New Educational Foundation Will Focus On Recruiting, Training And Retention

Owners and managers of precision machined products companies most commonly list the need to maintain a skilled workforce as the greatest challenge they face when planning for the future of their companies. The Precision Machined Products Association (PMPA) recently moved to address that challenge through the formation of the PMPA Educational Foundation. The Foundation is a not-for-profit charitable organization that received a favorable ruling from the Internal Revenue Service as a 501 (c) (3) in June 2000.

The effort to establish the Foundation was initiated by PMPA members Richard and Joan Parker of Metric Machining, Monrovia, California.

Front row, left to right: Scott Giesler, PMPA, Brecksville, Ohio: president; Joan Parker, Metric Machining, Monrovia, California: director; Richard Parker, Metric Machining, Monrovia, California: director.
Back row, left to right: Kurt Gleich, The G & G Manufacturing Company, Cincinnati, Ohio: chairman; Bernard Bertsche, Camcraft, Inc., Hanover Park, Illinois: secretary; Ralph Spaeth, Bilvern Products, Inc., Mason, Ohio: director; W. Dan Stiltz, Marshall Manufacturing Corporation, Lewisburg, Tennessee: treasurer.

It was their desire to financially support the formation of the Foundation so that there would be an entity focused specifically on the recruiting, training and retention of a skilled workforce for the industry. Their substantial contribution has formed a solid base from which the Foundation will be able to build its program of work.

"We saw the need to develop the skills of our industry's workforce so that the industry might remain competitive in the world market well into the future," says Richard Parker, Chairman of Metric Machining. "By making the initial contribution to establish the PMPA Educational Foundation, Joan and I hope that we can have a positive impact on the training conducted for the industry."

The Foundation has its own board of directors and officers, and although it operates under the auspices of the Precision Machined Products Association, it is a separate organization with its own bylaws. The Foundation Officers and Board Members are pictured below.

Initially, the Foundation board has identified five primary project areas, listed below, on which to focus its attention.

"These are broad objectives for program development that will require a significant amount of support by the industry, both in terms of financial support and volunteer time and effort," says Scott Giesler, PMPA Educational Foundation president. "We are now initiating a fundraising program to increase the resources the Foundation has available to build a program. PMPA members, the industry in general, and suppliers to the industry will be contacted over the next several months to contribute to the Foundation."

Since the Foundation is a charitable organization, both corporate and personal contributions are fully tax deductible as charitable contributions. Making a contribution to the Foundation is as simple as sending a corporate or personal check to PMPA Educational Foundation, 6700 West Snowville Road, Brecksville, Ohio 44141.

Foundation Mission

To improve the knowledge and skills of the precision machined products industry's workforce, the Foundation will establish partnerships with high schools and technical colleges providing or developing metalworking training programs. The Foundation will work with the schools to develop curricula, establish apprenticeship programs and conduct the research necessary to further the technical knowledge of the industry's workforce, including providing financial assistance for instructional materials and for the purchase of machine tools or other similar equipment needed for the training labs.
The Foundation will develop training programs for use by the Industry and others to improve the knowledge and skills of the precision machined products industry's workforce. Included may be development of CD ROM interactive training programs, programs delivered via the Internet in metalworking principles and technologies used by the Industry, and traditional seminars and conferences. These programs will follow a structure developed by the National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS), enabling trainees to earn credentials in metalworking.
The Foundation will support the development of industry-specific skill standards for new metalworking technologies and the revision of existing standards to meet the current needs of the precision machined products industry. This activity will improve workforce knowledge and skill and speed the adoption of more productive and safer manufacturing technologies. In addition, the Foundation will assist the industry and schools in aligning their training programs to the skill standards, benchmarking the most successful programs.
To improve public awareness of career opportunities in the metalworking industry, the Foundation will develop and distribute informational brochures and other similar communications about the industry to schools, instructors, parents and teachers in areas with concentrations of metalworking companies.
And, the Foundation will collect information on training programs for the industry provided by various vendors, including machine tool builders, schools and training program vendors.