01
Equipment-specific skill gaps
You can't put a general machine operator on a CNC lathe and expect quality output. The candidate needs experience on the exact equipment on your floor, not just manufacturing experience in general.
Industry · Manufacturing
For plants where
For plants where
downtime is not an option.
Production supervisors, CNC machinists, maintenance techs, quality managers, and plant leadership. Dedicated leads covering the Western and Eastern U.S. No generalists. No runaround.
87%
Contract-to-hire
conversion
conversion
2.1M
Manufacturing jobs projected
unfilled by 2030
unfilled by 2030
$125K
Median cost per hour
of unplanned downtime
of unplanned downtime
80%
Close rate on
Talent Needs Calls
Talent Needs Calls
Your best maintenance tech just retired
and nobody on the floor knows the equipment like he did.
Your PM schedule is slipping. Throughput is down. The temp agency sent bodies, not talent. We've heard every version of this. This division exists to fix it.
02
Maintenance backlogs drive downtime
Finding maintenance techs who can troubleshoot PLCs, handle electrical, and work across your specific equipment is nearly impossible through job boards. Your reactive maintenance climbs while preventive work piles up.
03
Generalist firms miss the details
A recruiter who doesn't know the difference between a setup machinist and a CNC operator can't qualify candidates properly. Wrong hires in production roles compound fast.
04
Scaling for new contracts
You win a contract or hit peak season and need to ramp up. The talent pool for experienced production operators and maintenance techs is razor thin. Job board timelines don't match your production schedule.
What equipment have you run? What tolerances? What shift structure? Those are the questions that separate us from generalists.
Every role
your plant depends on.
We've placed for discrete manufacturers, process plants, fabrication shops, and assembly operations. These are the roles we know how to source and how to qualify.
Production
- CNC machinists
- Welders & fabricators
- Assembly technicians
- Machine operators
- Setup technicians
- Production supervisors
- Line leads
Maintenance & Engineering
- Industrial maintenance techs
- PLC technicians
- Electrical & controls techs
- Mechanical engineers
- Manufacturing engineers
- Process engineers
- Maintenance supervisors
Quality & Safety
- Quality control inspectors
- Quality engineers
- Quality managers
- EHS specialists
- Safety managers
- Metrology technicians
- CMM operators
Plant Leadership
- Plant managers
- Operations managers
- General managers
- Continuous improvement leads
- Supply chain managers
- Warehouse managers
- VP of Operations
Dedicated coverage
across the country.
Manufacturing talent is regional. We built this division with dedicated leads on both coasts so the market knowledge is actually local.
Western U.S.
Delaney Lawrence
Covers manufacturing placements across the Western U.S. with a primary focus on Arizona. Works directly with plant operators and production managers to place the production and maintenance talent that generalist firms can't find.
Book a call with Delaney
Eastern U.S.
Eric Kupp
Covers manufacturing placements across the Northeast and Colorado. Specializes in matching production operators, maintenance techs, and plant leadership with the manufacturers who need them most.
Book a Talent Needs Call
A dedicated vertical.
Not a side offering.
Most staffing firms treat manufacturing as interchangeable with general labor. We built a dedicated division with regional leads who know the difference between a setup machinist and a machine operator.
01
Equipment-specific qualification
We don't ask if you've run machines. We ask what machines, what tolerances, what shift structure, what safety standards. Specificity is what separates good placements from bad ones.
02
Regional market depth
Dedicated leads in the West and East means we know what the talent pool looks like in your market specifically, not just in manufacturing generally.
03
MBE & veteran-owned
Cannonball is MBE-certified through the NMSDC and veteran-owned. If your company responds to RFPs or has supplier diversity spend requirements, our certification can strengthen your bids.
Three ways
to put us to work.
Contract-to-Hire
Production workers and maintenance techs start on Cannonball's payroll, prove themselves on your floor, and convert to permanent. Best for roles where hands-on competency has to be verified before the offer.
Learn moreDirect Placement
Permanent hires for plant managers, engineers, quality managers, and senior leadership. A tight shortlist of qualified candidates, not a flood of resumes.
Learn moreRecruitment Process Outsourcing
We become your recruiting team for manufacturing hiring. Best for plants scaling fast, multi-line operations, or facilities opening new production lines and needing to staff up quickly.
Learn more
Ready to talk?
Tell us what's open.
Tell us what's open.
We'll handle the rest.
A Talent Needs Call is a thirty-minute conversation about what you've got open, what's been tried, and whether Cannonball is the right fit. Even if we don't end up working together, you'll walk away with useful perspective on your specific talent market.
Book a Talent Needs Call
