WORKFORCE PIPELINE A MONTHLY FEATURE ABOUT TRAINING, EDUCATION & WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT w Apprenticeship Program Expanding Nationwide I


n West Virginia, as in most of the nation, there simply are not enough workers pursuing careers in manufacturing, and this talent shortage will continue to grow as more Baby Boomers retire.


This is an issue for most companies. In fact, the Tooling U-SME Millennial Survey shows that eight of 10 manufac- turers are concerned about meeting their workforce needs within the next fi ve years.


For companies to compete successfully and grow, they


often require customized training programs and apprentice- ships to increase the skills of their current workforce, raising them to a higher level, and attract new workers. In recognition of this critical need, the US Department of Labor (DOL) has awarded the Robert C. Byrd Institute for Ad- vanced Flexible Manufacturing (RCBI) $4.9 million to expand its model apprenticeship program nationwide.


working hard to create in West Virginia. Advanced manu- facturing is growing exponentially across the country, and in West Virginia, and I’m glad we will be able to provide more employers with people who have the skills required for the jobs of today and tomorrow.” With this grant, the National Advanced Manufacturing


This innovation-based, technology-driven approach relies on local manufacturers and partners such as Tooling U-SME, a leader in manufacturing training and development.


DOL-Funded Apprenticeship Program As West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin said, “Training


programs like the ones this grant will support at RCBI are a critical part of building the highly trained workforce we are


110 AdvancedManufacturing.org | November 2015


Apprenticeship Program at RCBI will broaden our existing innovative apprenticeships and promote advanced manufac- turing pre-apprenticeships for underrepresented groups such as women, transitioning military personnel and disadvantaged youth. It will provide standardized, industry-endorsed, online instruction and on-the-job (OTJ) learning for companies in multiple states. The RCBI program will serve at least 1000 ap- prentices and 415 pre-apprentices across the United States. The grant will make apprenticeships more affordable to employers and more accessible to employees and individuals considering careers in manufacturing. Through the fi ve-year initiative, RCBI and its partners will deliver apprenticeship training nationwide in core advanced manufacturing areas such as manual and computer-con- trolled machining while they create new registered appren- ticeships in additive manufacturing (better known as 3D Printing), composites and robotics. RCBI will continue to work with a variety of industries, including automotive, aero- space, robotics, defense and related industries. This award recognizes a unique approach to apprentice- ship building in West Virginia—praised by the DOL—that has the potential to be replicated across the nation and to address the growing skills gap in manufacturing. Marshall University President Gary White says, “This is a


tremendous opportunity for us to extend RCBI’s important services across the country, training hundreds of people for the high-tech jobs of the future.” RCBI’s apprenticeship training model focuses on ad- vanced manufacturing, enabling workers to earn a wage while improving their job skills. This collaborative model lever-


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