Trelleborg Sealing Solutions

Carl Ollerer, Human Resources and Health, Safety and Environmental Manager at Trelleborg Sealing Solutions

What does Trelleborg Sealing Solutions do?

Trelleborg Sealing Solutions in Streamwood, IL, designs and manufactures injection molded thermoplastics and thermoset composite products for bearing and sealing applications. Trelleborg is a world leader in engineered polymer solutions that seal, damp and protect critical applications in demanding environments. Its innovative solutions accelerate performance for customers in a sustainable way. The Trelleborg Group has annual sales of $3.69 billion and operations in about 50 countries. Trelleborg Sealing Solutions serves a wide range of industries, including fluid power, hydropower, marine, mining, industrial, oil and gas. We are committed to employee development and engagement.

 How did you learn about JARC?

Trelleborg has worked with the Jane Addams Resource Corporation (JARC) since 2011 receiving onsite training for its employees as well as hiring their trainees. JARC has taught our CNC machinists basic operation as well as more advanced training.

 What are the benefits of this internal worker training?

At Trelleborg we place a great emphasis on employee development for both new employees and our current workforce. Trelleborg Sealing Solutions in Streamwood invests in JARC’s onsite training because it provides educational opportunities and skill enhancement for our employees. We came to realize that we have to focus on more than just finding people; we have to grow and develop our own as well. When you give an entry-level person training, when you invest in that person, they’re more likely to be committed to your organization. It’s all about developing and enhancing the employee’s skills that will make Trelleborg as competitive as possible. The Trelleborg mantra is ‘Shaping Industry from the Inside’.

 Did you know JARC Chicago trains new CNC machinists and welders?

I serve on JARC's Industrial Advisory Council and have visited JARC’s training center. In the past several years we have hired over 20 JARC graduates. In fact, the current CNC instructor at JARC is a former Trelleborg employee. He received his first position at Trelleborg after he was trained at JARC. They do a good job of screening their trainees so that our candidates are a good fit.

 Why do you keep coming back to JARC for training?

JARC consistently provided high-quality training for our workforce in the past, and they are able to customize the training materials to include our specific requirements. They can train our CNC machinists on Trelleborg machines using Trelleborg blueprints and making Trelleborg parts. This makes the training experience much more meaningful to our employees and gives us an immediate payback for our investment.

 What would you say to other companies who are on the fence about using JARC?

I have been involved with JARC for over seven years. JARC is easy to work with and can deliver great results – and the training is reasonably priced. But the main reason to use JARC is because the training is customized. Community colleges offer basic CNC programming, but they don’t know our business. CNC machining is a broad field. If we’re going to invest in training, it needs to be customized to fit our needs.

 How does JARC’s training compare to training you’ve received from others?

I work with a variety of training entities because it is sometimes difficult to recruit skilled machinists. We are continuously working to enhance the skills of our current employees. Like JARC, most of these training entities do a good job teaching technical CNC machining skills. However, one thing that JARC does better than most is to fully prepare its students for the work environment. JARC offers bundled support services including financial education, public benefits screening and employment coaching.

For a list of JARC’s Customized Worker Training classes, visit https://jane-addams.org/employers/firm-side-training-solutions/customized-worker-training