Why Robot Motors Still Come From China (with Mason Hensley) | ReForge 030

In this episode, Matthew Chang and Colin Russ talk with Mason Hensley (Managing Director at American Stator) about why the stator is the real bottleneck in American robotics, and what it takes to build that supply chain here from the steel coil forward. If you care about robotics, supply chain, manufacturing, automation, domestic production, this one is for you. What we cover Why roughly 80 percent of small stators come out of China Die lead times of 20 weeks here versus a third of that in Asia The epoxy coating machine that only exists in China Winding as a service, and a send-cut-send experience for motors Why a fully automated plant makes the US an export market Chapters 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro  01:45 Mason’s Path to Robotics  08:47 Stators 101 and Supply Chain Gaps  25:43 Epoxy Coating and Induction  32:14 Winding as a Service  41:22 Scaling American Stator Hosts: Matthew Chang and Colin Russ  Guest: Mason Hensley, Managing Director at American Stator Find Mason Hensley:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/masonhensley/ | https://americanstator.com | https://x.com/masonhensley Find Matthew Chang:  https://x.com/MatthewChang | https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewachang/ Find Colin Russ:  https://x.com/ThaaatColin | https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinruss/ Find Chang Robotics:  https://changrobotics.ai | https://www.linkedin.com/company/changrobotics/ Seven Steps to Reindustrialize America: https://www.thereforgepodcast.com/7steps Follow ReForge LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-reforge-podcast/ X: https://x.com/thereforgepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereforgepod/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereforgepod Website: https://thereforgepodcast.com/ Want to be a guest or partner? If you’re building, funding, operating, or shaping the future of U.S. manufacturing, we’d love to hear from you.  Email: [email protected] About ReForge ReForge is a podcast featuring conversations with the leaders reindustrializing America.  This show exists to prove American reindustrialization is possible, pivotal, and pressing.  Hosted by Matthew Chang and Colin Russ. Produced by Chang Robotics.