Seco Donates Tools to School Shop-Training Programs
They have given $412,035 worth of tooling to schools that are training the future U.S. workforce.
Posted: October 14, 2015
With great emphasis on education, training and strengthening the U.S. manufacturing workforce, Seco Tools, LLC (Troy, MI) has donated almost half a million dollars in metalworking tools to training centers, community colleges, technical programs and high schools throughout the Midwest and Pennsylvania. The selection of tools included a variety of new and unused high quality solid-carbide, high-speed steel (HSS) and cobalt end mills used for milling operations.
The company is dedicated to closing the skills gap and ensuring the manufacturing workforce of tomorrow is well trained. Collaborating with and supporting learning institutions that specialize in hands-on shop training can aid in filling the growing number of jobs being vacated by many individuals retiring from the workforce. Plus, the training programs can retrain existing workers on technological advances that help to further overall manufacturing productivity.
“Throughout the year, we perform audits of our warehouse stock to clear out discontinued items, over-produced specials and other products that cannot or are unlikely to be sold in the future,” said Dale Higgins, a technical support specialist at Seco. “In the past, we have recycled these tools to recoup a portion of our costs, but this year we decided that giving the entire $412,035 worth of tooling to schools that are training the future workforce is really more valuable to us and to our industry.”
One recipient of the donation, the Cleveland Industrial Training Center, is a CNC training facility located within an actual manufacturing facility in Cleveland, with a second facility in Akron. The centers provide concentrated CNC training that prepares 180 graduates each year with the skills they need to program and run machines and produce accurate parts. The program, now in its 22nd year, boasts an extremely high job placement rate.
“We often get donations, but certainly not of this quantity and quality,” explained Tim Duffy, the president of the Cleveland Industrial Training Center, when asked about the significance of this gift. “The scope and breadth of what they donated will take care of us for years to come for certain categories of tools.”
In addition to the Cleveland Industrial Training Center, the following schools also received tool donations from Seco:
- Macomb Community College in Warren, MI
- Ferris State University in Big Rapids, MI
- Vincennes University in Vincennes, IN
- Southern Michigan Center for Science and Industry in Hudson, MI
- Capital Area Career Center in Mason, MI
- Illinois State University in Normal, IL
- Illinois Valley Community College in Oglesby, IL
- Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton, WI
- Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, PA
- Warren Lincoln High School in Warren, MI
- Romeo Engineering & Technology Center in Washington Township, MI
Scott R. Siebers, a machine tool instructor at Fox Valley Technical College, and Guy Hart, an instructor at Romeo Engineering and Technical Center, also pointed out how valuable the donations are to their programs. Both instructors are grateful for the high-quality cutters that would otherwise have been unobtainable due to budget constraints. They also assured that students will put the tooling to good use as they learn about modern carbide tooling and machining processes.
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