COMING UP! Workforce/HR Meet Up (10/28), Shoptalk (10/29), and DRMA 101 (11/11)! Be sure to scroll down to the Events section to find out more.

It’s Time to Celebrate Angelia! Please join us for an Open House on 11/20 from 4 to 7 pm (with brief presentation at 5:30pm) at Carillon Park to celebrate Angelia Erbaugh’s 28 years of service to DRMA. This promises to be a fun and lively event – complete with champagne toast. Be sure to wish Angelia farewell before she retires! Plus-ones are welcome. Register here. 

It’s almost time to renew your membership. Membership renewal invoices will be sent in early November, so if you’re preparing your 2026 budget, don’t forget to include your company’s DRMA membership! Contact Shay with your renewal questions.

October is MFG Month! It’s time to celebrate manufacturing and spread the word on the great careers offered by our industry. MFG Day was 10/3 but it doesn’t stop there! Throughout this month, thousands of area students will be exposed to manufacturing careers by visiting our members’ manufacturing facilities. Thank you to the 19 members who are hosting student tours this month (see some great pics here)! Remember, we’re doing student tours year-round, so you didn’t miss your opportunity to build your pipeline of future workers. 

Planning your marketing budget for 2026? Now is the time take advantage of DRMA’s exclusive Premier Sponsor program, which includes membership, brand exposure, and event participation throughout all of 2026. After last year’s successful inaugural year, most spots have been reserved by 2025 sponsors, but we’re adding two more spots for 2026. This exclusive opportunity is now available on a first-come basis. Contact Amy today to learn more!

Don’t miss out on saving BIG on workers comp insurance! The deadline to enroll in the DRMA’s Workers’ Comp program is November 17. Contact Paul with Sedgwick at (614) 906-0535 before it’s too late!



DRMA’s Wage and Benefit Survey Report will help you adjust your compensation program in order to attract and retain employees. Did you participate in or purchase the report? If so, attend the Workforce/HR Meet Up on 10/28 where we'll do a deep dive in to the results. Click here for more information and to register! Contact Shay to purchase the report.

Don’t miss these upcoming workshops, exclusively for DRMA member companies. Contact Shay for more information and to register.

Lean Manufacturing - Total Productive Maintenance (TPM): Understand how to effectively “mistake-proof” processes and operations to minimize and eliminate errors. Presented by the Workforce Division of Sinclair College. $225 for one 3 and a half hour session on 11/13. More information here. 

• Blueprint Reading - Learn how to read and interpret basic blueprints. Presented by the Workforce Division of Sinclair College. $175 for one 4-hour session on 10/24. More information here.
• GD&T - Learn how to read and interpret engineering drawings and better understand the ASME Y14.5 GD&T standard. Presented by the Workforce Division of Sinclair College. $250 for two 3-hour sessions on 11/14 & 11/21. More information here.

Did we catch you at the DRMA Trap Shoot Fundraiser event last week? See photos here. Congrats to Makers Supply and AFC Tool for first and second place team winnings!

DRMA is partnering with the Federal Reserve to give members an opportunity to participate in the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey, which is open through 11/14. Owners and key financial decisionmakers of for-profit businesses can share recent experiences about whether and how you use debt, the financial conditions you face, and more. Answers to these questions contribute to data that directly inform the Fed, federal government agencies, service providers, policymakers, and others—ultimately benefiting your business and others in the region. To share your experiences, take the 12-minute survey now.

Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague has announced a new program aimed at helping Ohio manufacturers access low-cost capital. Known as Buckeye Business Advantage, this program follows the “linked deposit” model (like Ag-Link) to offer reduced interest rates on loans. Qualifications for this program and additional information can be found here. 

THANK YOU to our Trap Shoot Event Planning Committee for planning another amazing event on 9/29! Consisting of Brian Ault (Bruns General Contracting), Garry Jankowski (Sandvik Coromant), Josh Kneidl (Benjamin Steel Co., Inc.), Clark Manson (Makers Supply), Chad Martin (Barnes Dennig), Matt Miller (Rieck Services, LLC), Mike Nemeth (Elliott Tool Technologies), Brian Roos (Morris Bean & Company), & Dan Schock (Huntington National Bank). This group has worked hard to put on this fun event to help raise funds for the DRMA Foundation! DRMA appreciates and thanks the entire Trap Shoot Event Committee for their commitment to our organization and to the Dayton Region manufacturing industry as a whole.

Sponsored Content

Join us for the Workforce/HR Meet Up on 10/28, 11 - 12 p.m., virtual! At this Meet Up, we will do a deep dive into the results of the 2025 Wage and Benefit Survey, with analysis provided by Spherion Staffing and Pride Staff. Free and for only members that participated in the survey or purchased a copy of the report! Register here. 

Your membership can save you $$ while upskilling your workforce! Take advantage of DRMA’s partnership with Tooling U-SME to receive 15% (or more!) off hundreds of training courses just for being a DRMA member. Even better, you may be able to get fully reimbursed through TechCred; details in next blurb. Interested? Contact Amy. 

Offset your training costs for tech credentials! Funding is available thru TechCred, a program that reimburses employers for employee training up to $2,000 per industry-recognized credential and up to $30,000 per company each application round! The next application round opens 11/3! Contact a DRMA education partner now – they can help you apply! Learn more here.

Member exclusive! WorkAdvance, a proven initiative to supplement your recruitment strategies, will bring you quality candidates to fill your manufacturing entry-level positions. A cohort of candidates will complete training at the end of October and will then be ready to hire! Contact Amy to learn more.

We rely on our volunteers to keep our career events running! Click here to see who helped us out recently!

We have a ton of career events coming up that need volunteers! These events are mission-critical for your company to grow YOUR future workforce AND they are a lot of fun! DRMA staff does all the hard work; your job is to talk one-on-one with students when they come up to our display table. Events are a couple of hours long, no public speaking is required, and talking points will be provided. We’ll send you an email when we have an opportunity, and you will let us know if the location and date work for you. Upcoming events: Dayton Metro Library Career Adventures Day (In Dayton) on 10/28 - 30, Weisenborn Middle School (in Huber Heights) on 11/12, Miamisburg Middle School on 11/24. Contact Kara for more info. 

Belmont and Stivers High Schools are looking for help with their upcoming mock interview days on 11/20 and 12/3. Don’t miss your opportunity to help the next generation prepare for their future careers. Email Amy if interested.

Another place to look for the next generation of your workforce is our region’s colleges and universities who enroll over 200,000 students – many of which are interested in local employment opportunities. If you are interested in starting or growing a work-based learning internship program, reach out to SOCHE. They can help you get off the starting line. Just complete the attached form and SOCHE will help connect you with the resource requested.



Clark State is launching new certificate and associate degree programs in modeling and simulation. The curriculum combines computer programming and systems engineering principles with Python, solid modeling, human factors engineering, MATLAB, machine learning, along with advanced manufacturing elements. Interested in upskilling your workforce? Contact Ron Bolender.

Know a retired manufacturer who might be interested in helping to train future manufacturing workers? If so, Sinclair College has a number of manufacturing-related positions currently open: a Senior Consultant for Advanced Engineering & Manufacturing Solutions; a Work Based Learning Talent & Industry Partnerships Coordinator; and a Work Based Learning Apprenticeship Industry Partnership Coordinator. 

10/29, 4 - 6 p.m., Shoptalk, Lincoln Electric Automation, Fort Loramie. Registration is open! Hear a short presentation on how to apply current labor market trends to your current attraction and retention strategies. Join for a little “overtime” after work, enjoying the casual atmosphere while learning something new and networking with your DRMA peers!  Register here.

12/3, 4:30 – 7 p.m., – Annual Meeting, NCR Country Club, Dayton. Presented by Sunbelt Business Advisors. Join us for our most essential meeting of the year. The short program will cover 2025 accomplishments, the 2026 budget, and the ratification of new board members, followed by networking festivities – cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, and socializing with your DRMA peers. Register here.

Meet-Ups - FREE and for members only. Join the conversation!

• 10/28, 11 - 12 p.m., Workforce/HR, Virtual. Register here. 

DRMA 101 - Whether you are a new member or a seasoned member, kickstart your membership ROI and learn what DRMA does to help you strengthen your business. Contact Shay to sign up!

• 11/11, 12:30 – 1:30 p.m., Business Furniture & Co., Dayton (lunch provided).

For more information on any of our events, visit our website.

Community Events

• 10/23, 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Thompson Hine, Government Contracting Symposium, Dayton. Contact Ellen Geron for more information.
• 10/23, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Centerville-Montgomery County Job & Career Fair, Centerville. More information/registration here.
• 11/12, 9 a.m., Sinclair Workforce Development’s Goldman Sach 10,000 Small Businesses General Info Session, Virtual. More info/register here.
• 11/13, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., Motion AI’s Automation Day – A day of learning, networking, and cutting-edge automation innovation. More information/register here.
• 12/10, 12 p.m., Sinclair Workforce Development’s Goldman Sach 10,000 Small Businesses General Info Session, Virtual. More info/register here.

As the voice of manufacturing in the Dayton Region, DRMA identifies issues that impact our Manufacturer member companies. We conducted a two-question survey to better understand the “hot button” issues affecting members across the region. Thanks to all of the participants – your input helps us to accurately communicate your concerns to the media, elected officials, and other community leaders and have better direction on the types of programs and services that will help you strengthen your company. We’re currently reviewing the responses and will make the results available soon.

DRMA is proud to partner with The Abilities Connection and SOCHE in their Bridging Abilities program: You get your light assembly work done at a low price AND help students learn manufacturing skills! Send SOCHE an email at soche@soche.org to learn more.

Attention Manufacturer members: Click here to see manufacturing-pertinent resumes I have received.

Congratulations to DRMA member, Xerion Advanced Battery Corp for receiving national recognition in TIME magazine's feature of the 'Best Inventions of 2025'. Read more about it here!

Welcome new DRMA members:

• Abbott
• Corrotec Inc.
• Deanna Nesbit & Associates, Inc., LLC
• Midmark Corporation