
a couple of years ago.
(17:56):
But if you're managing placesand that could be a tool, crib
or a job site, because the toolshave that embedded connectivity
into them through Bluetooth byputting a digital geo-fencing
around a location, so if you'reon our web app, you're using
Google Maps and you put in theaddress and you're allowed to
(18:17):
put in that geo-fencing aroundthat address.
Or even on the Android or iOSApple Maps, on iOS you can do
that same feature.
So when you transfer tools to alocation and I'll say, okay,
this is my home, and if I leavehome, I'm going to send an alert
back to the team that I've left.
(18:38):
We recognize that sometimes jobsites are broken into at night
and tools are stolen.
Other times, because of thistransient nature of the
workforce and construction,people go from one job to the
next and they'll take some toolswith them.
So the geo-fencing capabilityalso automates the communication
from that tool that says I'msupposed to be here, but now I
(19:00):
crossed over into this othergeo-fencing.
Now I'm here so that the backoffice can just click a button
and transfer that tool to thatnew location.
But we do have the times wherejob sites are broken into, tools
are stolen and you have somechance of recovery because
you'll still get pings throughour crowdsource network and you
(19:22):
have the ability to mark.
A tool is stolen and ournetwork will disable that tool.
So now the thief has a toolthat no longer works for them
and chances are that it'll betaken to one of our service
centers to get fixed.
But the service centers willrecover that tool and take it to
the rightful owner.
It does happen.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
It's absolutely incredible, andy.
I'm so impressed with thatwhole supply chain interaction
that you're speaking of, basedon, and I love to hear, your
attunement to listening to thevoice of the customer.
Based on your prior experiencein interactions with clients and
customers, what lessons haveyou learned in bringing new
products to market and also insustaining products that are
(20:04):
already in the market?
Speaker 2 (20:07):
Yeah, the real source of value for us as a product
organization is the end userthemselves.
It's one thing that we do, it'sin our culture, it's in our DNA
.
At Milwaukee Tool, we want tobe solutions providers and we
know whom we're making solutionsfor.
So we spend a significantamount of time out in the field,
on job sites, with GoProcameras, having conversations
(20:32):
with the end user, being in theback office, understanding their
challenges, their pain points,asking those open-ended
questions and, last but notleast, just observing, Because
you'll sometimes you ask someonewhat their problem is.
They're gonna tell you whattheir problem is, but we want to
root cause that right.
(20:52):
We really want to understand it.
So we'll spend a lot of timewith our GoPro.
It's just recording andobserving and understanding the
entire process, the workflow.
We're looking for waste.
It's the Tim Woods method oflean.
We're also looking at thingslike ergonomics, how people are
(21:13):
working, how people arecommunicating, and we're trying
to find things that are going toreally be a value add to the
end user.
And then it doesn't end there.
It's the ability to doprototyping and getting
solutions in the hands of theusers as fast as we possibly can
, so that we can come back, wecan learn, we can iterate.
(21:34):
So the end user is really atthe middle of all of that.
I think it's easy sometimes tojump to a conclusion right, or
just leverage qualitativefeedback from what you've seen
in pockets.
But also we leverage a ton ofdata and it's really easy with a
(21:55):
digital solution because data'scoming in left and right.
But we want a really good mixof quantitative research data as
well as qualitative, really putthe user at the center of that
and develop real solutions thatare going to make their lives
better in the whole.
And that's what's really funabout being on the product side.
Speaker 1 (22:16):
Yeah, personally I love the product development
cycle and observing the endusers and building that roadmap
and looking into the future.
So, as we start to shift gearsinto talking about the future,
what are some modern productdevelopment methodologies or
systems that help Milwaukee tooloperate efficiently and build
product efficiently?
Speaker 2 (22:37):
Yeah, and we've, you know, I've definitely my history
at seen a bunch right.
When I started it was allwaterfall.
I know that we've a lot of itis, you know, focused on growth
and scale, and growth issomething that we've gotten
really good at, you know, andscale is what you always are
challenged with.
You know what worked yesterdaymay not work tomorrow because of
(22:59):
you know the size of yourorganization, your department,
the amount of softwareengineering you have and other
roles within the digital org.
So we just continue to evolveLike you cannot get comfortable.
We were, you know, playingaround with Scrum.
Then we kind of startedleveraging Safe.
That's the scaled agileframework and you're constantly.
(23:20):
I think one of the things thatI've realized is that there's
all these methodologies outthere, but it's perfectly okay
to take the good from one andthe good from another and make
them work for your uniquescenario and how your org is set
up.
I think it's a mistake to drinkthe Kool-Aid, as I'll say, and
(23:41):
get into one because it may notmeet all of your needs.
And what's interesting for usis we build software that
supports our NPD teams, but thenalso pure inventory management
software.
So we are unique and we'redefinitely probably sitting in
where we take the best or thegood of scaled agile framework,
but make it so that we cancontinue to meet our end user
(24:04):
needs the way Milwaukee does,and that's, you know, rapid
iteration, rapid innovation andgetting solutions out to our end
users as fast as possible.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Being a rapid innovation, milwaukee Tool
recently joined the OracleIndustry Lab, which is located
outside Chicago and Deerfield.
Pardon me, it's located outsideChicago and Deerfield, illinois
.
The Oracle Industry Lab isdescribed as a unique idea
incubator designed to helpbusinesses in a variety of
industries tackle their mostcomplex challenges.
Can you tell me a little bitabout how participating in the
(24:38):
Oracle Industry Lab has impactedthe vision for Milwaukee Tool
moving forward?
Speaker 2 (24:42):
Yeah, it was.
You know I was part of thatfrom the beginning and it was
actually how we got introducedto the lab was through some end
users of ours.
You know that they were usingOracle products.
They were in the lab's earliest, earliest days and it was just
a gravel parking lot with alittle steel structure.
We were brought in because youknow Oracle, you know like many
(25:03):
are trying to really support andbuild these ecosystems and you
know understanding that they'rea source of truth.
You know, through a lot oftheir AEC solutions, what are
some of the you know morestrategic, innovative industry
partners that could join themand really create this lab where
you can test and get hands on,both from the vendor and
(25:25):
supplier standpoint, as well asthe end user, and test out these
newest technologies.
So you know, we got on site.
Our digital, our M12 digitaltorque wrench was just coming on
the scene.
It was something that we usedas just hey, here we have this
torque wrench that is collectingtorque data.
How could we leverage that dataalongside Oracle?
(25:47):
But what I wasn't expecting wasthe relationships with other
partners that we're going toflourish there.
You have, you know, frommaterial management to labor
management, to job site securityand cameras and drones and all
these other partners that aregetting into VIM and BDC
solutions.
You start to become, you know,a single unit that's looking at
(26:11):
bringing this end user in,hearing their pain points and
not solving them as one company,but a bunch of companies
together that has, you know,different stakes in the game.
That's when you really drivemassive innovation right, when
it's you go further togetherthan you can alone sometimes.
I think that was the mostinteresting thing that I wasn't
(26:32):
anticipating coming out of thatlab.
but gotta get hands on and yougotta get the right people in
the room and that's what they'redoing over there and it's been
fun.
Speaker 1 (26:42):
That's great.
It's a consortium or a team ofinnovators across many different
institutions.
So, yeah, I'm excited to learnmore about what comes out of
that lab and congratulations onyour partnership there.
Thank you, as we look at howMilwaukee Tool is leveraging
latest technology and your heavyfocus on data and managing
large assets sets, where do yousee artificial intelligence, ai,
(27:07):
playing into the analysis ofthat, or how do you see that
integrating into your toolsetinto the future?
Speaker 2 (27:14):
Yeah, I would say, you know, it's definitely
something that we're payingattention to and it really
starts with that capability ofdoing machine learning and we're
starting to leverage thattechnology.
In fact, we just released afeature we call AutoStop and
it's on our Threaders, it's onour Hammer Drill Driver, it gets
(27:36):
into some of our cutoff sawsand it's you know, really,
because we've been, you know,leveraging technology in our
tools with sensors and controlsand our electronics package and
the data histograms you start to.
You know, you're collecting awealth of data about conditions
(27:56):
when a tool is being used andone of the things that we
recognize is, you know, some ofthe injuries that happen on job
sites and a lot of that is withjust poor tool management and a
tool binding up and taking yourrisk for a ride.
So it was one of the first waysthat we're applying machine
learning algorithms is takingall of that data and doing a ton
(28:18):
of testing with our tools,embedding a machine learning
algorithm in there that cansense that bind up situation
before the user can Offer youthe ability through one key, to
adjust the threshold that you'rewilling to take, but shut that
tool off before that injuryhappens.
And I think that's just thestart.
That's just the start formachine learning and AI,
(28:43):
although I also recognize, youknow, how the industry as a
whole can leverage things likegenerative AI, and I think you
know sometimes you got to lookoutside.
You know the industry a littlebit, but the challenges that our
industry has going forward isreally how do we optimize our
(29:04):
resources, how do we predictmaintenance and quality issues?
How do we improve constructionautomation?
How do we train up our people?
And you know there's a ton ofuse cases right there for AI and
I'm excited to see kind ofwhere the industry goes and
where we continue to go insupport of meeting those
(29:25):
challenges with that technology.
Speaker 1 (29:27):
Yeah, thank you for sharing your thoughts.
I share in your excitement,andy.
So much so we're going to lookat the past here to predict the
future further.
So in October 2019, youpublished an article titled
Build Tech for predictions forthe future of construction,
where you made predictions aboutworkforce safety, productivity
and material cost.
Four years or more later, I'mincredibly impressed that your
(29:50):
predictions were very wellaligned with reality, so much so
.
In terms of workforce, youpredicted that there would be a
labor shortage and that unions,trade associations, recruiters
and government agencies andinstitutions would all have to
work together and collaborate.
On the safety side, you talkedabout how tools themselves will
advance and help create moresafe environments, as you just
(30:15):
spoke about now, also speakingabout drones and sensors and
wearables taking a much largerrole in construction.
And then, for productivity in2019, you were talking about
lean methodologies andprefabrication and 5D modeling
and collaboration withtechnology and big data driving
(30:37):
these real-time decisions.
So this is all four years ago.
You wrote this.
This is incredible.
And then you spoke aboutmaterial costs how they'll
continue to fluctuate as aninconvenient variable in
construction management, and Ithink all of us know that that
absolutely happened.
So I'm just absolutely stunnedwith that article.
Congratulations on thosepredictions and, as we look at
(30:59):
the next four years, what do yousee as the future of
construction?
Now, I mean, many of thesepredictions came true.
What are you forecasting?
Speaker 2 (31:07):
Yeah, I don't know if I was lucky or if I just needed
to buy a lottery ticket tonight, but all of those continue to
ring true and I think the onething that we've, if you look at
the challenges ahead, thingsthat we can predict with some
level of certainty, things likethe infrastructure bill they're
great because our infrastructureneeds that boost.
(31:28):
But just even in commercial andindustrial side, our cities,
our buildings are in decay andare becoming decrepit and just
the demand for construction isgoing to continue to increase.
So that workforce development Ithink I've just started to see
in the last kind of year or sothe industry really put some
(31:51):
weight behind it.
I'm extremely impressed withwhat I see in heavy duty or the
heavy metal summer program.
You know, let's start on theWest Coast and it's moving on
the East Coast and gettingyounger.
The younger generation isexcited about construction.
I think you know we're going toneed to continue to recruit in
this industry because the demandis only becoming greater.
(32:13):
But also prove to the youngergenerations that this isn't
their grandfather's industryanymore.
Right, we're continuing toevolve, we're continuing to
leverage technology and use thatas a recruiting tool and
attracting you know people intothe industry because you get to
a point where it's just too late.
You have to get into middleschool and high school and
(32:38):
really leverage STEM educationand I see you know a lot of
interest from the trade orgs ingetting down to that level.
So I think that we'll probablyget to a place where we're
talking about a much moretechnology advanced industry as
not just a way of executing workbut as recruiting those next
generations in starting to seeit stick.
I think just things of like thematerial side, things that you
(33:05):
don't have control over we'lljust recognize that we don't
have control over that, but wedo have control over how
efficient and productive we are.
Prefab is probably going tocontinue to grow and I think
what's going to really allowPrefab to take on is been
modeling and collaboration andsome of the AI capabilities that
(33:27):
we have in leveraging all ofthe data and the massive amounts
of data.
I think that's the one thingthat is truly inspiring me right
now is we're getting a lot moredata off of our job sites in
massive amounts compared to fiveyears ago, 10 years ago, just
based on, you know, the sensortechnology that is being rapidly
adopted, you know within ourjob sites and how we leverage
(33:50):
that data will change the waythat we plan and design and
execute work going forward.
So I think we'll start to seemore on the modular construction
, more on the Prefab and muchmore predictive execution of
work versus what's historicallyfor decades been a very reactive
way of doing work.
And I think the way we trainand onboard you know the next
(34:12):
field execution leaders will bevastly different, based on
things like generative AI it's.
You know, I've seen in the pastthat every now and then you find
a good form and a good projectmanager and you put them on your
big jobs.
I think we're going to be ableto take all of the good from
those and leverage it andtraining up all of the form and
(34:35):
project managers andsuperintendents that are out
there and really focusing on thevaluable work that they could
do and starting to automate thatless valuable work and train
them up in the process.
So I think I think for thefirst time you know if I look
forward we're going to becontinuing to increase our
levels of productivitythroughout the industry,
(34:55):
attracting new talent andmanaging what's in our control
and just things like materialprices Not for us to debate,
right, those are otherindustries.
Speaker 1 (35:09):
I love the predictions.
Thank you so much.
Just such strong alignment withwhat I'm seeing as well.
And, you know, anacknowledgement to the,
especially the trade partnersand the unions that train and
develop multi-generationalskilled subject matter experts.
And, you know, a shout out tothe technology adoption that
(35:31):
those trade unions are making toattract that new talent.
And every generation is builton the shoulders of the prior
generation.
So, you know, just want tohonor the fathers and the
grandfathers and the mothers andthe grandmothers that have
helped us get to where we aretoday and I'm so excited about
the future and moving in thedirection of recruiting that
(35:52):
younger generation, especiallywith, you know, so much
creativity and technologyadoption.
That is that the constructionindustry is just geared up for
and we're right at the heels of.
I just want to say, andy, as afinal question of the show and a
tradition of future construct,if you could project yourself
(36:12):
out 25 years and wanted to haveany device or technology that
would benefit you personally asAndy Lambert, what would it be
and what would it do?
Speaker 2 (36:22):
Yeah, 25 years.
Hopefully I'm getting to thatpoint of retirement Fingers
crossed, and I think there's alot of different toys I'd love
to have, but I think by thattime what I'd really appreciate
in my life would be that AIadvisor, someone that knew me
(36:44):
inside and out and couldrecommend what does that
retirement look like and how doI get the most out of those
years, those cherished years oflife, when you can kind of
reflect back on your legacy, youknow, throughout your career,
but really focus on doing allthe stuff that you didn't have
time for before.
I just fear I won't be able toget the most out of that.
(37:07):
And if I had that AI advisor atmy fingertips that knew me
inside and out and could makethose recommendations, I would
take full advantage of that.
Speaker 1 (37:19):
Yeah, I love that so much.
Andy, I'm not sure if you keepup with internet memes it's
pretty hard for me to butrecently there was a huge
commentary on the Roman Empireand how much thought is put into
the Roman Empire, and I have toadmit that the element that I
think about the Roman Empire isthe quote that is Know Thyself,
(37:39):
and I often wonder if just as alittle musing to myself, if the
quote was Know Myself, would ithave stayed over the generations
and over the years, whereasKnow Thyself has just something
you know, something justphilosophical to and of itself,
(37:59):
and I do believe that the morethat technology absolutely knows
us today and the more that itcan help us know ourselves or
Know Thyself, the more powerfuland successful we will all be
and, hopefully, happier.
I do believe that AI canultimately help make each
individual happier and it'ssomething that we should look at
(38:23):
, embracing and supporting andbeing a part of and very excited
about how that will impact theconstruction industry and how
Milwaukee Tool is looking at itand how you as an individual are
looking at it.
Andy, I just want to thank youso much for participating today
and making the time to speakwith me.
Thank you to all of ourlisteners for participating and
(38:45):
listening in future constructsand we're so grateful for
everyone's participation.
Look forward to future episodes, for many seasons and episodes
to come.
Thank you all so much.
Speaker 2 (38:56):
Yeah, this is a pleasure to be here and have me
back anytime.
Speaker 1 (39:00):
Andy.
All right, welcome to Future Construct.
I'm Mark Oda and the CEO of BIMDesigns Inc and guest host of
Future Construct.
Today I'm hosting Andy Lambert,director of Product for One Key
and Construction Technology atMilwaukee Tool.
Welcome, andy.
Thank you for making the timeto join me.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Great to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
I also want to thank Milwaukee Tool at large for
their incredible support,sponsorship and presence at so
many industry events.
Andy, as a union signatorycontractor, I've personally seen
Milwaukee sponsor and have metmany Milwaukee reps at United
Association and theInternational Association of
Sheet Metal, air Rail andTransport Workers Association,
(00:48):
golf tournaments, the annual UAinstructor training program in
Ann Arbor, michigan, evolves,mep Force annual conference and
industry conferences all aroundthe country, not to mention the
many tool walls I've seendonated by Milwaukee Tool at so
many of the local union traininghalls nationwide.
All of these apprentices andjourneymen learn their craft and
(01:10):
become their industry subjectmatter experts using Milwaukee
Tools.
I'm just so grateful for thetremendous support of Milwaukee
Tool and I really have seen theimpact on the entire
construction community.
So thank you, andy, and thankyou to Milwaukee Tool.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
Yeah, definitely, I know it goes both ways right.
It's support from the industryback to us as well and it's
definitely a great partnership.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
With that, Andy, I'd love to learn about your
background, your story andeducation and the path that took
you to Milwaukee.
Tool.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
Yeah, it's been a crazy one, I will say that, and
at times it didn't seem to makesense.
But kind of, when you look backit's like, oh, maybe it did.
I'll admit, since I was littleI've always really loved tools
and building stuff.
Sometimes, to the annoyance ofmy parents, I would find just
(02:05):
scrap pieces of wood in my dad'shammer and just go out and try
to build up a fort wherever.
But leaving high school,something I wanted to do was get
into the trades.
So I went down to the IBW 494here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,
and I'll admit, I thought that Iwas going to go down there and
(02:27):
be like yeah, you can be anelectrician.
Come on over and, to my dismay,it's actually a process that you
have to go through.
You take the test, which, againto my dismay, it was like
science and math and English.
It says nothing to do withbeing an electrician, but I took
it nonetheless.
And then you go up in front ofsome NECA executives for a
(02:49):
formal interview and I rememberthat was probably one of my most
nervous times, mostly because Iwanted to be an electrician so
badly.
So I remember vividly thatentire interview.
Thankfully I got my Eagle Scoutas a young kid and some of the
NECA representatives reallyappreciated that, but they could
(03:12):
see my passion, although thiswas back in 2001.
So the unfortunate news I heardwas business was slow and they
were maybe not puttingapprentices out that year, and
if they did, it'd be maybe 20.
And oh yeah, by the way, thelist is about 600 people long.
So I kind of left my headbetween my legs just being like,
(03:35):
ok, maybe this won't happen.
And then a month later I got acall and I was out as an
apprentice.
So they in fact put 20 peopleout.
I was one of them and I kind ofreally enjoyed being a
tradesperson and learning thetrade as an apprentice, going to
the schooling at night and hada ton of fun.
(03:55):
The projects I was able to workon were really things that you
look back on and you go past abuilding today and you're like,
yeah, I worked on that, I put upthat fixture and I pulled the
wire through that building fromhospitals to schools, to
churches, even malls.
Unfortunately, work reallyslowed down.
(04:16):
There was a downturn inMilwaukee before the big
downturn and we're struggling tofind days to work.
So that's kind of when Idecided I appreciated my skills
that I had attained there but Iwanted to go back to school and
get a degree in business BecauseI thought in the back of my
head, maybe I could be acontractor myself someday.
(04:37):
So I went to school, poundedthrough a four-year bachelor's
degree in all things accounting,the reason being I thought it
was the hardest business degree.
I think it was.
But I left being like, yeah,I'm never going to be an
accountant, that's just not forme.
But being a drummer in a band, Ihad some friends that also had
(04:59):
a counter-degrees but worked inconstruction, erp software and
got me an end to a company,konto Technologies, out of
Milwaukee, and I was able totake that internship and really
make it into a career.
So I ended up getting offered afull-time job where I was doing
(05:20):
ERP implementations.
It allowed me to travel NorthAmerica, get in the field and
the back office of contractorsand implement enterprise
solutions and I learned a tonabout how contractors businesses
are run and a lot of thecomplexities around that you
know, from a finance andaccounting to construction,
payroll, to job costing, projectmanagement, service management,
(05:43):
tool and equipment managementyou name it right, because an
ERP is, you know, trying tomanage the gamut of needs for a
contractor.
And I took about five yearsthere, then worked in account
management, did some salesengineering, built a kind of an
LMS program for our end usersand was the director of
(06:04):
construction technology, or whatwe call an application of
construction technology, whichwas really just sales
engineering focused.
But it was then that I was.
I started meeting some folks atMilwaukee Tool at, actually you
know, some of the trade orgs Ithink it was MCAA that actually
kind of got in front of some ofthe right people.
(06:25):
It's been a couple years goingback and forth with Milwaukee
Tool about some opportunities,went in for an interview and
immediately decided like hey, Ithink this is the next chapter
of my career and that was aboutfour years ago and I haven't
looked back.
It's been a.
It's been a wild ride.
I'm still technology focusedhere at Milwaukee Tool.
(06:46):
More on the digital side, youknow, like one key, our smart
tool and inventory managementplatform, as well as just really
understanding you knowtechnology throughout the
industry and with Milwaukee Tool, really you know wanting to be
a solutions provider, not justthe Power Tool company.
It's interesting justnavigating throughout the
organization, workingcollaboratively, cross
(07:08):
functionally, in understandingthe application of technology,
the latest technology you knowand how we can utilize it
internally as we develop moreand more products.
So that's where we are today.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Yeah, thank you so much for sharing, andy.
I really enjoyed hearing aboutyour background and I am excited
about speaking about where weare today, digging in a little
bit about the past there andbeing an Eagle Scout.
My younger brother is actuallyan Eagle Scout, so I have a lot
of pride and you know how muchwork it takes to get there.
Speaking to all the other EagleScouts, or potentially Eagle
(07:41):
Scouts, what do you, whatrecommendation would you have or
type of approach would you sayis advice for those individuals?
Speaker 2 (07:50):
I'd say I've.
Every time I've been in a jobinterview and it hasn't been
that many times obviously, it's,you know, probably becoming an
electrician, Penta or MilwaukeeTool.
It was always.
It has always come up and itwas one of those things that
just kind of differentiates youfrom the crowd.
I think those that are familiarwith the process of becoming an
(08:12):
Eagle Scout are aware of youknow that it's not easy.
My advice for anyone that's inscouting is don't wait until the
last minute, because I turnedin my final paperwork three days
before my 18th birthday, so Iwas at the very last minute and
there was no going back afterthat.
Either everything was in orderor it wasn't.
(08:33):
So I had to make sure all myT's were crossed and I dotted,
and thankfully they were.
But I definitely look back atthe skills attained in there,
from leadership to working as ateam, soft skills, hard skills,
you name it.
It was definitely a goodprogram to be in and you know I
(08:54):
always look back on those skillswith appreciation.
And it was funny even at myMilwaukee Tool interview I
interviewed with three people,two of which I found out then
were Eagle Scouts as well.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
That's amazing.
Thank you very much for sharingthat, andy, and a little shout
out to my younger brother, ryan,for the accomplishment as well.
You also mentioned MCAA, anddid I understand, or hear you
correctly, that you learnedabout Milwaukee Tool at an MCAA
event?
Speaker 2 (09:26):
Yeah, it was.
I've been in the industry forover 20 years now and just out
of nowhere, you know, you juststarted seeing Milwaukee Tool
and just doing everything really, like you had mentioned, being
an integral part, you know, tothose trade organizations, those
events and, being from, youknow, born and raised in
Milwaukee, wisconsin, it wasjust like that came out of
(09:50):
nowhere, you know, and now Iknow why that was and how we did
that right, because we've beenin business since 1924.
We're coming up on our 100thyear anniversary and you look
back at the history, really, thedisruptive innovation, you know
, driving solutions and safetyand productivity came probably,
(10:15):
you know, the 2013,.
You know kind of timeframe waswhen it, you know, really
started and a lot of that is atrue testament to our leadership
team and you know, whenMilwaukee Tool was bought and
the leaders that came in, it wasjust a good, a good reset, you
know, for the organization andeven since I've started here,
just the massive growth in thenew product development engine
(10:37):
that we've created and thepartnerships you know, that we
can continue to invest in.
It's been an amazing experiencefor me and, I think, the city
of Milwaukee and the company asa whole.
Speaker 1 (10:50):
That's beautiful, and I'm also so grateful for the
MCAA and SMACNA institutions andassociations that they are, for
the sponsorships and thepartnerships that they create in
the community, especially thecommunity that they build.
So, so, so pleased andcelebrating their
accomplishments throughout themany decades.
Well, I'd love to dive deeperinto your role and talk about
(11:15):
one key and then getting intothe future after this short
break.
Andy, does that sound good?
Speaker 2 (11:19):
Sounds great.
Speaker 1 (11:24):
Hello and thank you for your interest in our firm.
I'm Mark Odin, ceo of VimDesign Zinc.
Our firm is one of the largestpremier single-service union
signatory, with over 25 NationalUnited Association and sheet
metal workers locals utilizingUS-based detailers.
For over six years, our unionmembers have provided
(11:46):
high-quality Vim detailingdeliverables, coordination,
schedule, constructionmanagement and project controls
consulting services for over 100projects to construction
companies working in largecommercial projects in the areas
of education, government,hospitality, healthcare,
biopharmaceutical, semiconductor, entertainment, as well as
(12:08):
mixed-use residential andcommercial buildings.
We have become subject matterexperts in not only the
execution of using Vimtechnologies but also the
management of the Vim process.
We have proven to be dependableconsulting professionals with
strong communication skills,leadership skills and
technically sound backgrounds.
We hold ourselves accountableto the highest ethics, where our
(12:30):
core values are quality,performance, trust and ethics,
solutions-driven innovation,teamwork, community engagement,
ownership of commitments,diversity and inclusion.
Vim Design Zinc can help yourconstruction, general
contracting, engineering orarchitecture firm by providing
expert tradesmen who know how toprecisely design, model and
(12:54):
manage your systems, as well asdependable consulting
professionals who can makestrategic and timely decisions.
We are Vim professionals,industry experts, strategic
thinkers whom align people,processes, technology and
metrics.
Contact us at sales atVimdesignsnet for a consultation
and to discuss your projectneeds.
(13:15):
We'd love to work with you.
Thank you, welcome back toFuture Construct.
I'm here with Andy Lambert,andy, so I want to dive into
your current role at MilwaukeeTool.
What exactly is OneKey and howdid that product come to life?
Speaker 2 (13:35):
Yeah, onekey is a digital product of ours as well
as IoT, but it's a smart tooland inventory management
software product.
It came about in late 2015,early 2016.
It was really a solution in thesearch of a problem back then.
It was industry first, from acompany like ours, and it was
(14:00):
really leveraging IoT technologyand power tools through
connectivity.
We knew we wanted to do thatwhere the smart tools and how we
could leverage connectivity inthe tool space.
But from a user experiencestandpoint, we also knew that we
needed that software userinterface.
(14:23):
We had embedded Bluetoothtechnology into the electronics
packages of our tools.
It was when we launched.
It was about seven power toolsat the time.
Then just an easy little appiOS, android and web that
allowed you to keep a tool listof the tools that you own, which
allowed you to connect up tothe tool and really customize
(14:44):
the tool settings, whether it'sRPMs, torque Control or even how
long the work light stays on.
But we also were able totransmit through that Bluetooth
advertisement some locationupdates on the tool.
And then you had your littleapp that you could manage that
list of tools.
But since that time it's reallyevolved.
(15:07):
Our user segments go fromindividual user that bought a
OneKey tool and downloaded theapp to interact with that tool,
all the way up to the largeenterprise which is managing a
fleet of tools in multiplelocations some 50,000 plus
inventory items that they'remanaging in the app.
So the product has reallyflourished.
(15:31):
I'd say it started as a solutionin search of a problem.
The industry is now realizingthe problems that are fit quite
well for our solution and wecontinue to invest.
We have over 85 connected toolsnow in all three battery
platforms, from M12 to M18 toour MX Fuel Light Equipment
lineup, and our enterprisesoftware continues to grow in
(15:55):
features and functionality.
And our tracking and locationservices engine is probably the
industry's strongest crowdsource Bluetooth tracking
network.
And a couple other productscame along the way our little
Bluetooth tracker that you couldput on anything, our asset ID
tags, which are justconstruction grade barcodes and
then lately just understanding.
(16:17):
We're collecting a ton of datathrough either connected tools,
tracking and location servicesor inventory management.
We really wanted to extend thevalue proposition because we're
really seeking to driveaccountability, visibility and
operational efficiencies aroundtool management that extends
into these other businesssystems and we're not just a
data silo.
(16:38):
A lot of times we're not thesource of truth for data.
So, getting into more and moresystem integrations, whether
it's on the location servicesand network side, or the
operation side with projectmanagement, bim, you name it.
So we've been leveraging ourexternal API to really start
(16:58):
creating more workflowefficiencies through integration
partnerships.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
That's absolutely incredible.
I'm impressed with thetechnology platform that you
have created and the foundationthat you're building at
Milwaukee Tool.
It's really impressive to seethese live technology platforms
be applied to these tool usecases.
Like you're saying, managing afleet of over 50,000 tools, and
how technology wraps up into allof that.
(17:24):
I've heard about thegeo-fencing capabilities of some
of the tools.
What does one key fit into thegeo-fencing and theft protection
?
Speaker 2 (17:36):
Yeah, and it definitely helps with that
protection, but just generalawareness and visibility of
where your assets are at anypoint in time.
It's interesting, as we'reresearching with end users, A
lot of times they think thatthey have loss when really they
have lack of visibility.
So the geo-fencing capabilityis something that we introduced
a couple of years ago.
(17:56):
But if you're managing placesand that could be a tool, crib
or a job site, because the toolshave that embedded connectivity
into them through Bluetooth byputting a digital geo-fencing
around a location, so if you'reon our web app, you're using
Google Maps and you put in theaddress and you're allowed to
(18:17):
put in that geo-fencing aroundthat address.
Or even on the Android or iOSApple Maps, on iOS you can do
that same feature.
So when you transfer tools to alocation and I'll say, okay,
this is my home, and if I leavehome, I'm going to send an alert
back to the team that I've left.
(18:38):
We recognize that sometimes jobsites are broken into at night
and tools are stolen.
Other times, because of thistransient nature of the
workforce and construction,people go from one job to the
next and they'll take some toolswith them.
So the geo-fencing capabilityalso automates the communication
from that tool that says I'msupposed to be here, but now I
(19:00):
crossed over into this othergeo-fencing.
Now I'm here so that the backoffice can just click a button
and transfer that tool to thatnew location.
But we do have the times wherejob sites are broken into, tools
are stolen and you have somechance of recovery because
you'll still get pings throughour crowdsource network and you
(19:22):
have the ability to mark.
A tool is stolen and ournetwork will disable that tool.
So now the thief has a toolthat no longer works for them
and chances are that it'll betaken to one of our service
centers to get fixed.
But the service centers willrecover that tool and take it to
the rightful owner.
It does happen.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
It's absolutely incredible, andy.
I'm so impressed with thatwhole supply chain interaction
that you're speaking of, basedon, and I love to hear, your
attunement to listening to thevoice of the customer.
Based on your prior experiencein interactions with clients and
customers, what lessons haveyou learned in bringing new
products to market and also insustaining products that are
(20:04):
already in the market?
Speaker 2 (20:07):
Yeah, the real source of value for us as a product
organization is the end userthemselves.
It's one thing that we do, it'sin our culture, it's in our DNA
.
At Milwaukee Tool, we want tobe solutions providers and we
know whom we're making solutionsfor.
So we spend a significantamount of time out in the field,
on job sites, with GoProcameras, having conversations
(20:32):
with the end user, being in theback office, understanding their
challenges, their pain points,asking those open-ended
questions and, last but notleast, just observing, Because
you'll sometimes you ask someonewhat their problem is.
They're gonna tell you whattheir problem is, but we want to
root cause that right.
(20:52):
We really want to understand it.
So we'll spend a lot of timewith our GoPro.
It's just recording andobserving and understanding the
entire process, the workflow.
We're looking for waste.
It's the Tim Woods method oflean.
We're also looking at thingslike ergonomics, how people are
(21:13):
working, how people arecommunicating, and we're trying
to find things that are going toreally be a value add to the
end user.
And then it doesn't end there.
It's the ability to doprototyping and getting
solutions in the hands of theusers as fast as we possibly can
, so that we can come back, wecan learn, we can iterate.
(21:34):
So the end user is really atthe middle of all of that.
I think it's easy sometimes tojump to a conclusion right, or
just leverage qualitativefeedback from what you've seen
in pockets.
But also we leverage a ton ofdata and it's really easy with a
(21:55):
digital solution because data'scoming in left and right.
But we want a really good mixof quantitative research data as
well as qualitative, really putthe user at the center of that
and develop real solutions thatare going to make their lives
better in the whole.
And that's what's really funabout being on the product side.
Speaker 1 (22:16):
Yeah, personally I love the product development
cycle and observing the endusers and building that roadmap
and looking into the future.
So, as we start to shift gearsinto talking about the future,
what are some modern productdevelopment methodologies or
systems that help Milwaukee tooloperate efficiently and build
product efficiently?
Speaker 2 (22:37):
Yeah, and we've, you know, I've definitely my history
at seen a bunch right.
When I started it was allwaterfall.
I know that we've a lot of itis, you know, focused on growth
and scale, and growth issomething that we've gotten
really good at, you know, andscale is what you always are
challenged with.
You know what worked yesterdaymay not work tomorrow because of
(22:59):
you know the size of yourorganization, your department,
the amount of softwareengineering you have and other
roles within the digital org.
So we just continue to evolveLike you cannot get comfortable.
We were, you know, playingaround with Scrum.
Then we kind of startedleveraging Safe.
That's the scaled agileframework and you're constantly.
(23:20):
I think one of the things thatI've realized is that there's
all these methodologies outthere, but it's perfectly okay
to take the good from one andthe good from another and make
them work for your uniquescenario and how your org is set
up.
I think it's a mistake to drinkthe Kool-Aid, as I'll say, and
(23:41):
get into one because it may notmeet all of your needs.
And what's interesting for usis we build software that
supports our NPD teams, but thenalso pure inventory management
software.
So we are unique and we'redefinitely probably sitting in
where we take the best or thegood of scaled agile framework,
but make it so that we cancontinue to meet our end user
(24:04):
needs the way Milwaukee does,and that's, you know, rapid
iteration, rapid innovation andgetting solutions out to our end
users as fast as possible.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Being a rapid innovation, milwaukee Tool
recently joined the OracleIndustry Lab, which is located
outside Chicago and Deerfield.
Pardon me, it's located outsideChicago and Deerfield, illinois
.
The Oracle Industry Lab isdescribed as a unique idea
incubator designed to helpbusinesses in a variety of
industries tackle their mostcomplex challenges.
Can you tell me a little bitabout how participating in the
(24:38):
Oracle Industry Lab has impactedthe vision for Milwaukee Tool
moving forward?
Speaker 2 (24:42):
Yeah, it was.
You know I was part of thatfrom the beginning and it was
actually how we got introducedto the lab was through some end
users of ours.
You know that they were usingOracle products.
They were in the lab's earliest, earliest days and it was just
a gravel parking lot with alittle steel structure.
We were brought in because youknow Oracle, you know like many
(25:03):
are trying to really support andbuild these ecosystems and you
know understanding that they'rea source of truth.
You know, through a lot oftheir AEC solutions, what are
some of the you know morestrategic, innovative industry
partners that could join themand really create this lab where
you can test and get hands on,both from the vendor and
(25:25):
supplier standpoint, as well asthe end user, and test out these
newest technologies.
So you know, we got on site.
Our digital, our M12 digitaltorque wrench was just coming on
the scene.
It was something that we usedas just hey, here we have this
torque wrench that is collectingtorque data.
How could we leverage that dataalongside Oracle?
(25:47):
But what I wasn't expecting wasthe relationships with other
partners that we're going toflourish there.
You have, you know, frommaterial management to labor
management, to job site securityand cameras and drones and all
these other partners that aregetting into VIM and BDC
solutions.
You start to become, you know,a single unit that's looking at
(26:11):
bringing this end user in,hearing their pain points and
not solving them as one company,but a bunch of companies
together that has, you know,different stakes in the game.
That's when you really drivemassive innovation right, when
it's you go further togetherthan you can alone sometimes.
I think that was the mostinteresting thing that I wasn't
(26:32):
anticipating coming out of thatlab.
but gotta get hands on and yougotta get the right people in
the room and that's what they'redoing over there and it's been
fun.
Speaker 1 (26:42):
That's great.
It's a consortium or a team ofinnovators across many different
institutions.
So, yeah, I'm excited to learnmore about what comes out of
that lab and congratulations onyour partnership there.
Thank you, as we look at howMilwaukee Tool is leveraging
latest technology and your heavyfocus on data and managing
large assets sets, where do yousee artificial intelligence, ai,
(27:07):
playing into the analysis ofthat, or how do you see that
integrating into your toolsetinto the future?
Speaker 2 (27:14):
Yeah, I would say, you know, it's definitely
something that we're payingattention to and it really
starts with that capability ofdoing machine learning and we're
starting to leverage thattechnology.
In fact, we just released afeature we call AutoStop and
it's on our Threaders, it's onour Hammer Drill Driver, it gets
(27:36):
into some of our cutoff sawsand it's you know, really,
because we've been, you know,leveraging technology in our
tools with sensors and controlsand our electronics package and
the data histograms you start to.
You know, you're collecting awealth of data about conditions
(27:56):
when a tool is being used andone of the things that we
recognize is, you know, some ofthe injuries that happen on job
sites and a lot of that is withjust poor tool management and a
tool binding up and taking yourrisk for a ride.
So it was one of the first waysthat we're applying machine
learning algorithms is takingall of that data and doing a ton
(28:18):
of testing with our tools,embedding a machine learning
algorithm in there that cansense that bind up situation
before the user can Offer youthe ability through one key, to
adjust the threshold that you'rewilling to take, but shut that
tool off before that injuryhappens.
And I think that's just thestart.
That's just the start formachine learning and AI,
(28:43):
although I also recognize, youknow, how the industry as a
whole can leverage things likegenerative AI, and I think you
know sometimes you got to lookoutside.
You know the industry a littlebit, but the challenges that our
industry has going forward isreally how do we optimize our
(29:04):
resources, how do we predictmaintenance and quality issues?
How do we improve constructionautomation?
How do we train up our people?
And you know there's a ton ofuse cases right there for AI and
I'm excited to see kind ofwhere the industry goes and
where we continue to go insupport of meeting those
(29:25):
challenges with that technology.
Speaker 1 (29:27):
Yeah, thank you for sharing your thoughts.
I share in your excitement,andy.
So much so we're going to lookat the past here to predict the
future further.
So in October 2019, youpublished an article titled
Build Tech for predictions forthe future of construction,
where you made predictions aboutworkforce safety, productivity
and material cost.
Four years or more later, I'mincredibly impressed that your
(29:50):
predictions were very wellaligned with reality, so much so
.
In terms of workforce, youpredicted that there would be a
labor shortage and that unions,trade associations, recruiters
and government agencies andinstitutions would all have to
work together and collaborate.
On the safety side, you talkedabout how tools themselves will
advance and help create moresafe environments, as you just
(30:15):
spoke about now, also speakingabout drones and sensors and
wearables taking a much largerrole in construction.
And then, for productivity in2019, you were talking about
lean methodologies andprefabrication and 5D modeling
and collaboration withtechnology and big data driving
(30:37):
these real-time decisions.
So this is all four years ago.
You wrote this.
This is incredible.
And then you spoke aboutmaterial costs how they'll
continue to fluctuate as aninconvenient variable in
construction management, and Ithink all of us know that that
absolutely happened.
So I'm just absolutely stunnedwith that article.
Congratulations on thosepredictions and, as we look at
(30:59):
the next four years, what do yousee as the future of
construction?
Now, I mean, many of thesepredictions came true.
What are you forecasting?
Speaker 2 (31:07):
Yeah, I don't know if I was lucky or if I just needed
to buy a lottery ticket tonight, but all of those continue to
ring true and I think the onething that we've, if you look at
the challenges ahead, thingsthat we can predict with some
level of certainty, things likethe infrastructure bill they're
great because our infrastructureneeds that boost.
(31:28):
But just even in commercial andindustrial side, our cities,
our buildings are in decay andare becoming decrepit and just
the demand for construction isgoing to continue to increase.
So that workforce development Ithink I've just started to see
in the last kind of year or sothe industry really put some
(31:51):
weight behind it.
I'm extremely impressed withwhat I see in heavy duty or the
heavy metal summer program.
You know, let's start on theWest Coast and it's moving on
the East Coast and gettingyounger.
The younger generation isexcited about construction.
I think you know we're going toneed to continue to recruit in
this industry because the demandis only becoming greater.
(32:13):
But also prove to the youngergenerations that this isn't
their grandfather's industryanymore.
Right, we're continuing toevolve, we're continuing to
leverage technology and use thatas a recruiting tool and
attracting you know people intothe industry because you get to
a point where it's just too late.
You have to get into middleschool and high school and
(32:38):
really leverage STEM educationand I see you know a lot of
interest from the trade orgs ingetting down to that level.
So I think that we'll probablyget to a place where we're
talking about a much moretechnology advanced industry as
not just a way of executing workbut as recruiting those next
generations in starting to seeit stick.
I think just things of like thematerial side, things that you
(33:05):
don't have control over we'lljust recognize that we don't
have control over that, but wedo have control over how
efficient and productive we are.
Prefab is probably going tocontinue to grow and I think
what's going to really allowPrefab to take on is been
modeling and collaboration andsome of the AI capabilities that
(33:27):
we have in leveraging all ofthe data and the massive amounts
of data.
I think that's the one thingthat is truly inspiring me right
now is we're getting a lot moredata off of our job sites in
massive amounts compared to fiveyears ago, 10 years ago, just
based on, you know, the sensortechnology that is being rapidly
adopted, you know within ourjob sites and how we leverage
(33:50):
that data will change the waythat we plan and design and
execute work going forward.
So I think we'll start to seemore on the modular construction
, more on the Prefab and muchmore predictive execution of
work versus what's historicallyfor decades been a very reactive
way of doing work.
And I think the way we trainand onboard you know the next
(34:12):
field execution leaders will bevastly different, based on
things like generative AI it's.
You know, I've seen in the pastthat every now and then you find
a good form and a good projectmanager and you put them on your
big jobs.
I think we're going to be ableto take all of the good from
those and leverage it andtraining up all of the form and
(34:35):
project managers andsuperintendents that are out
there and really focusing on thevaluable work that they could
do and starting to automate thatless valuable work and train
them up in the process.
So I think I think for thefirst time you know if I look
forward we're going to becontinuing to increase our
levels of productivitythroughout the industry,
(34:55):
attracting new talent andmanaging what's in our control
and just things like materialprices Not for us to debate,
right, those are otherindustries.
Speaker 1 (35:09):
I love the predictions.
Thank you so much.
Just such strong alignment withwhat I'm seeing as well.
And, you know, anacknowledgement to the,
especially the trade partnersand the unions that train and
develop multi-generationalskilled subject matter experts.
And, you know, a shout out tothe technology adoption that
(35:31):
those trade unions are making toattract that new talent.
And every generation is builton the shoulders of the prior
generation.
So, you know, just want tohonor the fathers and the
grandfathers and the mothers andthe grandmothers that have
helped us get to where we aretoday and I'm so excited about
the future and moving in thedirection of recruiting that
(35:52):
younger generation, especiallywith, you know, so much
creativity and technologyadoption.
That is that the constructionindustry is just geared up for
and we're right at the heels of.
I just want to say, andy, as afinal question of the show and a
tradition of future construct,if you could project yourself
(36:12):
out 25 years and wanted to haveany device or technology that
would benefit you personally asAndy Lambert, what would it be
and what would it do?
Speaker 2 (36:22):
Yeah, 25 years.
Hopefully I'm getting to thatpoint of retirement Fingers
crossed, and I think there's alot of different toys I'd love
to have, but I think by thattime what I'd really appreciate
in my life would be that AIadvisor, someone that knew me
(36:44):
inside and out and couldrecommend what does that
retirement look like and how doI get the most out of those
years, those cherished years oflife, when you can kind of
reflect back on your legacy, youknow, throughout your career,
but really focus on doing allthe stuff that you didn't have
time for before.
I just fear I won't be able toget the most out of that.
(37:07):
And if I had that AI advisor atmy fingertips that knew me
inside and out and could makethose recommendations, I would
take full advantage of that.
Speaker 1 (37:19):
Yeah, I love that so much.
Andy, I'm not sure if you keepup with internet memes it's
pretty hard for me to butrecently there was a huge
commentary on the Roman Empireand how much thought is put into
the Roman Empire, and I have toadmit that the element that I
think about the Roman Empire isthe quote that is Know Thyself,
(37:39):
and I often wonder if just as alittle musing to myself, if the
quote was Know Myself, would ithave stayed over the generations
and over the years, whereasKnow Thyself has just something
you know, something justphilosophical to and of itself,
(37:59):
and I do believe that the morethat technology absolutely knows
us today and the more that itcan help us know ourselves or
Know Thyself, the more powerfuland successful we will all be
and, hopefully, happier.
I do believe that AI canultimately help make each
individual happier and it'ssomething that we should look at
(38:23):
, embracing and supporting andbeing a part of and very excited
about how that will impact theconstruction industry and how
Milwaukee Tool is looking at itand how you as an individual are
looking at it.
Andy, I just want to thank youso much for participating today
and making the time to speakwith me.
Thank you to all of ourlisteners for participating and
(38:45):
listening in future constructsand we're so grateful for
everyone's participation.
Look forward to future episodes, for many seasons and episodes
to come.
Thank you all so much.
Speaker 2 (38:56):
Yeah, this is a pleasure to be here and have me
back anytime.
Speaker 1 (39:00):
Andy.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.