Still Growing - But not there yet.
Pros
-FMI has some fantastic coworkers. By and large, most are helpful and commit to the business. -Products are on the bleeding edge of materials science; spacecraft parts, rocket motors, thermal protection systems are not found often. -Huge investments by the customers over the last 5 years, lots of new equipment and improvements. -Safety Culture has vastly improved. -The old guard really upholds the previous family business atmosphere.
Cons
-Corporate buyout changed key leaders, business direction, and increased red tape. -No ladder to climb or retention structure. No pipelines for new teammates. -Wage compression and substandard comp - why work a difficult job in a complicated plant when I can flip pizzas for $1 less an hour and get better PTO? -Tribal knowledge is still paramount even after ISO 9001 and AS9100 certifications. Knowledge is retained by a select few teammates, who are slowly retiring/leaving. -Not keeping pace with the Great Resignation. Lots of brain drain in the past year of incredibly brilliant people for better comp, benefits, and working conditions. -It's a dirty job - yes it used to be worse - but it's not good, either. -Consolidation of larger Prime contractors has the opportunity to eat FMI's lunch. In order to keep expanding, there is a constant drive for improvement.