As the U.S. Navy continues to increase investment and commitment to
building the resiliency of our nation’s shipbuilding industrial
base and supply chain, two non-profit organizations have joined
forces to attract and train more individuals to fill critical gaps
in the manufacturing workforce and bolster our nation’s defense
capabilities. This new partnership will support the Navy Submarine
Industrial Base Program’s efforts to recruit, train, and hire more
than 140,000 skilled workers in the next decade to meet the Navy’s
demand for building new submarines and sustaining the current
fleet.
SME, a national nonprofit that accelerates
manufacturing technology adoption and builds North America’s
manufacturing talent and capabilities today announced a partnership
with BlueForge Alliance (BFA), a national non-profit integrator
established to reinvigorate the U.S. shipbuilding industrial base.
This partnership will assist in filling the critical gaps in the
defense manufacturing workforce and help bolster our nation’s
defense capabilities.
“Our nation’s industrial workforce, in terms of size,
capabilities, and talent is in dire need of a collaborative and
national strategy to fill its pipeline and solve the growing skills
gap,” said Jeannine Kunz, SME’s Chief Workforce Development
Officer. “SME is leveraging its strengths and approach of ‘thinking
nationally and acting locally’ to aggressively increase the supply
of talent to meet industry demands. By joining forces with
BlueForge Alliance and its talent efforts across the country, we
can collectively grow, optimize, and scale workforce initiatives,
driving impact on a national and regional level.”
The new collaboration between BFA and SME will:
- Provide defense industrial base employers with training,
certification, and support to upskill their current
workforce.
- Increase awareness of industry career pathways and
exponentially grow the supply of ready-to-hire talent for
manufacturing jobs through the SME Manufacturing Imperative -
Workforce Pipeline Challenge (MI-WPC).
- Inspire and prepare the next generation of manufacturing talent
through the SME Education Foundation’s SME PRIME® (Partnership
Response in Manufacturing Education) program.
“The partnership with BlueForge Alliance is an excellent example
of aligning missions, resources, intent and action,” said Kunz.
“For example, the recent launch of SME’s Manufacturing Imperative –
Workforce Pipeline Challenge started with SME and 25 community and
technical colleges and technical schools across 17 states coming
together to solve their communities and the nation’s talent
challenges with a goal to attract 75,000 or more qualified workers
in pursuit of manufacturing careers over the next 3 years. Now with
support from BlueForge Alliance, we can strengthen, grow, and
accelerate this collaborative program.”
The MI-WPC has already gained national attention from the White
House, the Department of Education, State Manufacturing
Associations, and the National Coalition of Advanced Technology
Centers (NCATC) for its innovative and collaborative approach to
optimize education and industry partnerships and accelerate the
education and skill development needed to place individuals in
family-sustaining industrial base jobs. Realizing the urgency and
need for collaboration, these schools have leaned-in to share best
practices and ideate on new pathways, policies, and processes to
prepare learners for open positions, while gaining the engagement
and support of their local industry partners. Findings will help
other programs replicate and scale innovative solutions to grow
local economies, reduce barriers to employment, and fill vacant
manufacturing jobs.
“I am inspired by the passion, resolve, and investment by these
colleges in stepping up, and with BlueForge Alliance also joining
and supporting the MI-WPC, we are poised to do more, faster and
better together for local and national impact,” said Kunz. “This
type of collaboration is required if we are going to win the war on
talent.”
Recognizing the Need to Make Impact Earlier in the
Pipeline Stream With missions equally aligned to
implementing not just immediate, but also long-term solutions to
sustaining the workforce of the industrial base, SME and BlueForge
have also recognized a need to advance career and technical
education in high schools across the nation. The collaboration will
provide funding to support new SME PRIME schools in key defense
industrial base locations. SME PRIME partners private industry with
academia to build comprehensive and custom manufacturing and
engineering programs in high schools across the country — providing
equipment, curriculum, teacher training and student scholarships
along with funding for manufacturing-related extracurricular
activities and program sustainability.
The new SME PRIME locations will increase awareness, aptitude
and skills in technologies such as additive manufacturing, welding,
robotics, metrology, and CNC machining that support advanced
manufacturing and submarine shipbuilding.
“SME PRIME is currently implemented in 110 schools across 23
states, serving more than 10,000 students annually,” said Kunz.
“With over 90% of SME PRIME seniors pursuing manufacturing post
high school—either through a manufacturing-related degree or by
directly entering the workforce, we can further build the talent
supply for manufacturing and focus the educational systems on the
advanced technical skills needed to support today’s military and
defense industrial needs.”
“The new collaboration with SME marks merely the initial phase
in a broader vision and long-term partnership aimed at advancing
the objectives of both our organizations and the U.S.
Navy/Department of Defense,” said Rob Gorham, BlueForge Alliance
Chief Executive and Co-Founder. “Together, we are not just filling
jobs; we are deploying a scalable and systematic approach to
advancing careers, enhancing lives through family sustaining wages,
and driving national economic growth tailored to local
requirements.”
ABOUT SMEEstablished in 1932 as a nonprofit
organization, SME represents the entire North American
manufacturing industry, including manufacturers, academia,
professionals, students, and the communities in which they
operate. We believe manufacturing holds the key to economic
growth and prosperity, and champion the industry's potential as a
diverse, thriving, and valued ecosystem. SME accelerates new
technology adoption and builds North America’s talent and
capabilities to advance manufacturing and drive competitiveness,
resiliency, and national security. SME designs new ways to
understand and solve problems, and our solutions advance the next
wave of growth in manufacturing. Learn more at SME.org.
ABOUT BLUEFORGE ALLIANCEBlueForge Alliance is a
nonprofit, neutral integrator that supports the U.S. Navy’s
Submarine Industrial Base initiatives and efforts to strengthen and
sustain the maritime manufacturing sector. BFA is a critical
partner in the SIB’s mission to ensure industry has the capability,
capacity, and resilience to build and maintain America’s next
generation of undersea platforms. The organization’s team of
experts in a variety of disciplines focus on addressing critical
workforce, technology, and supplier development needs. BFA is
headquartered in Bryan/College Station, Texas. For more
information, visit www.BlueForgeAlliance.us.
CONTACTMarirose
Sartorettomsartoretto@sme.org