20 graduate from Skill Up for Manufacturing

MIDDLETOWN — The latest cohort of 20 Skill Up for Manufacturing preapprentices were joined by industry stakeholders, employers and families for a graduation ceremony Wednesday at Middlesex Community College.

Many graduates are considering job offers and are on their way to a new career, according to a press release.

There are presently 13,000 open manufacturing jobs in Connecticut, according to the college.

Manufacturing employers who attended the event included: Sylviana Lopez from Roto-Frank, Rebecca Limson from General Dynamics/Electric Boat, Asi Carmelli from Hobson & Motzer, Dave Parmelee from Wepco, and Jamie Scott from NHMA.

Skill Up for Manufacturing is a free, five to 10-week pre-apprentice training development program with coursework developed in close coordination with participating manufacturers that quickly funnels underemployed and unemployed residents in Connecticut into manufacturing jobs, according to the release.

It is managed by Workforce Alliance of South Central CT and has expanded from five-week introductory and now includes 10-week intensive sessions in plastics and CNC machining.

About 80 percent of Skill Up for Manufacturing applicants so far had no prior manufacturing experience. Applicants ranged from 18 to 55, male and female, and came from 39 different towns across the state.

These manufacturing companies visited the class, and are currently hiring: Sikorsky Aircraft (Stratford), Bigelow Tea (Fairfield), Roto-Frank (Chester), MPI (Seymour), Ulbrich (North Haven), ASML (Wilton), Hobson & Motzer (Durham), Medtronics (North Haven), M-Cubed (Monroe), Cowles (North Haven), Light Metals

Coloring (Southington), RAF (Seymour), MW Industries (Berlin), HoloKrome (Wallinford), Best Logic Staffing, and Hobson & Motzer (Durham and Wallingford).

Skill Up for Manufacturing graduates have completed 250 hours of classroom activities at Middlesex Community College/ Vinal Technical High School and Gateway Community College, earning them 250 Pre-Apprenticeship hour through the CT Department of Labor, plus

OSHA 10 and Six Sigma certifications.

Since March 2019, more than 120 people have successfully completed the free training program with a curriculum designed by local manufacturers. Skill Up for Manufacturing is managed by Workforce Alliance of South Central CT and registration for upcoming classes and opportunities for manufacturers to participate are available. Visit workforcealliance.biz/ skillup to learn more.