Last week, we saw manufacturers across the UK open their doors for National Manufacturing Day 2024. Today, North American manufacturing organisations will be doing the same to mark World Manufacturing Day 2024.
Held annually on the first Friday in October, with events that continue throughout the month, World Manufacturing Day provides an opportunity for manufacturing and engineering organisations to showcase the reality and future of modern careers in the industry by welcoming students, parents and the public through their doors.
An initiative of the Manufacturing Institute, World Manufacturing Day serves to:
- Positively change students’, educators’, parents’, influencers’ and community leaders’ perceptions of manufacturing;
- Demonstrate continuity within the industry to engage actively with local students and educators, creating long-term solutions to the skills gap;
- Spotlight strength in numbers and the important role manufacturers play in their communities, states and the US; and
- Highlight the many community partnerships and grassroots efforts that are successful locally but work toward a greater common goal.
As Mark Edwards, a spokesperson for Manufacturing USA, quite rightly highlights: “The fourth industrial revolution is rapidly changing our world. New advanced manufacturing technologies bring about whole new careers, requiring a skilled workforce interested in pursuing them. From bioengineers to data analysts to robotics technicians, and all of the operations in between, there is a place for everyone in manufacturing”.
As US manufacturers seek to fill 4 million high-skill, high-tech and high-paying jobs over the next decade, initiatives like World Manufacturing Day are crucial for championing the sector and enabling behind-the-scenes access to manufacturing facilities.
You can find World Manufacturing Day events near you by using this interactive map.
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