Ed and Alvaro are back with their year-end crystal ball episode…and boy, they nailed some predictions while completely whiffing on others!

In this episode, they score their 2025 predictions (spoiler: sustainability was a BIG RED failure ❌), breaking down the 20 episodes that shaped Season 2, and going out on a limb with their 2026 forecasts.

Here's what they covered:

• Prediction scorecard - the good, the bad, and the ugly

• Why everyone's talking about AI, but still fighting fires in their plants

• The "silver tsunami" that's changing everything

• Why trades are suddenly sexier than tech jobs

• Geopolitical chaos and what it means for your supply chain

• Bold (and possibly foolish) 2026 predictions

Got predictions of your own? Drop them in the comments!

Mentioned in this episode:
AI and ROI: Translating Time Saved to Business Gains
Chain Reaction 2025: Chief Supply Chain Officer Insights

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What if your maintenance tech could pick up shifts like an Uber driver, but with the right skills and certifications guaranteed? In this game-changing episode, Ed and Alvaro speak with Rahil Siddiqui (Founder of Wilya) and Arianna Flores (former Maintenance Manager, now at Augury) to tackle manufacturing's most pressing challenge: creating flexibility for frontline workers while maintaining safety and quality standards.

Key takeaways:

• Why the "quantity equals quality" mindset is killing retention – and what actually works

• The 3-part flexibility framework: When, How Much, and What workers want control over

• How digitizing your skills matrix can eliminate 2 am panic calls and grievances

• Real success story: How one manufacturer went from zero to 100 part-time workers across six plants

• Why your best PLC tech needs more than training – they need ownership, metrics, and recognition

Mentioned in this episode:
Wilya

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You know that maintenance hero who gets the 2 AM call when the line goes down? The one who always saves the day? Ed and Alvaro have a hot take—that hero culture might be killing your plant's performance.

In this episode, they break down why firefighting becomes an addiction that's hard to kick:

• The People Problem: When "Jerry" becomes your crutch, nobody else learns to walk

• The Process Trap: Chasing symptoms with water hoses instead of fixing root causes

• The Tech Solution: How predictive maintenance breaks the reactive cycle

Bottom line? You can still reward the heroes who fix problems after the fact, but you'd better start celebrating the people who prevent them from happening in the first place.

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Ever been that stellar mechanic who gets tapped for supervisor, only to realize your overtime-inflated paycheck is about to take a hit? Or maybe you're the technical wizard who wants absolutely nothing to do with managing people? Ed and Alvaro tackle manufacturing's biggest career crossroads – whether to climb the management ladder or become a technical master of your craft.

With half a million open manufacturing jobs today (and 2.5 million projected), there's never been a better time to grow your career – title or no title. We cover:

• Going from buddy to boss: Managing the awkward transition when you're suddenly supervising your break room pals

• The technical track: Why master mechanics and TPM champions earn serious respect (and paychecks) without managing anyone

• Real success stories: From Ed promoting his toughest union shop steward to Alvaro's safety champion who became a community leader

• Growth without titles: How to expand your influence and expertise regardless of which path you choose

Whether you're eyeing that supervisor role or want to stay hands-on while mastering your craft, we've got the straight talk on making either path work.

Mentioned in this episode:
Open Jobs Are Piling Up—Is U.S. Manufacturing Ready for the Next Surge?
Manufacturing Jobs Projected To Grow By 30%
Mike Rowe, Ford CEO warn America's manufacturing crisis is at a breaking point as China surges ahead

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With Halloween around the corner, Ed and Alvaro shine a light on the machine failures lurking in your plant. In this "ask me anything" episode, they tackle maintenance questions with real shop floor experiences—including a thermography inspection that prevented a million-dollar catastrophe.

Tune in to hear more:

• Worst machine health experiences and how to avoid them

• Why reactive maintenance keeps you firefighting

• Executive KPIs that matter—and why R&M isn't "discretionary spending"

Whether you're building a business case for your CFO or trying to escape the nightmare of unexpected failures, Ed and Alvaro provide practical strategies for moving from reactive firefighting to predictive planning.

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Ed and Alvaro tackle the million-dollar question everyone's asking: Is all this AI investment actually paying off? Spoiler alert: When done right, the numbers are mind-blowing. But here's the catch – you need the right KPIs first. From 310% ROI to sub-6-month paybacks, they break down what separates AI winners from those stuck in pilot purgatory, with real data from a Forrester study that measured everything from downtime reduction to energy savings. Plus, discover why measuring before implementing is critical, why your vibration analyst's retirement might be the best thing that ever happened to your plant, and how plumbers (yes, plumbers!) are already outpacing manufacturers in AI adoption. Grab your favorite beverage and get ready for some real talk about making AI work on YOUR shop floor – with receipts to back it up.

Mentioned in this episode:
The Total Economic Impact™ Of Augury Machine And Process Health
The 310% ROI of Reliability webinar

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Ever wonder how someone successfully leads 17 plants across the Americas? Andres Oviedo joins Ed and Alvaro for a conversation that's part leadership masterclass, part coffee shop wisdom. Building on the "Innovation Mentality" from the previous episode, Andres shows what it looks like in action, speaking from his experiences with Mondelēz, Kraft-Heinz, and Barry Callebaut. The guys explore how Andres' multicultural experience creates a competitive advantage: speaking multiple "languages" (corporate, shop floor, and everything in between) and building trust across every level.

From Ed's plant visits that end at the local bar to Alvaro's memories of breakthrough transformations, this episode delivers practical gold. Learn why the best KPI might be whether people remember you, how to translate strategy into daily operations that everyone understands, and why empowering operators to shut down the line builds excellence. It doesn't matter if you run a plant or run a line, Andres's message is clear: stop managing tasks and start leading people. Plus, discover how bringing your authentic self to work - yes, including your music and food - creates the environment where teams thrive.

Mentioned in this episode:
The Innovation Mentality

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Let's get ready to rumba! With a nod to Hispanic Heritage month, Ed and Alvaro welcome Cuban-American author/leadership consultant Glenn Llopis to the show. The guys dig into Glenn's Innovation Mentality—six strategies that'll change how you see your plant floor.

From Ed's hard-won insight that "80% of your plant's solutions are on the shop floor" to Glenn's powerful revelation that "respect reverberates and multiplies while recognition just explodes," this conversation gets real about unleashing entrepreneurial spirit in manufacturing.

Mentioned in this episode:
Glenn Llopis
The Innovation Mentality

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