The Montana Manufacturing Association hosted the 2018 Manufacturing & International Trade Day on May 22 in Missoula. Here are the top five takeaways from today’s event. Tune in tomorrow for STEP Forward MT: Women in Manufacturing
1. Manufacturer of the Year
- Blackhawk! in Manhattan was named the 2017 Manufacturer of the Year
- The award was made by students at Helena College
- “We’re honored to be recognized for this award,” said Lamont Kotter, the manager of factory operations at Blackhawk!. “We see it as a reflection of our commitment to improve our business and community. It’s those two purposes that we’re engaged in. We’re excited we were recognized for that.
2. Trade Policy Panel
- Bill Lane, Trade for America:
- Trade has always been controversial, but essential
- 1 in 5 people’s jobs is dependent on trade
- An estimated 1.8 million U.S. jobs lost if U.S. withdraws from NAFTA
- Adam Stern, Resonon:
- Company traveled around Asia in 2015 for the first time
- Sales doubled in 2016 and continued to grow in 2017
3. State of Manufacturing
- Paul Polzin, Bureau of Business and Economic Research
- There may be a smaller number of manufacturers, but real GDP is increasing
Manufacturing has increased in Montana by 12.6 percent - Montana’s three fastest growing manufacturing industries are beer, wine and electronic instrument manufacturing
- There may be a smaller number of manufacturers, but real GDP is increasing
- Paddy Fleming, Montana Manufacturing Extension Center
- The average pay of manufacturing workers in Montana is $47,227
- Every manufacturing job in Montana creates 2.58 additional jobs
4. Addie Lordemann headlines luncheon
- Glendive native and Montana State University graduate Addie Lordemann was the featured speaker during the luncheon
- Lordemann was a 2016 recipient of the STEP Ahead Emerging Leaders award from the Manufacturing Institue
- During her speech, Lordemann spoke about her experiences at MSU and as a women in a male dominated industry
5. Additional Panels
- Manufacturing HR Panel
- Many companies have on the job training or apprenticeship programs
- Many companies are still looking for soft skills in their employees
- Finance panel
- The rules have shifted and its important to recognize the changes in revenue recognition
Thank you to current sponsors:
GOLD
NorthWestern Energy, Montana State Fund, Rocky Mountain Bank, Washington Corporation, 3M, and The Boeing Company
SILVER
TowHaul, Vision Net, Town Pump Hotel Group, Wipfli, Plastic Design & Manufacturing, LC Staffing, PayneWest Insurance, and EMPLOYERS ®
COPPER
Great Falls Development Authority, Blackfoot, Montana Hydraulics, Great Falls College MSU, and Wood’s Powr-Grip
