[mountainstate] Fw: [acb-l] Nonprofit Aims to Put More VIPS to Work

[donna brown]

> Nonprofit aims to put more visually impaired people to work
> 
> By Erin Golden WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
> 
> The machine Jacob Clark operates is a big, heavy-duty piece of 
> equipment.  It's nearly as tall as the ceiling and holds 220 huge 
> "logs" of toilet
> paper.  It rotates and slices them into nearly 5,000 rolls that 
> eventually will make their way from the plant at 72nd and F 
> Streets in Omaha to businesses, government buildings and military 
> bases around the world.
> 
> Faster and more efficient than the equipment it replaced a few 
> months ago, the "rewinder" machine is a notable addition to an 
> operation that stands out for another reason: The majority of its 
> employees, both in the office and on the production floor, are 
> blind or visually impaired.
> 
> Clark, the man at the controls of the new machine, is both 
> legally blind and deaf.
> 
> Outlook Nebraska, the nonprofit group that runs the plant, says 
> new equipment that can boost production is just one of the ways 
> it's trying to expand, provide more jobs for visually impaired 
> people -- and shift perceptions about what those people can and 
> can't do in the workplace.
> 
> "It's our job to help show the general public that the blind are 
> highly capable people," said Eric Stueckrath, the organization's 
> chief executive officer.
> 
> The production area of Outlook's facility looks just like any 
> other factory: machines, forklifts beeping as they cruise around 
> the floor, conveyor belts and stacks of raw materials -- in this 
> case, towering, 2,500-pound rolls of recycled paper.  The 
> organization makes toilet paper and paper towels, primarily for 
> use in government facilities.
> 
> But because most of the workers turning big sheets of paper into 
> wrapped and packaged products are visually impaired -- about 40 
> of Outlook's 60 or so employees are legally blind -- it has a few 
> special features.
> 
> Some machines are equipped with sensors that will provide a 
> verbal message if a door is ajar or there's some kind of 
> malfunction.  A yellow pathway that runs through the plant has 
> raised lines to help workers with canes tell when they're close 
> to a machine or a high-traffic area.  There are talking vending 
> machines and microwaves in the breakroom.  Workers in the office 
> use programs that can scan an email, website or document and read 
> it out loud.  Just off the production floor, there's a room for 
> service dogs to wait while their owners work.
> 
> Clark, whose eyesight has been degenerating since birth (he said 
> his level of vision is a bit like looking down the tube of one of 
> the paper towel rolls Outlook makes), uses an iPad with voice 
> software to communicate with his co-workers.  He often grabs his 
> phone to send text messages, which can be turned into voice 
> messages on the phone of someone with a visual impairment.
> 
> The idea that communication might be a particular challenge in 
> the workplace doesn't seem to phase Clark.  After all, he's 
> figured out how to work his way up from a job putting rolls of 
> toilet paper into boxes to being a machine operator, the 
> second-highest-paying job in production.  He shrugged.  "It works 
> for me."
> 
> Often, Stueckrath said, employers have a hard time picturing 
> someone like Clark having that sort of success, especially at 
> such a hands-on job.  Or they can't imagine someone like Mark 
> Plutschak, who lost some of his sight after an on-the-job 
> chemical explosion at age 18, serving as a human resources 
> manager after years of work in manufacturing.  Or Rachel Carver, 
> blind from birth, handling public relations duties and putting 
> together a company newsletter.  As a result, about 70 percent of 
> blind workers are unemployed -- even though Stueckrath said it 
> doesn't take much to make a workplace accessible enough for 
> someone with limited or no sight.
> 
> "The technology is readily available and isn't that expensive," 
> he said.
> 
> But until more employers catch on, the people at Outlook said 
> they're trying to boost the number of opportunities in their 
> workplace.  They hope that the investment in the new $4.8 million 
> machine, which makes its public debut at an open house today, 
> will lead to a significant uptick in production and help provide 
> more jobs.
> 
> Most of the organization's funding comes from the sale of its 
> products.  It does not receive direct support from the federal 
> government but uses some grant money to pay for its operations, 
> particularly training for workers.
> 
> Without the new machine, Outlook could produce about 600 cases -- 
> with 80 rolls to a case -- of toilet paper each shift.  The new 
> machine could more than double that number.  Carver said she 
> expects the company could get more contracts if it could produce 
> more products, but it's hard to say how many -- or how many new 
> workers would be needed to keep up with added demand.
> 
> But the new machine comes with another plus for visually impaired 
> workers.  Because it comes with special features, unlike some of 
> the older machines, it can be operated by a blind or sighted 
> worker.
> 
> "That will give blind people more opportunity to work on their 
> skill sets," Carver said.
> Contact the writer: 402-444-1543, erin.golden at owh.com
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