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Industry: Steel processing and distribution
Company size: ~100 employees, single location
Core roles: Grinder or Mill Operator, Burn Operator, Crane Operator, Shipping, Maintenance Technician, Plant Supervisor
FactoryFix Champion: Kristie Kraftchick, HR Manager, Toledo Steel Supply
Toledo Steel Supply hires year round for shop roles across three and four shift operations. Before FactoryFix, the team relied on general job boards and broad ATS distribution that produced volume without consistent fit. As Kristie puts it, general boards “gave us volume, but there was a disconnect,” and the team spent time re‑confirming basics like shift flexibility and comfort with a steel manufacturing environment that can be hot in summer, cold in winter, dusty, and highly precise.
The team adopted FactoryFix for manufacturing‑specific reach and consolidated spend by shutting off separate sponsored ads. Recruiters keep priority roles live in FactoryFix so the pipeline stays active. Conversational AI now engages applicants immediately, asks job‑specific questions, and follows up to clarify forklift history, shift availability, pay expectations, tenure, and equipment experience. Kristie notes that she can “open a posting and instantly see who is engaged and how strong the match is,” which lets the team go straight to best‑fit candidates and move faster.
FactoryFix has also delivered for harder searches. When Toledo Steel Supply needed a Plant Supervisor with broad manufacturing supervision experience, qualified supervisors surfaced that had not appeared via general distribution. For a Maintenance Technician opening that required stronger electrical and CNC troubleshooting, Kristie saw “several strong candidates right away.”
Average time to fill dropped from 20 days in H1 2024 to 8 days in H1 2025. That is a 60 percent reduction driven by immediate AI screening, clear match scoring, and a proactive pipeline that is open at all times. With greater throughput, most offers now follow a phone interview with HR and one onsite walk‑through with the hiring supervisor.
Applicant volume scaled sharply from 235 in H1 2024 to 729 in H1 2025. That is just over 3 times the prior year, which makes it possible to staff consistently across shifts and stay ahead of turnover.
Toledo Steel Supply made 48 hires in H1 2025, up from 37 in H1 2024. That is about 30 percent growth in completed hires while maintaining quality. Kristie credits the conversational AI for “drilling down the way I would in an interview,” which captures the details the team needs without extra back‑and‑forth.
Annual recruiting spend fell from $26,000 in 2023 on other job boards to $13,500 in 2024 after consolidating into FactoryFix. In 2025 the company moved to an annual renewal and is on target for $9,540 in recruiting spend. That is a 63 percent reduction versus 2023 while still meeting hiring needs. Kristie adds, “Thank you for always asking for feedback and continuing to make FactoryFix an even stronger recruiting source,” underscoring the partnership and product momentum.
Toledo Steel Supply is exploring AI customization to widen talent pools for trainable roles while keeping tighter screening for specialized positions. The team is also reviewing automated interview scheduling to close the loop on front‑end recruiting.
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