MiMfg Magazine December 2017 | Page 21

December 2017 The Michigan Career Pathways Alliance is an MMA-supported initiative to build Michigan’s 21st-century talent pipeline and close our state’s career awareness gap. Learn more from TED Director Roger Curtis! Embedded Video https://www.youtube.com/embed/ajlQ-yovHfI Skilled Trades Training Fund Grants Announced for 800 Michigan Employers The Michigan Talent Investment Agency (TIA) will award $29 million in workforce development grants to more than 800 Michigan employers to aid the statewide effort to create the most talented workforce in the nation through the MMA-supported Skilled Trades Training Fund (STTF). Approximately 27,400 workers will gain new career opportunities or develop improved skills as a result of these grants, according to a TIA press release. Since Fiscal Year 2014, more than 1,400 companies have received awards averaging nearly $34,000 to go toward talent development, improved productivity and greater employee retention. MMA continues to advocate for more funding as the popular STTF initiative provides creative, driven and future-focused manufacturers with the tools and talent to compete in a global economy. “The Skilled Trades Training Fund gave us the opportunity to provide training to our new and current apprentices as well as incumbent employees,” said Brad Rusthoven, HR manager for MMA member company Franchino Mold and Engineering. “More than anything we’ve been able to work on closing the talent gap so when our seasoned employees retire, we minimize the loss of productivity and skills.” • TIA Press Release, 11/29/17 • List of STTF Grant Recipients for FY 2018 For more information on how your business can prepare to apply for funding for Fiscal Year 2019 and to learn more about the Skilled Trades Training Fund, contact Delaney McKinley, MMA senior director of government affairs and membership, at 517-487-8530 or [email protected]. Join Governor Snyder to Talk Talent in Novi The talent gap is the biggest threat to sustaining Michigan’s economic progress. Register now for the Governor’s Education & Talent Summit on 3/12-3/13/18 in Novi. Register today at http://mi-gets.com for a rate of $125 with code “MMA2018.” MiMfg Magazine Brose Invests $105 Million into Two Michigan Facilities Brose North America Inc. announced plans to invest an additional $105 million toward local expansions estimated to create 300 new jobs at its U.S. headquarters in Auburn Hills and its New Boston plant. Throughout the past seven years, the Brose Group has seen 140 percent growth globally. Here in the U.S., the company has invested $90 million in its manufacturing plants in 2017 and is projecting 60 percent employment growth in the next five years. The expansion effort is supported by $2.7 million in 2017 Michigan Strategi c Fund board-approved performance-based grants and a $4.25 million 2014 grant in 2014. “This is an exciting time for Brose New Boston thanks to our continuous growth and the resulting support we are receiving from the state and township,” said Mike Brosseau, president of Brose North America. “Upon completion, this expansion will nearly double the plant and headcount by 2020. Our success and growth are not only a credit to the New Boston team, but the overall company, which continues to leverage its decades of knowledge and expertise in mechatronics to provide answers to automotive industry trends.” The newly created jobs include operators and technicians at the New Boston plant and testing technicians and technical support professionals in Auburn Hills, in addition to new equipment for the paint, weld and track assemblies. Brose North America is a subsidiary of Brose Group in Germany. It operates three facilities in Michigan — in Auburn Hills, Warren and Huron Charter Township. Brose’s automotive customers include Ford, Fiat Chrysler, Honda and Nissan Motor Companies. 6 An artist’s rendering of Brose’s proposed New Boston addition, to be completed in 2020 21