Cost-focused companies often fail to realize that investing in training could improve
productivity or product quality because they cannot immediately quantify the value.
are reluctant to invest in technol- ogy or training that could increase the value they provide to customers. Cost-focused companies often fail to realize that investing in training could improve productivity or product qual- ity, because they cannot immediately quantify the value. Many companies are unwilling to
invest in training due to concerns of employees leaving soon after. Execu- tives from progressive companies are willing to take the risk, as they understand adequate training supports a constructive company culture. Tey feel that even if an employee leaves, he or she will have a positive feeling about the company that will provide benefits in the community.
Attracting a New Generation: Industry Perceptions and Career Guidance Hurdles
Creating a positive impression of the metalcasting industry is cited by many within the industry as a major issue in attracting more young people. Common misconceptions present a dilemma. Many Americans believe manufacturing is important to main- tain a strong national economy, but only a third would encourage their children to pursue a manufacturing career and only 43% believe a manu-
facturing career is a secure pursuit. An overwhelming majority (80%) believe manufacturing jobs are the first to move to other countries. Schaumburg High School, Scha-
umburg, Ill., provides an example of some obstacles schools encounter in offering a program to expose students to manufacturing and improve their perceptions of it. Te high school has a fully func-
tioning foundry, with casting included as part of a one-semester production technology course. Te course includes an introduction to wood working, sheet metal fabrication, CNC machin- ing, aluminum casting and some computer-aided drafting. As part of the casting portion, students create a pattern and green sand mold, cut the gating and use a furnace to melt and pour aluminum. Then they break down the mold and finish the part. Each year, 45 to 50 students go
through the program. Steve Kuipers, applied technology instructor, notes that most students are kids that enjoy hands-on skills and often are looking for the shortest path to a career that will provide a good living. Even with the advantage of an
onsite foundry to learn about met- alcasting, some Schaumburg High
School counselors are reluctant to suggest a career in the industry. A case in point is graduate Rodrigo Gutierrez, who earned a mechani- cal engineering degree at Northern Illinois University (NIU) and now works as an applications engineer for Magma Foundry Technologies. Gutierrez’s father was an aircraft maintenance mechanic, so he was exposed at an early age to machinery and how things worked. He knew he wanted to work with his hands, and he had an aptitude for math. His counsel- ors ignored his mechanical penchant and told him to use his math skills to pursue an accounting degree. Knowing he didn’t want to be an
accountant, Rodrigo secured a summer internship at Magma via his sister, who worked for the company. He spent three summers at the company and worked with Magma to use simu- lation technology for his senior design project at NIU. Today, Rodrigo is an evangelist
for manufacturing careers. He is on the advisory council for Schaumburg High School’s Science, Technol- ogy, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) curriculum and speaks to interested student groups about manufacturing careers.
New Educational Models: Post-Secondary Education
Creating manufacturing awareness at the high school level is important, but more work is needed to educate and train the next generation of manufac- turing talent. Several industry efforts are underway, along with increasing efforts at community and technical col- leges and programs initiated
WORKFORCE CHALLENGES: IMPACT OF MANUFACTURING
Manufacturing has gone through significant changes over the last decade. It comprised 27% of the global economy in 1970 and fell to 16.2% in 2009. Then it grew to 17.4% by 2011 and is expected to account for more than 20% of the global economy by 2020.
While some growth occurs outside U. S. borders, as economic conditions improve in developing countries, the U.S. remains the largest manufacturing economy, producing 18.2%
22 | MODERN CASTING April 2013
of global manufactured products valued at $1.8 trillion each year or 12.2% of the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP). Manufacturing supports 17.2 million jobs in the U.S., and nearly 9% of the American workforce is employed directly in manufacturing. Although these figures are down from peak years, manufacturing employment in the U.S. has increased in recent years and January 2013 represented the 40th consecu- tive month of growth.
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