Florida Manufacturers to Host Industry Tours & Events Statewide for October Manufacturing Month

ORLANDO, Fla. - Sept. 29, 2016 - PRLog -- Thousands of students and educators from schools across Florida will be taking field trips to learn about products made in Florida – and the opportunities for high skilled, high wage careers offered through Florida's approximately 19,000 manufacturing companies.  Most student tour events are held on nationally celebrated MFG Day and mark October as National Manufacturing Month.

Here in Florida, Manufacturing Month includes:

·         A proclamation from Governor Rick Scott (https://www.floridamakes.com/news/news-releases/news/october-is-manufacturing-month-governor-rick-scott-issues-proclamation.stml) recognizing October 2016 as Manufacturing Month, plus similar proclamations issued by cities and communities around the state;

·         Plant tours for students and educators at companies making products as diverse as gelato, counters made from recycled glass and stone chips, to boats and aircraft/aerospace equipment;

·         Panel discussions featuring area manufacturers and Chambers of Commerce events;

·         Open house events at community and technical colleges and association events.

The state's Regional Manufacturers Associations (https://www.floridamakes.com/who-we-are/regional-manufact...), FLATE (the Florida‐based National Science Foundation Regional Center of Excellence in Manufacturing), and FloridaMakes (part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Manufacturing Extension Partnership), are working with area manufacturing companies, Florida's community and college networks and schools to support industry tours and events across the state.

"This is the 5^th year for Manufacturing Day/Month, and students, parents, educators and manufacturers all tell us that opening the door for these events is an eye-opener, heightening awareness of and interest in manufacturing as a potential career for many students," said Dr. Marilyn Barger, FLATE executive director.

"Most students, parents and educators don't know how diverse and robust Florida's manufacturing sector truly is," said Greg Britton, CEO of Fort Walton Machining, Inc., Fort Walton Beach, and a board member for FloridaMakes.  "We need to help build awareness of the tremendous opportunities available in manufacturing so we can build a pipeline of future workers and future company owners."

Additional October Events for Manufacturers

During October 2016, a number of special and/or ongoing events are taking place for manufacturers, including:

·         October 6 – Upper Tampa Bay Manufacturers Awards Dinner in Oldsmar

·         October 20 – FloridaMakes' free webinar for manufacturers:  "Cybersecurity:  What You and Your Employees Need to Know, Now."  October is also National Cybersecurity Month.

·         October 21 – Manufacturers Association of Central Florida:  25^th Anniversary - Annual President's Dinner and Manufacturing Awards Ceremony.

For information on Florida's Manufacturing Day 2016 news and events, contact your local Regional Manufacturers Association.  In addition, many of Florida's events are also listed on the national MFG Day website here; you can also visit the Manufacturing Day in Florida website at www.mfgday-fl.com.  Manufacturers and others will be sharing news about manufacturing month using the hashtags #MFGDay16 and #FLMfgMonth16.

For information on other national manufacturing day events and tours visit www.mfgday.com.

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About FLATE

FLATE is a National Science Foundation Regional Center of Excellence, committed to ensuring Florida has a well prepared workforce for advanced and emerging technologies. Created in 2004, FLATE is one of 42 Advanced Technological Education Centers in the United States funded by the National Science Foundation focused on improving science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education and training to meet the needs of American advanced technology industries. For more information visit www.fl‐ate.org.

About FloridaMakes

FloridaMakes is a statewide service created by manufacturers, for manufacturers, and builds on the solid foundation of Florida's network of Regional Manufacturers Associations. FloridaMakes supports the growth, competitive ability and profitability of Florida's nearly 19,000 manufacturers. Services are customized to meet the needs and opportunities of individual companies based on an enterprise assessment, and include process improvement, business growth and innovation, supply chain optimization, product development, adoption of best practices and appropriate advanced technologies, sustainability, market expansion and other services. Part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NIST MEP), FloridaMakes provides access to national and local, public and private resources. FloridaMakes operates with support from the State of Florida, NIST and Florida's manufacturers.  For more information visit http://www.floridamakes.com/ and follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook.