MFG Month 2024 is History

NWIRC is committed to spreading awareness and excitement about manufacturing careers throughout the entire year, but here’s a little recap of some of the activity we had during MFG Month in October.

We of course had an exhibit at one of the largest MFG Day events in the country with over 2000 students and hosted by the Manufacturer & Business Association in Erie on October 9th. This year, we invited our partner, CodeJoy, to come along with their coding features of robot miniature golf and ‘rock, paper, scissors’ with micro:bits (tiny computers that teach students how software and hardware work together). We also facilitated a breakout session for students featuring a panel of young adults sharing their inspiring career journeys in manufacturing – representing ISM, Acutec Precision Aerospace, and Jamestown Coating Technologies.

Manufacturing Family Days were a big hit for companies in the region who hosted events specifically for providing tours to the kids, grandkids, nieces, nephews, and other family of their employees. Some combined with their usual MFG Month activities, while others planned an event just for family.

Companies using NWIRC’s Manufacturing Family Day toolkits in October included Peters Heat Treating, Acutec, Starlite Diversified, DuBois Granite, Highpoint Tool, Beverage Air, Greenleaf, Plastikos, Meadville Forge, Electric Materials, ISM, and Actco Tool. Since the focus of MFG Day is really about manufacturers opening their doors to students, tours were coordinated throughout the month. One of the fun stops for eAcademy at Lindepoint students included the Sippy Historic Machine Shop in Saegertown PA.

In case you missed it, check out this inspiring MFG Day 2024 video, See Yourself in Manufacturing, created by NIST MEP (our national Manufacturing Extension Partnership network) underscoring the importance of showcasing today’s manufacturing.