Orion's July 2015 eNewsletter
 
 







 
Sam (left), Orion Manufacturing Training Program Graduate, at his job with Zeb Cox (right), his supervisor at Skills Inc.
 
Sam        

 

Sam has been working in the Deburr Department at Skills Inc. Sam's supervisor at Skills Inc., Zeb Cox, said, "Everyone in our Deburr Department really likes Sam. He has a positive attitude and is always ready to take on new tasks. He offers to work late to finish jobs that are near completion, and is very dependable and hard working." 

  

Sam found that the training he received at Orion helped to develop tools he uses at Skill Inc. Training at Orion gave Sam experience with various projects, and helped Sam to understand work orders and other paperwork. Sam is grateful for the training he received at Orion but he said the most valuable thing he learned while at Orion was "to take pride in what I do at work."

Zeb said, "I have worked with a few people that spent time with Orion. It seems like Orion is doing a great job at providing people with the skills they need to join a new workforce."
Zeb explained, "When Sam first started at Skills Inc., he had a very good understanding of the basic functions of a facility like ours which made his initial training run smoothly." Orion provided a good foundation that Skills Inc. was able to build on.

The mentors, trainers, and job developers who worked with Sam at Orion knew that he would find success. Sam received the Orion Worker of the Month award in November of 2014. His co-workers said, "Sam is a great worker! He pays great attention to detail, which shows in his accuracy of work. He approaches every job with a positive, get it done attitude. Sam sets a good example with his hard work and willingness to help others be successful."

Sam has carried his can do attitude to Skills Inc., and is finding success at his new job because he learned how important a positive attitude is while in the training program at Orion.

Sam said, "I'm happy to have a steady job here at Skills Inc., I would like to thank everyone at Orion for preparing me and helping me get a job." 



 

 Aaron at work in the Orion Vibra Bur Room.
 

Aaron has received training in assembly, packaging, conventional machines, saws, drills, punch press, CNC mills, and CNC routers. Aaron's true talents started to shine as he began to learn about deburring in each area. Aaron has developed a strong understanding of the deburring techniques used for each part we manufacture at Orion. He excels at both hand and machine deburring. His mentor said, "Aaron is a good worker with a good attitude."

 

Aaron set high goals for himself in our training program, and was proactive in requesting to be trained in areas that he wanted to learn about. Aaron also took advantage of after-hours workshops and computer tutorials each day. Another mentor said, "Aaron has a desire to learn and asks questions."

 

In addition to the training Aaron received in manufacturing, he also completed math and blue print reading classes. Aaron showed dramatic improvement in skill through the math classes. Aaron understands the importance of having good math skills, and plans to continue to study math, with the goal of taking trigonometry classes.

 

Aaron won the Orion Worker of the Month award in March this year. He received eight nominations from his peers, who commented, "Aaron works hard and takes pride in his work. He always stays busy, is up for any challenge, and has great attendance. Aaron has an awesome attitude and is great to work with!"

 

Aaron found that he surprised himself by learning that he loves to get up early, waking most days by 3:00am. Aaron enjoys the peace and quiet as the day begins.

 

Aaron is proud that he has been able to move off of Social Security. Aaron said, "Working is a privilege, I know now that I can work a full time job."

  

If you are interested in learning more about Aaron, and would like a copy of his resume, call Laura Fogle at 253-661-7805 or email her at 

laura.fogle@orionworks.org.

 


Orion classes available!

Orion contracts with companies around the King and Pierce County area to provide classes, such as blueprint reading. Companies can send their staff to Orion for classes at our facility, or we can send our instructors on-site. If you're interested in finding out more about how this can benefit your staff, please contact Orion's Training Program Manager, Cynthia Kim, at 253-661-7805.

 


Program tours are available!

Orion currently has openings available in all of our training programs:
  • Our Manufacturing Training Program offers full time or part time paid training Monday - Friday. Participants can come for a variety of reasons including assessment or skills training. Enrollment occurs weekly.

If you are working with someone who would benefit from this training program, please have them attend our weekly tour - Tuesday at 1pm!

  • Our Office Skills & Customer Service Program offers students exposure to computer training, customer service training and keyboarding / 10-key skills training. It utilizes a self-directed model, in a small classroom setting, with instructor support. Each Friday, interactive group customer service discussions are led by the instructor. Students are offered a daily stipend of $10 for class attendance.
  • Our Contact Center Training Program offers three paid training opportunities: Inbound Customer Service, Front Desk / Reception and Document Conversion training. Participants can come for a variety of reasons including assessment or skills training. While some programs offer cohort enrollment, most positions enroll weekly. Pretesting may be a requirement and will be coordinated during program tour. 
Orion has multiple open spots for direct job placement support services to individuals not in our training programs. If you are interested in direct job placement services, please contact a Job Developer at 253-661-7805.


Orion receives Boeing Quality Award
Pictured left to right: Todd Anderson, Boeing - QA Senior Leader CMP/IAS; John Meuangkhot, Boeing QA Manager CMP; Paul Binford, Orion Quality Manager; Mike Barsoski, Orion Operations Manager; Brandon Treece, Boeing - CMP Support Manager; and Glen Little, Boeing - CMP Support Manager. 

Boeing presented a Quarterly Performance Award to Orion Aerospace for our outstanding quality during the first quarter of this year. 

 

Orion Aerospace achieved 99.99% defect free delivery.

 

This is the fifth Boeing Quarterly Performance Award that has been added to the Orion trophy case in recent years.

 


Orion STARs team building 
Orion STARs participants, from left to right, Randy Gilleland, Debra McDaniel, Kathy Powers, Brenda Williams, Jeff Black, Cheri Baker, Uriah Moore, Cynthia Kim, and Shawn Christensen.

 

The Orion STARs team held a team building event at a local rope course. The STARs program is a one year internal leadership development program which prepares our high potential leads, supervisors and managers for the challenges of being a leader.

 

As Orion grows, we need strong leaders who are ready to step into positions of responsibility as they become available. Because on-the-job experiences are not always sufficient to prepare one for senior leadership roles, we developed the Orion STARs program to accelerate the learning process.

 

Orion STARs participants work with an experienced mentor as part of the program. STARs participants also attend monthly leadership classes and develop two projects over the course of the one year program. 

 


 Puget Sound Skills Center student job fair 
  Erin Colwell (left) and Laura Fogle (right) at the Puget Sound Skills Center student job fair.

Orion Industries had a booth at the Puget Sound Skills Center student job fair on Friday, May 29th. The job fair was attended by Erin Colwell and Laura Fogle. 

Erin and Laura shared current Orion Industries job openings, and provided information to the students about the training and employment services they may qualify for at Orion. 

In addition, Erin and Laura gave feedback on student resumes, provided information on how and where to look for jobs, and answered any job search questions students had. 

Erin and Laura enjoyed interacting with the students and were impressed with how well they had been prepared by their instructors for the job fair. Orion hopes to be invited back next year.


Orion links
 
Click on the links below to visit Orion's division websites:     
Orion Industries
1590 A St Northeast
Auburn, Washington 98002