Manufacturing Day 2015 Plans Off to a Strong Start

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Fueled by record setting participation last year, a wealth of activities are in the works for Manufacturing Day 2015, scheduled for October 2, the fourth annual industry grassroots event that’s celebrated across North America.  As of June 1, more than 160 events are already planned and listed on the official national events registry found on www.mfgday.com.  Some 100 organizations, publications and industry suppliers have publically declared their endorsement of MFG DAY 2015.

Manufacturing Day is an annual national event to improve public perception of manufacturing in America. The effort is executed at the local level supported by thousands of manufacturers as they host students, teachers, parents, job seekers and other local community members at open houses designed to showcase modern manufacturing technology and careers.

A panel of co-producers comprised of the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association, International (FMA), the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the Manufacturing Institute (MI), the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), and guest producer Industrial Strength Marketing (ISM) provide the centralized support necessary to coordinate this array of simultaneous events. The media partners for the event are Edge Factor and the Science Channel and the national movie partner is American Made Movie.

“Manufacturing Day has had rapid acceptance by manufacturers of all sizes and from all industry sectors,” said Ed Youdell, president and CEO of the FMA. “This has led us to set challenging goals again this year.  Last year the 1,679 registered events welcomed nearly 400,000 participants.  This year our streamlined event registration process will lead to many more events being registered on the official calendar, especially for those community and regional organizers who are putting together a number of events for their area. The co-producers are confident that the tally of events this year will exceed 2,250.”

Jennifer McNelly, president of The Manufacturing Institute, echoed Youdell’s enthusiasm.

“We are confident that this grassroots movement is reaching deeper into the educational community which is critical for the industry’s future.  One of the most important things that Manufacturing Day can do is to introduce educators and America’s youth to manufacturing and the career opportunities it provides,” McNelly said. 

“We will have a massive skills gap in this industry as Baby Boomers continue to retire,” she added. 

“Manufacturing Day makes it possible to attract thousands of young people into manufacturing facilities so they can see for themselves that jobs in this industry are interesting, challenging, and creative and that manufacturing facilities are desirable workplaces. We know that last year more than 215,000 young people participated in Manufacturing Day events, and we are confident we will greatly exceed that number in 2015.”

The following organizations have already become sponsors of the event:

• Platinum sponsor: Shell Lubricants
• Gold sponsors: Alliance for American Manufacturing, SME, SME Education Foundation, Tooling U –SME
• Silver sponsors: American Welding Society, Herbalife, Kronos, Precision Metalforming Association, Precision Machined Products Association
• Bronze sponsors: CNA Insurance, MSC Industrial Supply, Reliance Steel & Aluminum, Women in Manufacturing

Manufacturing Day sponsors provide the resources to support manufacturers participating in the program.

To learn more about Manufacturing Day, visit www.mfgday.com. Organizations that wish to become involved as official sponsors should call 888-394-4362 or email info@mfgday.com.