Rapid Robotics: Robot Operators at Your Service
Jordan Kretchmer and Ruddick Lawrence saw the need for robots at a time of declining labor participation. Wound down in 2025.
Automation was a viable solution to the severe labor shortage that upended the manufacturing industry.
Nearly every corner of the manufacturing industry had been rocked by both a global pandemic and record-breaking inflation. Combined with fluctuating demand levels, supply chain interruptions, and ongoing labor shortages, it was the perfect storm of hurdles and challenges.
According to data from the Labor Department’s JOLT database, there were 860,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs in March 2022. The average age for manufacturing workers was 44, and they were retiring faster than they were being replaced. The labor shortage plaguing American manufacturers was viewed at the time as a long-term, structural issue.
Jordan Kretchmer & Ruddick Lawrence
CO-FOUNDERS