| AMERI-FORCE CRAFT SERVICES | CASE STUDY |
Supporting a Full Facility Transition and Multi-Location Workforce Ramp in a Tight Northeast Iowa Labor Market
Client Type: Global Tool and Industrial Equipment Manufacturer Industry: Equipment Manufacturing / Industrial Tools Location: Northeast Iowa | Three Concurrent Facilities
BUSINESS IMPACT SNAPSHOT
| ~70 Peak Workers Across 3 Locations | 153 Days Avg Tenure (145 Employees) | ~10 Days Avg Time to Fill Across All Roles | 80%+ Fill Rate (Conservative Estimate) | 9+ Trades Classifications Placed |
The Client and the Stakes
A global tool and industrial equipment manufacturer made the decision to close one of its manufacturing facilities (the Closing Plant) and relocate operations to a new facility (the New Plant). Facility transitions of this type are operationally demanding: a new workforce must be built in a new market, additional production shifts must launch on schedule, and output continuity must be maintained across the full change period.
Complicating the transition, the company also needed to sustain ongoing staffing at a second facility (the Main Plant) in Northeast Iowa. Across both active locations, the Northeast Iowa labor market was a genuine constraint. For skilled classifications (welders, machine operators), qualified workers were not available locally in the numbers the client required.
Operational Environment
This engagement required operating in three modes simultaneously: managing the wind-down at the Closing Plant, standing up second-shift operations at the New Plant, and maintaining headcount at the Main Plant. The labor market across Northeast Iowa is structurally tight for skilled trades, with sub-regional unemployment levels insufficient to meet manufacturing surge demand. Out-of-state recruiting and a traveling workforce infrastructure were required from the start.
The Challenge
The breadth of this engagement was unusually wide. The client needed workers across nine or more classifications — from welders and machine operators to assemblers, material handlers, shipping personnel, administrative staff, and supervisors — spread across multiple sites on a compressed timeline.
The local talent pool could not meet demand in critical skilled classifications. Welders and machine operators needed to be sourced from out of state and supported with the logistics infrastructure required to make extended travel assignments sustainable. Managing a workforce of this size and diversity across three concurrent locations required both operational depth and active on-site management.
Trade Mix
Ameri-Force placed workers across the following classifications at the New Plant, Main Plant, and Closing Plant:
- Welders
- Machine Operators
- Assemblers
- Material Handlers
- Shipping and Receiving
- Administrative Staff
- Supervisors
Several of these classifications — particularly welders and machine operators — required national recruiting and out-of-state deployment due to local labor market constraints.
The Solution
- Ameri-Force supported all three phases: Closing Plant wind-down coordination, New Plant second-shift launch, and Main Plant ongoing staffing.
- Local recruiting efforts were supplemented with national recruiting and out-of-state worker deployment when the Northeast Iowa market could not fill critical roles.
- Traveling workers were placed with full logistical support to sustain extended assignments.
- An Ameri-Force on-site supervisor was placed to manage the deployed team. Attendance management became a primary function of that role. The client’s attendance incentive program was enforced consistently, resulting in measurable cost savings for the client and a more reliable workforce on the floor.
- Workforce was scaled to approximately 70 workers at peak across all active locations.
The Results
Engagement Results
| Metric | Result on This Engagement | Client Baseline / Benchmark |
| Workforce scale and scope | ~70 workers at peak across 3 locations; 9+ trade classifications placed; out-of-state sourcing required for skilled roles due to Northeast Iowa labor market constraints | Client requirement: simultaneous coverage across three concurrent sites on a compressed timeline |
| Average tenure (145 employees) | 153 days overall; Main Plant and New Plant combined: 94.9 days; Closing Plant: 55.1 days (wind-down — expected shorter) | Strong for a multi-site, multi-classification engagement in a constrained labor market |
| On-site supervisor and impact | Ameri-Force placed a dedicated supervisor on the production floor; primary function was enforcing the client’s attendance incentive program and managing daily workforce accountability; attendance improved and client realized measurable cost savings as a result | Prior to placement: no single point of accountability for the deployed workforce |
| Second-shift launch (New Plant) | Successfully staffed and operational on schedule | Client requirement for new facility |
| Main Plant operations continuity | Maintained throughout full transition period | No disruption to ongoing production |
| Closing Plant wind-down | Managed in coordination with client — orderly workforce transition achieved | Managed in partnership with client |
Before / After
| Before Ameri-Force | After Ameri-Force |
| Closing Plant facility closing with no staffing partner to manage workforce wind-down | Orderly Closing Plant transition managed in coordination with Ameri-Force |
| New Plant second shift could not launch — local labor market too tight | Second-shift launched on schedule with local and out-of-state workers combined |
Why It Worked
Facility transitions require a staffing partner capable of running in multiple modes simultaneously: closing one workforce in an orderly way, standing up another from scratch, sustaining a third without disruption, and reaching beyond local labor markets when the region cannot supply the volume. Ameri-Force did all four at once across the New Plant, Main Plant, and Closing Plant.
Across 145 employees with measurable tenure data, the overall average assignment was 153 days, or just over five months. That is a strong result for a multi-site, multi-classification engagement in a constrained labor market. The Closing Plant wind-down averaged a shorter 55 days, which is exactly what it should be for a transitional closure assignment. The active production sites held longer.
The single most consequential operational decision in this engagement was placing an Ameri-Force supervisor on site. Attendance management became the core function of that role. The client’s incentive policies were enforced consistently, and the client realized direct cost savings as a result. A large, diverse workforce across three locations became a workforce that was accountable to someone on the ground every day.
The ultimate measure of the relationship came when the division was sold. The acquiring company evaluated existing vendor relationships and kept Ameri-Force. They re-signed. That decision was made by new ownership with no prior history with Ameri-Force, based entirely on the performance record left behind.
Ready to solve your next workforce challenge? Contact Ameri-Force: 904-633-9918 (Option 2 for Sales) | sales@ameriforce.com | www.ameriforce.com