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NIMS Partners for Job Training Along Auto Corridor

The National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS), Lightweight Innovations for Tomorrow (LIFT) − a new national manufacturing innovation institute − and Ivy Tech Community College (Ivy Tech) are partnering to enhance and expand training to fill the largest number of open manufacturing jobs in states along the U.S. auto corridor. The partners have a goal to prepare a new industrial-technology maintenance workforce to drive performance and improvement of high-tech manufacturing along a corridor that includes Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee.
“Manufacturing enterprises—especially those serving the defense and transportation sectors —continue to embrace new lightweight metals and technologies, adding advanced technical requirements to critical jobs already going unfilled because workers do not have the required skills,” says Larry Brown, executive director, LIFT. “This is an unprecedented partnership among our new manufacturing innovation institute, a national credentialing body and a premier statewide community college system collaborating to address the workforce needs of our industry partners and their supply chains.”
There are currently 38,727 industrial technology maintenance jobs posted in the region, according to NIMS officials, entailing maintenance, troubleshooting and improvement of complex machines and automation systems. To support the rapid deployment of new lightweighting technologies being developed at LIFT, workers must understand and be confident in using the latest advanced technologies, help integrate them into companies’ processes and maintain their performance over time.
The initiative will focus on building high-quality training programs by:
• Rolling out what reportedly are the first-ever industry standards for educating and training the industrial technology maintenance workforce;
• Training instructors from community colleges across the entire region; and
• Equipping a workforce with knowledge, skills and credentials needed to enter into and advance in the field.
In partnership with Ivy Tech, NIMS worked with more than 125 industry, education and workforce-development experts to develop the industry standards for the training programs and the credentials that will prepare industrial technology mechanics and technicians. Ivy Tech will launch a new instructor-training facility to prepare 50 instructors to deliver the training, and NIMS will bring to market credentials that certify individuals’ skills by the fall of 2016.
For more information on the industrial technology maintenance standards, visit www.nimsready.org/industrial-technology-maintenance. 

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Leifeld Metal Spinning AG Acquires Leico USA

Leifeld Metal Spinning AG, a German developer, manufacturer and seller of metalforming equipment, has acquired Leico USA Corp., Livonia, MI. The transaction gives Leifeld expanded sales and service capacity for maintenance and retrofitting of spinning and flowforming machinery, and also gives it a branch office in North America. The new subsidiary will be headed by Leico owner Ralf Günnewig and operate under the name Leifeld USA Corp.
Specializing in maintenance, control upgrades and repair of spinning and flowforming machines, Leico has extensive experience in retrofitting, process engineering, spare-parts inventory and machine operation. It also provides turnkey rebuilds of metal-spinning and flowforming machines along with training, tool design and warranties.
"Leifeld USA enables us to operate more directly, independently and much faster, and to meet local challenges more easily," says Oliver Reimann, Leifeld CEO.
For more on Leifeld and its capabilities, visit www.leifeldms.de/en.

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Hudson Fasteners Website Offers New E-Commerce Technology

Hudson Fasteners, Inc., Youngstown, OH, has completely rebranded its website, www.hudsonfasteners.com, as www.1industrialway.com, which includes new B2B e-commerce technology for the online purchase of fasteners and industrial products. The site features the13 Forces Product Genius B2B e-commerce platform and the 1IndustrialWay industrial-network streamline to simplify and expedite ordering of fasteners and industrial supplies, according to company officials. Visitors now can navigate and purchase hundreds of thousands of product SKU numbers in the new format.
Hudson Fasteners, a third-generation, family-owned wholesale fastener-distribution company, offers a wide selection of fasteners, including security fasteners and tamper-proof screws, as well as industrial products.

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