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Teaching Educators about Manufacturing

Submitted by: Karen Owens on Nov 20, 2009 at 2:06 pm Tagged with: career exploration, Education, Manufacturing Source: Silver Crescent Foundation

As we continue to celebrate the announcements of companies like Boeing, Timken and Mack Molding making capital investments and adding new jobs in the Palmetto State, we need to support activities that ensure a capable and educated workforce for those companies to succeed.

On Wednesday (Nov. 18), two dozen career specialists and guidance counselors from Spartanburg-area middle and high schools attended a special field trip to learn what today’s modern manufacturing jobs entail. They visited three of the area’s leading manufacturers that not only showed them what their operations look like but also described the skills and attributes they are looking for in new hires.

It was an eye-opening experience for many of the men and women as they heard how production jobs can pay upwards of $20 an hour, employees receive extensive medical benefits and many earn merit bonuses for surpassing their production goals. They heard about the value of technical training and apprenticeship programs that build a portfolio of skills that will lead to both professional and personal advancement. Many of the people who spoke to the field trip participants had worked for their respective companies for more than 10 years, and some for more than 30. They were genuinely enthusiastic about their careers and demonstrated firsthand the value of doing what you love.

The educators were also told in no uncertain terms that many of our young people are not measuring up – lacking basic education, interpersonal skills, proper attire, and sometimes, appropriate hygiene to make it through the interview process.

Then, the group was led on guided tours by the host manufacturers. At Lear Corporation, they watched as line workers covered seats that would be transferred across the highway to BMW. They marveled at the enormous variety of products that Milliken produces for the consumer, medical and military markets. And they eagerly talked with associates at SEW Eurodrive about how they used math everyday in running robots that make gears and motor components used by companies all over the world.

Hopefully, these educators will take what they learned and bring that knowledge and excitement back to their students and parents. These individuals play a vital role in helping students and their families gain a better understanding about what careers these young people can pursue upon graduating from high school. By exposing more people to the variety of career opportunities that exist in today’s manufacturing sector, we strive to build the workforce pipeline of the future that will keep South Carolina competitive and prosperous for many generations to come.