Welcome to Manufacturing Hub and welcome to 2026. In this kickoff episode, Vlad Romanov and Dave Griffith reset the table for the year and share what the show is really about: practical conversations with people who build, run, secure, and modernize manufacturing systems. If you are new here, this is the perfect starting point because we explain the format, the monthly themes, and the reason we keep coming back to the same hard truth: manufacturing improvement is never just about technology. It is also about people, process, incentives, and change.

From there, we get into the big question everyone is asking right now: what actually changes in 2026 for manufacturing and industrial automation. We talk about why AI stopped being a novelty and started becoming a permanent part of the landscape, and we separate the hype from the applications that are starting to look real. We discuss where AI helps today, where it still struggles, and why most teams will not get value until they build stronger fundamentals in data collection, context, and operational ownership. We also connect the dots between AI and the pressure it puts on infrastructure, security posture, and decision making, especially when the plant floor reality is still paper logs, tribal knowledge, and inconsistent system documentation.

We also cover what we expect to see across the core pillars of the industrial stack: plant floor data and operations, engineering and commissioning workflows, back office analytics, OT cybersecurity, industrial data platforms, and how the systems integration market is evolving as more work moves upward into analytics, architecture, and long term modernization programs. Finally, we zoom out into careers, acquisitions, private equity activity, and what these shifts mean for engineers, leaders, and teams trying to build durable capability instead of chasing the next shiny tool.

If you are planning your year, come meet us in person. We will be at ProveIt in Dallas, Texas February 16 to 20. We will also be at Automate in Chicago, Illinois June 22 to 26. And we are expecting to be back at the Ignition Community Conference in Sacramento, California September 22 to 26.

Timestamps

00:00 Welcome to 2026 and why we are back
01:00 What Manufacturing Hub covers and how the show is structured
02:35 Meet the hosts Dave Griffith and Vlad Romanov
04:55 Where to meet us in 2026 ProveIt Automate ICC
07:45 The state of manufacturing and what is changing this year
08:35 AI in manufacturing from curiosity to permanence
12:20 Plant floor data reality and why fundamentals still block progress
18:10 AI in engineering and commissioning where it helps and where it can hurt
24:30 Back office work and the real adoption patterns
31:00 OT cybersecurity pressure and why posture work is accelerating
38:10 Industrial data priorities and what to fix before you scale
44:40 Systems integration shifts careers and the ripple effects of acquisitions
1:03:00 Our plans for 2026
1:10:45 Book recommendation and closing thoughts

Hosts

Vlad Romanov is an electrical engineer and manufacturing consultant focused on industrial automation, modernization, OT data, and IT OT alignment. He runs Joltek and builds educational content for engineers and technical leaders.

Dave Griffith has 17 plus years in industrial automation and manufacturing and leads Kaplan Solutions, focused on operational excellence, data systems, and delivering projects that make plant performance visible and actionable.

References mentioned

How to tackle the AI skills gap, Boston Consulting Group
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-tackle-ai-skills-gap-boston-consulting-group-ufzge

What’s Next for AI in 2026, MIT Technology Review
https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/01/05/1130662/whats-next-for-ai-in-2026/

Getting Naked, Patrick Lencioni
https://www.tablegroup.com/product/getting-naked/

Handing over a project is one of the most underestimated and misunderstood phases in manufacturing and industrial automation. In this episode of Manufacturing Hub, Vlad and Dave sit down to break apart real stories from the field covering MES rollouts, line commissioning, SCADA and ignition development, operational adoption, and the very real consequences of poor knowledge transfer. Most conversations online focus on the technical build, but very few people emphasize the point where engineering lets go and the operations team becomes the true owner of the system. This episode brings forward examples of both well executed handovers and catastrophic failures that every engineer, integrator, or manager can learn from.

Vlad begins by walking through his experience building MES and data collection systems for food and beverage facilities where each plant had different architectures, legacy systems, undocumented networks, and obsolete PLCs. These initiatives required deep assessments, phased modernization, server deployments, KPI development, and the long journey from data collection to actual operational use. The most important insight is that success rarely comes from the technology alone. It comes from the extent to which operators, supervisors, and CI teams are trained, empowered, and aligned to use what has been built.

Dave then shares a story from a multi year track and trace project that technically worked but failed at the operational handover stage because the one scheduler refused to schedule inside the system. The entire project was mothballed despite millions of dollars invested. The lesson is simple. Technology cannot compensate for missing stakeholder alignment and poor discovery. Human influence can halt even the most well engineered solution.

Timestamps
00:00 Welcome and episode setup
01:20 Host introductions and backgrounds
04:00 Vlad’s MES and data rollout projects across multiple plants
18:10 Biggest wins and failures from MES handovers
26:20 Dave’s chocolate factory MES and traceability project
29:30 The scheduler says no and a multi million project gets mothballed
36:40 Lessons learned about scope creep and realistic timelines
42:00 Vlad’s multimillion packaging line rollouts and OEE based handover
49:20 Internal versus external teams and who really owns change
58:50 Connected workforce at an orange juice plant and knowledge capture
01:15:00 Where project handovers are heading in the next three to five years
01:19:00 Career advice, books, and final thoughts

Hosts
Vladimir Romanov
Founder of Joltek. Electrical engineer with an MBA from McGill University. More than a decade of experience across Procter and Gamble, Kraft Heinz, Post Holdings, and multiple systems integration roles. Specializes in OT systems, industrial data architecture, MES, SCADA, modernization, and digital transformation. Works with manufacturers to unlock value through data and operational decision support.
https://www.joltek.com/team-members/vladimir-romanov

Dave Griffith
Founder of Kaplan Solutions. Seventeen plus years of experience across aerospace, automation, system integration, MES delivery, and enterprise manufacturing systems. Dave specializes in ignition development, operations consulting, and project delivery frameworks that reduce risk and increase adoption across manufacturing teams.

References Mentioned in the Episode
Never Split The Difference by Chris Voss
https://www.amazon.com/Never-Split-Difference-Negotiating-Depended/dp/0062407805
How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
https://www.amazon.com/How-Win-Friends-Influence-People/dp/0671027034
Traction by Gino Wickman
https://www.amazon.com/Traction-Get-Grip-Your-Business/dp/1936661837
The E Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280

• Understanding Plant Networks
• Manufacturing Execution Systems
• Manufacturing Digital Maturity and Assessments
• Control System Modernization
• Engineering Project Management Essentials
• Manufacturing Consulting and Change Management