Branch Medical Group Production Manager Brad Bouchard at the manufacturing facility in Royersford. Montgomery County Community College collaborates with Bouchard to ensure students in the Machinist-CNC Operator certificate program are trained to enter the workforce. Photo by Eric Devlin
As production manager at the Royersford-based medical equipment manufacturer, Branch Medical Group, Brad Bouchard knows firsthand the demand for machinist Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) operators. His plant can’t hire them fast enough.
“It's very hard to find people to do that,” he said. “And in all honesty, really good operators right now, if they're at a company, they're holding on to them for dear life.”
Branch Medical Group is a subsidiary of Globus Medical, a global musculoskeletal technology company, and manufactures world-class implants for spinal and orthopedic applications.
To help solve this talent shortage, Bouchard has been working with the Workforce Development team at Montgomery County Community College to help train the next generation of operators.
A CNC operator is responsible for the hands-on operation of computerized machinery within a manufacturing environment. Their core duties include loading pre-written programs, setting up standard tooling and fixtures, and performing routine quality inspections to ensure parts meet specifications. Additionally, operators are tasked with maintaining safety procedures, managing materials, and performing basic machine maintenance and troubleshooting throughout the production run. Meanwhile, a machinist is trained to manually create CNC programs and refine the operating sequence to meet high-precision industry standards.
MCCC’s Machinist-CNC Operator program offers a certificate of completion for aspiring machinist CNC operators, teaching essential skills like blueprint reading,
tool identification, and CNC mill operations. The program is divided into two levels:
Level 1 focuses on basic CNC machine operations and safety, while Level 2 builds on
these skills, introducing manual CNC programming and advanced setup techniques. Graduates
are prepared for entry-level positions in manufacturing and precision machining industries.
“It’s a program that resonates with the industry,” said Bernadette Debias, Director
of Workforce Development-Workforce Development & Continuing Education. “By aligning
training with employer and industry needs, it is improving job placement outcomes
for students and elevating workforce development. Our industry partnership with Branch
Medical has been outstanding.”
“You can start a career making a livable wage in only eight or nine months,” said Thomas Ross III, Director of Workforce Development Industrial and IT Program. “We’re proud to get people into viable careers quickly.”
Bouchard has established a strong collaboration with the College. In addition to speaking
to classes and giving classes tours of Branch’s facility, he’s able to discuss curriculum
and knows students are coming out of the program with foundational skills ready to
work.
“Students will leave the program with the skills and training needed to begin work at Branch,” he said. “They will build on those skills as they continue into their careers.”
John Mest, part-time industrial trainer at MCCC, said the demand for operators is high.
“Our goal is to have them ready to use tools, operate equipment, measure the parts
they’re making, read blueprints and understand what they’re seeing to produce good
parts,” said Mest, who teaches at the Pottstown Campus, “and get a good job.”
Nationwide, machinist CNC operators earn a livable wage. According to a 2023 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics survey, 90 percent of CNC operators earn an average salary of $66,970. Pennsylvania, meanwhile, ranked fifth in states with the highest employment level in CNC operators with 11,910 and an annual mean wage of $53,920.
Bouchard said salaries at Branch continue to progress as employees advance through the company.
Brookings Institute named materials machining/fabrication as one of three key industry clusters in Southeastern Pennsylvania that can help the region become economically prosperous and compete in the global economy. Montgomery County is a regional hub for manufacturing. According to the Montgomery County Workforce Development Area profile by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, manufacturing provides more than 44,000 jobs.
“Montgomery County has the highest concentration of manufacturers in Pennsylvania, and they are offering family-sustaining jobs,” said Ross. “Working with industry partners, like Branch Medical Group, this certificate program is designed to prepare students to hit the ground running.”