We are pleased to share the summary report on MSSC's well-attended August 20 Virtual Summit, "Closing the Skills Gap in Texas in the Manufacturing and Logistics (M&L) Sectors. Follow this link to access the full report. This report contains remarks from the opening speakers, including the Chief Counsel to Senator Cornyn, who spearheaded the bipartisan First Step Act, and includes the public launch of the MSSC's new Certified Technician-Supply Chain Automation. See "Community News" section below for more on CT-SCA.

The Summit report also summarizes presentations in the panels on advanced technologies and five major stakeholder groups served by MSSC: Workforce Development, Education, Business & Industry, the Justice System, Veterans and the Military. This 27-page report includes an Executive Summary with Principal Findings (pg. 2-3) and Conclusions (pg. 26-27).

In manufacturing, COVID-19 is accelerating the trend towards bringing more manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. (see item on reshoring in "Community News" section below) In logistics, COVID-19 is greatly increasing the nation's dependence on eCommerce, with 25% of all retail spending going online by 2025, a megatrend forcing some 100,000 retail stores to close by then.

As underlined by a just-released McKinsey study of 800 leading executives (see details in "COVID-19 Updates" section below), the economy is entering a disruptive period of change in the workforce due to acceleration of automation, digitization, and other trends. Insofar as the anticipated impact on the front-line manufacturing workforce is concerned, MSSC's CPT 4.0 program is staying ahead of that power curve. 

Thanks to intensive research with industry subject matter experts on this subject in 2019, the MSSC has added nine, newly emerging "Industry 4.0" Technologies to its signature Certified Production Technician program: 5G, AI, 3D, Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT), Autonomous Robots, Data Analytics, Augmented Reality, Advanced Materials and Nanomanufacturing. It is also helpful that the White House has included "Advanced Manufacturing" on its just-published list of "Emerging Technologies Crucial to National Security."

The Manufacturing Skill Standards Council (MSSC) is pleased to invite you to a series of informational webinars, hosted by your states MSSC Training Solution Provider focused on the newly-released MSSC Certified Technician-Supply Chain Automation (CT-SCA) Certification Program & the Skill Boss Logistics Hands-On Training and Assessment device. The goal of this new certification program is to prepare technicians who install, operate, support, upgrade, and maintain the automated material handling equipment and systems which support the supply chain.

This free webinar will feature the National Center for Supply Chain Automation (NCSCA), and their years of research conducted under an NSF grant to identify, define, and validate the occupation of Supply Chain Automation Technician and their critical assistance in the development of the CT-SCA Standards & Curriculum. Amatrol will be demoing the Skill Boss Logistics automated sortation system, which teaches and assesses the hands-on skills of the CT-SCA certification. MSSC will define the three certifications within the CT-SCA program.

To register, follow this link!

As illustrated by the extraordinary October 2020-Enews just distributed by the Reshoring Initiative, reshoring is securing stronger policy level support, improved analytical tools, and public awareness. Senior levels at the U.S. Department of Commerce, including Secretary Ross, are now giving reshoring equal priority with foreign direct investment in its Investment Advisor Council.

The Reshoring Initiative has also announced a new "Import Substitution Program" (ISP), that identified major importers of what a company produces. Harry Moser, who leads the Reshoring Initiative, is a long-term member of the MSSC Community, including service on our Board and Leadership Council.

As schools and students continue to pivot during the COVID-19 pandemic to virtual or socially distant classroom settings our organization hopes to provide our community of MSSC Authorized Assessment Centers resources on navigating through these challenging times.

For starters, we are excited to spotlight Marla Robinson, CPT Instructor & Special Projects Academic Coordinator-Community Partnerships & Learning, at Mohawk College in Canada.

The Wisconsin Workforce Development Board has been holding drive-thru job fairs since July, rather than fully virtual events, with job-seekers receiving packets from staffers wearing protective gear. Family-owned manufacturers, Great Northern and Oshkosh Coil Spring, describe how they benefited from the job fairs, as well as how they've conducted interviews during the pandemic. Click here to read more.

The Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE) announced the launch of the 2020 Catalyzing Career and Technical Education Competition. Recipients will be provided with technical assistance to scale high-quality, Perkins-eligible Career Technical Education (CTE) programs. Perkins-eligible CTE providers are able to apply for this, and up to two sites will be chosen to receive technical assistance valued at about $150,000-$225,000. Applications are due by December 4, 2020.