Bright Minds Shine Light on the Manufacturing Floor

A couple of weeks ago on October 2, Manufacturing Day, Formtek had lines of students from local technical and vocational schools in the Cleveland, OH area visit our plant in Warrensville Heights to get a better idea of what the manufacturing industry is all about.

There’s a stigma associated with manufacturing where working in a plant looks a lot like it did during the industrial revolution; there’s a lot smoke and fumes, grease-covered overalls, and a lot of hand-held heavy tools swinging around. The truth is, things are a little different now. Actually, a lot different.

Yeah, this guy? He's a miner - not a manufacturer.

Darren Muchnicki, President of Formtek, explained what the industry is really looking for from prospective employees. “We look for skilled labor for assembly. Many of our assemblers have been here a long time, but it takes somebody who has a passion and an understanding of mechanical aptitude.”

The reason the employee skill sets need to be more advanced is because the entire environment is more advanced. Many students were surprised to see fully automated machines hooked up to modern desktop computers only a few feet away. “When you think of the end products, like a vehicle or robotic prosthesis, it’s clear that those systems and devices are advanced. The thing is, the process we use to manufacture the components relies heavily on the ability to use software and apply engineering skills in a virtual environment first,” Muchnicki explained.

Click to see coverage of Manufacturing Day at Formtek

By raising awareness and interest in the manufacturing field, Formtek, along with other manufacturing businesses, hope to help fill more jobs nationally. Reports estimate that over the next decade, 2,000,000 jobs that will be left unfilled due to a lack of unskilled workers.

Thanks to all our visitors and fellow presenters from Manufacturing Day for helping to revive interest in our beloved industry. To see the machines that Formtek’s engineers have custom-developed and constructed for countless metal forming customers, take a look around our site at www.formtekgroup.com.