Written by: Nick Knotts/Industrial Engineer at The Lawton Standard Co.
The time is nearing for the release of Season 1 of Cast In Steel. The new tv series premieres on YouTube on Thursday, July 9th at 8PM!
You can watch Season 1 here and subscribe to the Cast in Steel channel on YouTube for more exciting content.
The Greatest Roadblock for Manufacturing in 2026
As many of you who follow Lawton Standard or even just myself are probably aware, this is something that I am personally very passionate about. My passion for Cast in Steel lies in how it is an extremely effective solution for addressing what is the single greatest roadblock to manufacturing in this country right now: A serious lack of young and talented people entering manufacturing.
The US economy is projected to add approximately 4 million manufacturing jobs by 2033. Compare that to the addition of about 600,000-700,000 manufacturing jobs over the past decade, and you are beginning to realize that we are about to need a lot more people in the industry. That being said, finding 4 million people to fill those jobs is no small task. In most cases, we can barely find people to fill the jobs that we have open right now! One look at the LinkedIn page of any manufacturer will demonstrate that; practically everyone is hiring for every position in the book.
There are a number of reasons for this lack of talent in manufacturing, the first driving factor is the broader decline of manufacturing in the United States since the 1950s. It has driven more and more people to seek careers outside of manufacturing. The federal government is taking steps to address this by supporting reshoring efforts, which is bringing back opportunities for people in manufacturing. However, the other issue, particularly among young people, is the stigma surrounding manufacturing, which foundries face with even more intensity. Manufacturing, over the decades, has been labeled as boring and old-fashioned, and that could not be further from the truth, but the stigma drives people away. It is this problem, that boring and old-fashioned stigma that surrounds manufacturing which Cast in Steel addresses so brilliantly.
Cast in Steel Engaging the Future Leaders of the Industry
The Cast in Steel program engages college students with manufacturing on a deep level by allowing them to manufacture something of their own, however they want. Most students learn through the course of the process that manufacturing things is not boring and old-fashioned, it is fun and exciting. Lawton Standard has directly hired students as a result of the Cast in Steel competition, and with my personal involvement in the competition, I have seen a lot of people enter the metal casting industry who might not have been planning too otherwise.
The expansion of Cast in Steel into a TV Show is going to take the message and put it out there for the whole world to see. By reaching a larger audience, we hope that Cast in Steel will bring more people to manufacturing and metal casting, especially the younger generation.
Cast in Steel Season 1 Debuts July 9th at 8:00 p.m.
We actively encourage you to reach out to as many people as possible regarding Cast in Steel, share the link to watch season 1, repost the trailers, and engage in conversation with others about the show. The more people that Cast in Steel reaches, the brighter of a future that manufacturing has in this country.
If you wish to learn more about Cast in Steel, or sign up for the competition in future years, you can go to www.castinsteel.net for more information.
Nick Knotts Involvement in the Cast in Steel Program
For this year’s Cast in Steel competition, Nick Knotts was a judge. He was on the panel judging Best Sand Casting and Best Investment Casting.
Students had to recreate “Horseman’s Axes” made famous by Robert the Bruce, Kings of Scots. The axes had to meet three main criteria to be in the competition:
- The axe must leverage casting technology
- The axe must be under 3.3 pounds
- The axe must be no longer than 31.5”
Watch Nick discuss his time as a judge here:
Along with judging, Nick has been actively involved in helping teams from Michigan Tech the past two years. He helped two teams in 2025, as they designed, cast and tested recreations of George Washington’s sword. Then this year, he helped/mentored another team from Michigan Tech as they competed in making “Horseman’s Axes.”
Watch Nick discuss his time as a mentor and coach to Michigan Tech students: