“Nose presses” is not an official metric of workforce recruiting success for the Penn State Digital Foundry on 5th Avenue in New Kensington, PA, but it is hugely symbolic in the quest to expand the manufacturing talent pipeline in underserved communities, according to Sherri McCleary, the Executive Director of the foundry.

A nose presser is a...

The manufacturing employment gap has existed for years, but some manufacturers have built great work cultures and evolved with societal changes to successfully build talent pipelines. In some areas, local stakeholders have created education and workforce development (EWD) programs that utilize local manufacturers and specialty partners to feed...

The drive to create. Put simply, that’s what has propelled Marley Passey into a career in manufacturing, despite the fact that she’s legally blind. “I’ve always really enjoyed making things, building little wooden toys,” Marley says. “And this is the natural progression of that, making these really big and complex metal or composite parts. I...

The U.S. outspends other nations in r esearch and development and continues to lead the world in innovations and inventions. However, new products are often “stranded in the lab” when we don't have the manufacturing capability, or get developed in other countries such as China, Germany, and South Korea that invest more aggressively in...

Three-quarters of U.S. manufacturers have fewer than 20 employees and do not have extensive research and development capabilities. Given the high costs of product development and their scope of operational challenges, from workforce and regulatory issues to unpredictable disruptions, it is difficult for small manufacturers to maintain...