Phillips Corp’s inaugural Summer Field Service Internship paired aspiring manufacturing professionals with experienced Service Engineers for eight weeks of hands-on learning, mentorship, and real-world industry experience.

This summer, 11 aspiring service technicians traded the classroom for the passenger seat of a Phillips Haas Factory Outlet (HFO) service van.

Over eight weeks, they traveled alongside experienced Phillips Service Engineers, visited real manufacturing environments, and gained firsthand exposure to the mechanical, electrical, and problem-solving skills required to support CNC machine tools and the manufacturers that depend on them.

It was all part of the inaugural Phillips Summer Field Service Internship Program, a paid, field-based internship created to help bridge the gap between technical education and careers in advanced manufacturing.

And while the inaugural program concluded July 31, the investment Phillips Partners made in the next generation of manufacturing talent is intended to have an impact far beyond one summer.

Creating a Path from Technical Education to Industry

The idea behind the program was simple: give students interested in manufacturing careers an opportunity to experience the work firsthand.

Phillips designed the program for current students and recent graduates interested in CNC machining, industrial maintenance, mechatronics, electromechanical and electrical systems, and other technical disciplines.

To bring the inaugural program to life, Phillips Commercial Director of Education Community Meaghan Widenhouse worked with Field Service leadership to identify experienced technicians who could serve as mentors. She then mapped technical schools within approximately 50 miles of those technicians and personally reached out to instructors to help identify promising students.

More than 100 schools were considered, with instructors recommending students who were teachable, dependable, professional, and genuinely interested in technical careers. Candidates submitted a resume, described their career goals and what they hoped to gain from the experience, and included an instructor endorsement.

The response exceeded expectations: 35 students expressed interest, and Phillips ultimately welcomed 11 Field Service Interns for the summer.

A Different Kind of Manufacturing Internship

This wasn’t an internship built around observing manufacturing from a conference room.

From June 1 through July 31, each intern was paired with a dedicated Phillips Service Engineer and joined that mentor in the field, gaining exposure to real customer environments, industry best practices, and practical mechanical and electrical troubleshooting.

For some, that exposure began almost immediately.

During the first two weeks of the program, Service Engineer Brandon Bentz and intern Jason Chandler traveled to southwestern Virginia to help install a 90,000-pound horizontal milling machine.

“Jason was a huge help throughout the project, and it was great to be able to teach him and involve him in a project that few people get the chance to experience.” — Brandon Bentz, Service Engineer

For Chandler, who is studying Mechanical Engineering Technology, the installation became one of the accomplishments he was most proud of during the summer.

“It was huge and the first machine I worked on. It took us two weeks together to install, and I am proud of our work.” — Jason Chandler, Field Service Intern

Chandler said the experience also gave him insight into manufacturing that he could take back to his education, particularly through the programming and hands-on work he experienced in the field.

Experiences like Jason’s gave interns an opportunity to learn something difficult to replicate in a classroom: how manufacturing professionals approach real challenges in real production environments.

Diagnose. Troubleshoot. Solve. Communicate. Adapt.

The People Behind the Technology

At the heart of the program were the Service Engineers who agreed to become mentors.

For eight weeks, these technicians invited students into their daily routines, shared knowledge developed over years of experience, and helped interns understand not only how manufacturing technology works, but what it means to build a career supporting it.

For Bentz, that investment goes well beyond one intern or one summer.

“The world would come to a complete stop without the manufacturing industry,” Bentz said. “Developing highly skilled professionals to keep this industry moving forward is extremely important and something that means a lot to me.”

For Kenji Sato, mentoring Dayton Oglesby, an aspiring mechanical engineer, also became a two-way learning experience.

“The internship has been a learning opportunity for both Dayton and me,” Sato said. “I have been able to learn more from Dayton on his goals as he works towards becoming a Mechanical Engineer; and Dayton has learned more about the service world as well as the world of manufacturing from our different customers.”

For Oglesby, that exposure connected what he was learning in college with new possibilities in manufacturing.

“This helped give me an understanding of how the manufacturing space operates and opened my eyes to new paths,” Oglesby shared.

He also said seeing engineering concepts firsthand reinforced what he was learning in college and helped him feel more confident asking questions and interacting professionally with customers.

The Phillips Summer Field Service Internship was created to provide that combination of technical knowledge, professional experience, and exposure to real customer environments.

From Intern to Mentor

Perhaps one of the strongest examples of what investing in young manufacturing talent can achieve is already happening at Phillips.

Before becoming a service technician, Gage Bantos completed a Phillips internship himself. He was ultimately hired, and this summer found himself on the other side of the experience, serving as a mentor to Magnus Kohler, a student from the same school community.

For Gage, the experience brought his own journey with Phillips full circle.

“Going from being an intern myself to having the opportunity to mentor Magnus has really been a full-circle experience for me,” Gage shared. “I remember what it was like starting out, learning something new every day, and relying on the people around me who were willing to take the time to teach me. This summer gave me the chance to be that person for someone else and showed me how much I’ve grown since my own internship.”

But what Gage hoped Magnus would take away extended beyond the technical side of field service.

“I hope Magnus learned the importance of communicating with customers, having a strong work ethic, being willing to learn, and understanding that every service call can present a different challenge,” Gage said. “Most importantly, I hope the experience gave him a better understanding of what it takes to be successful in the field and helped him grow both professionally and personally.”

For Kohler, the value of that hands-on experience and mentorship was clear.

“My favorite part was getting hands-on experience and learning directly from my instructor,” Kohler said.

By the end of the summer, Kohler said he had become more confident working around Haas machines and better understood how to approach a service call and determine what might be causing a problem.

“It gave me a better understanding of what working in the field is really like.”

It’s the kind of full-circle workforce development Phillips hopes programs like this can create:

A student gets an opportunity. That opportunity becomes experience. Experience can become a career. And eventually, the person who was once learning may become the person teaching someone else.

Investing in the Future of Manufacturing

Advanced manufacturing technology continues to evolve, but technology alone doesn’t create manufacturing capability.

People do.

Manufacturers need skilled professionals who understand CNC machines, electrical and mechanical systems, automation, diagnostics, maintenance, and the increasingly sophisticated technologies found on today’s manufacturing floors.

Developing those professionals requires more than talking to students about manufacturing careers. It requires giving them opportunities to experience those careers.

That is what Phillips set out to do with its inaugural Summer Field Service Internship Program.

The first summer may be complete, but Phillips is already looking ahead.

“This first year showed us how much interest there is in opportunities like this from students, instructors, and our own service technicians. What stood out most was seeing the students grow throughout the summer and gain confidence through real, hands-on experience. We learned a lot from this first year, and now we have the opportunity to build on that, grow the program, and introduce even more students to the incredible career opportunities available in manufacturing,” said Meaghan Widenhouse, Director of Phillips Education Community.

Because investing in manufacturing technology is important.

Investing in the people who will support it for the next generation may be even more important.