Closing the worker education gap: a growing shortage of qualified employees for manufacturing.

• Author: Sullivan, John
• Position: VIEWPOINT

HONDA. TOYOTA. NESTLE. Biomet. Rolls-Royce. Cummins. MedVenture. These companies are just a small sample of the Indiana manufacturers in 2006 who announced plans to create new jobs by building new facilities or expand existing ones in Indiana. So it seems that Mark Twain's oft cited quote: "The report of my death was an exaggeration" is also relevant to Indiana's manufacturing sector.

Manufacturing is a dynamic economic sector requiring continual change. Innovation and market focus are critical to the long-term success of Indiana's manufacturers.

The Purdue Center for Advanced Manufacturing is helping attract new businesses to the state and creating opportunities for existing companies to launch new products and processes, building on Indiana's long history of research in manufacturing advancements. The center's work is accomplished through a focus on: accelerating innovations through Purdue's Learning, Discovery and Engagement model; collaborating with industry, government and other academic institutions; and advancing the manufacturing sector's people, processes, and products.

It's not enough to simply change the technologies used for manufacturing. The shifting nature of industry will require new skill sets for employees in a state like Indiana, which has a higher percentage of its population working in manufacturing than any other state in the nation.

One of the most serious issues is the growing shortage of available, qualified employees to work in U.S. manufacturing, hamstringing companies from competing in a cutthroat, global economy.

The Center for Advanced Manufacturing recently collaborated with Ivy Tech Community College and Indiana's...