Upcoming Events
| German American Chamber of Commerce (GACCoM) Annual Renewables and Energy Efficiency RoadshowMonday, September 27
1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Hilton Rosemont/O'Hare
5550 N. River Road
Rosemont, IL
Speakers will include: - Jeff Anthony, Wind Energy Association
- Richard Hennessy, Eisenmann Corp.
- Suzanne Malec-McKenna, City of Chicago
- Mark Pruitt, Illinois Power Agency
- Friedo Sielemann, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany
Onling registration is now open. Tickets are $65 for GACCoM members and $75 for non-members. Contact: Bernadett Steiner, steiner@gaccom.org or (312) 494-2180 |
| About Us |
The Chicago Manufacturing Renaissance Council is a partnership of the region's labor, business, government, education and community leaders working together to establish the Chicago area as a global leader in advanced, high value-added manufacturing.Manufacturing is the single most important sector of the Chicago area's economy. The industry has the largest positive 'ripple effect' on the rest of the economy: each manufacturing job creates three more in related sectors. The industry is directly and indirectly responsible for over 1.7 million jobs in Chicago.The Renaissance Council's flagship initiative is Austin Polytechnical Academy (APA), an advanced manufacturing-focused public high school on Chicago's west side that prepares students for leadership in all areas of the industry.APA students learn about careers in manufacturing by working with our committed partner companies, who provide students with industry exposure and financial support. Our partners contributed over $150,000 to create our new Manufacturing Technology Center, a state of the art on-campus machining facility where students can earn industry-recognized credentials from the National Institute for Metalworking Skills. |
| Support Us | Your support makes our success possible. We need your help to deliver the resources, networks, and programs to help develop a skilled workforce and keep us on the cutting edge of innovation.
Please make your check payable to the Center for Labor & Community Research and mail it to us at 3411 West Diversey, Suite 10, Chicago, Illinois 60647. CLCR is the non-profit fiscal and operational sponsor of the Chicago Manufacturing Renaissance Council.
You can also contribute online securely through PayPal by clicking below:
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| Contact Us | 3411 West Diversey, Suite 10
Chicago, Illinois 60647
P: 773-278-5418
F: 773-278-5918
chicagomanufacturing.org
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We can stop American decline -- but it will require a mindset shift
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by Dan Swinney Executive Director
In my last column, I focused on a recent New York Times editorial by Thomas Friedman about the need for an industrial revival that provides high-paying, high-skilled jobs. I also referenced a Wall Street Journal article describing the millions of jobs currently going unfilled, despite sky-high unemployment rates.
On September 10, New York Times columnist David Brooks added a critical layer to this discussion, which I view as very provocative and important.
He describes the process of the decline of the British Empire, when "the great-great-grandchildren of the empire builders withdrew from commerce, tried to rise above practical knowledge and had more genteel attitudes about how to live." Continue reading |
Austin Polytech honored at IMTS NIMS Student Summit
| After issuing NIMS credentials to 23 students this year -- more than the entire Chicago Public Schools system combined -- Austin Polytech was invited to cut the opening ribbon at this year's NIMS Student Summit at IMTS. The ceremony took place on September 13 at McCormick Place.
Jeralmie Garmon, one of eight NIMS-certified APA students present, had the honor of cutting the ribbon. Speakers included Barbara Lumpkin, Deputy CEO for External Affairs, Chicago Public Schools (CPS); Dan Swinney, Executive Director, Chicago Manufacturing Renaissance Council; Douglas K. Woods, President, Association for Manufacturing Technology; and Jim Wall, Deputy Director, NIMS.
Continue reading |
Renaissance Council co-chair Jorge Ramirez elected president of Chicago Federation of Labor
|  Congratulations to our co-chair Jorge Ramirez on his recent election as president of the Chicago Federation of Labor!
"We need to invest in manufacturing so we can remain one of the greatest and most advanced producers of the world's goods," Jorge wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times. "America's unions are committed to this rebuilding process, and we are joined by millions across the country, whether they belong to a union or not. We are committed to making workplaces safer and more just, and making our country a leader in the new global economy."
On Labor Day, radio host Dick Kay interviewed Jorge on his show Back on the Beat. Jorge talked about the Renaissance Council and Austin Polytech. "These [APA] kids will graduate and have certified skill sets that they could take into the manufacturing industry and put those skills to work," he said. "These are good jobs and highly skilled jobs... If we don't have a supply of workers to handle them in this next generation, they'll be gone forever."
Jorge's continued commitment to the Renaissance Council underscores the strength and importance of our partnership, which unites labor, business, government, and community leaders to make Chicago the global leader in advanced manufacturing. |
Bill Clinton: "Five million people could go to work tomorrow" if trained for available job openings
|  On September 19, former President Bill Clinton told Meet the Press that "there's a skills mismatch. The jobs that are being opened don't have qualified people applying for them. We need a system to immediately train them to move into that job...
There are five million people who could go to work tomorrow if they were trained to do the jobs that are open, and the unemployment rate in America would immediately drop from 9.6 to about 7 percent or 6.9. That would have a huge impact on America's psyche."
President Clinton also proposed this solution to unemployment on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on September 16, exposing a huge new audience of young people to the importance of investing in education linked to small business, clean energy, and manufacturing.
The Renaissance Council has been generating awareness about the skilled labor shortage for years, but President Clinton's logical, accessible, and highly visible treatment of the issue represents a big step forward in changing national perceptions about manufacturing and STEM education.
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Manufacturing growth accelerator expands to Chicago
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 Building on its decade-plus record of improving the productivity and global competitiveness of downstate manufacturing companies, the Illinois Manufacturing Extension Center (IMEC) announced it had won a $2.5 million competitive contract to bring its job-creating expertise to the Chicago area.
The U.S. Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has been working with IMEC since 1996, when it became one of 59 affiliate centers throughout the country to become a Manufacturing Extension Partner (MEP). Since then, IMEC has generated more than $1 billion in economic benefits for downstate manufacturers and the state of Illinois.
Continue reading |
Sen. Demuzio named Champion of Illinois Manufacturing
|  State Senator Deanna Demuzio (Carlinville) was recognized as the 2010 Champion of Illinois Manufacturing by IMEC (Illinois Manufacturing Extension Center) for supporting investments and policy that will enable manufacturers to emerge from the recession in a better position to succeed long term.
The award was presented to Senator Demuzio at an event at Truss Slater Manufacturing, a Virden-based producer of structural wooden trusses for the building industry. IMEC has worked with Truss Slater on a variety of business improvement initiatives in the last few years.
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