AUSTIN—By combining early-career outreach, hands-on exposure and technology that streamlines work, electronic test tools manufacturer Fluke Corporation offers a blueprint for manufacturers looking to attract and retain the next generation of technicians.
“I don't think that the people at the front lines feel the ownership and accountability of filling their coffers with the right talent,” Fluke President Parker Burke said at the company’s Xcelerate 2026 conference. “The perspective of the folks in the room is that there are not enough young or early-career workers. The perspective of the students is, ‘People aren't willing to hire us.’ There's a disconnect there.”
Vice President and General Manager Jay Hack put it bluntly: They can’t visualize what they can’t see. He illustrated his point by describing how he gives his teenage daughter practical experience, from explaining why a bike chain needs oiling to letting her use a Fluke thermal camera around their home to monitor heat.
For manufacturers, this type of early exposure can be the difference between awareness and interest.
However, exposure is not enough. Fluke augments training by modernizing its manufacturing facilities and pairing new workers with established staff to help with onboarding.
Fluke Xcelerate 2026Nolan Beilstein
“[Young people] don’t want to come in and feel like it’s where their grandfather did business,” Hack said. “Once you get someone interested, how do you then facilitate that? Obviously, good pay, good advancement—those things are important too. But you [have to] get that hook in and get the interest.”
The company extends this approach through educational partnerships. Fluke recently donated professional test and measurement equipment to Washington State University to help train over 4,000 engineering students. This gives the company early access to talent before they ever enter the job market.
Fluke also recognizes that the tools technicians use on the job affect both recruitment and engagement.
“Our eMaint (maintenance software) training leader is a former high school educator, and he was telling me about how to engage with younger folks,” Burke said. “It's quick videos, quick engagements, quick blurbs that enable them to learn the way they want to learn.”
Fluke Xcelerate 2026Nolan Beilstein
To meet these expectations, Fluke introduced what it calls “practical AI” to its eMaint platform to simplify access to maintenance data and reduce manual work. The new features—currently available in beta—center on four core functions: ask, build, speak and learn.
The read-only AI assistant lets users query maintenance data in natural language; an SOP generator converts uploaded manuals into preventive maintenance plans and work orders; voice commands create work orders hands-free and the “learn” feature standardizes information across global languages.
In practice, this means less time searching for information and faster onboarding for new technicians.
“Young workers want to interact with devices differently; they want to have faster outputs instead of searching through documents,” Chief Product Officer Vineet Thuvara said. “[It’s] being more impactful on the outcomes rather than just the drudgery of the process.”
Together, these investments show how the role of the maintenance technician is already evolving.
“The technician of the future is not going to be the technician that knows the process or procedure best,” Burke said. “The worker of the future is going to have to do a lot more. Having systems, machines and tools that automate that transactional work will be important.”
