This episode of U.S. Manufacturing Today features Derik Ellis and Molly Lenty of Vessel, a platform designed to help manufacturers and the experts who serve them turn operational data into insight by unifying shop-floor systems with business outcomes through smart assessments and supply chain intelligence. Molly shares her transition from 25 years in corporate banking and economic development to helping manufacturers access resources, while Derik describes his path from the Air Force and software entrepreneurship to founding Vessel in 2018 as a consulting firm that evolved into a technology platform. They discuss recurring challenges in small and mid-sized manufacturing, including limited access to resources, trust-building with consultants, misaligned stakeholders, and the need for disciplined, organization-wide diagnosis before action (e.g., ERP adoption). Vessel supports MEPs and consultants with a library of 300+ customizable assessments, multi-stakeholder alignment, longitudinal tracking, actionable reports, and aggregated ecosystem visibility to inform workforce and regional strategy.

Timestamps

00:00 Show Introduction

01:24 Meet Molly Lenty

03:16 Derik Ellis Origin Story

05:20 Recurring SME Challenges

06:30 Access And Resource Networks

09:02 What Vessel Does

10:07 MEPs And Standardized Assessments

15:29 Why Consulting Often Fails

17:53 Diagnosis Before Action

21:29 Assessment Library And Custom Builds

23:31 Multi Stakeholder Alignment

Bridging Operational Excellence: Vessel’s Diagnostic Platform for Small and Mid-Sized Manufacturers