Alpena Community College is partnering with America's Cutting Edge, a national machining and manufacturing workforce program, to expand hands-on training for Alpena-area students, workers and prospective machinists.
Led by IACMI — The Composites Institute, ACE will bring its nationally recognized curriculum to ACC. The program includes free online instruction, hands-on CNC machining training and public bootcamps. The partnership is supported by funding from the Department of War's Office of Industrial Base Policy.
Training planned for adults, students and industry
ACC's program is designed for people with varied backgrounds, education levels and work experience. ACE training covers several parts of the machining field, including software development, metrology, design, machine operation and entrepreneurship.
During the contract period, ACC plans to provide weeklong, in-person CNC machining bootcamps for 110 participants. The participants may come from the general public, local industry and the student population, according to the partnership announcement.
The college also plans to organize K-12 workshops, engagement activities and outreach events reaching at least 200 participants. Those activities will take place on the ACC campus and at regional K-12 schools, giving younger students an opportunity to learn about machining and manufacturing careers.
Industry connections are part of the plan
Bootcamp participants are expected to have opportunities to explore potential employers through twice-yearly industry tours. ACC also plans to host recruitment fairs that connect attendees with industry job opportunities.
The partnership builds on ACC's existing Machine Tool Technology program. ACE Program Director Elliot Keas said the collaboration will expand hands-on opportunities for Alpena students while helping prepare future machinists for American manufacturing.
“America's Cutting Edge is excited to partner with Alpena Community College and build on the strong foundation already established through its Machine Tool Technology program,” said Elliot Keas, ACE program director at IACMI.
Residents interested in registering for a bootcamp or becoming an industry partner can contact Andrew Paad, ACC's manufacturing technology instructor, at [email protected]. The announcement also directs readers to ACC's America's Cutting Edge webpage for more information.
Part of a broader Michigan manufacturing initiative
ACC's participation is part of the Michigan Maritime Manufacturing Initiative, a state initiative involving the U.S. Navy, the Office of the Secretary of War, state, local and federal governments, and hundreds of defense-industry, labor and academic organizations across Michigan.
The initiative is intended to create workforce pipelines addressing the Navy's demand for thousands of new workers and jobs across Michigan and the broader region. ACC's addition gives the ACE network another community college partner as the program expands nationally.
IACMI announced plans earlier this summer to expand ACE and METAL, a related workforce program focused on casting and forging, to 53 new locations at universities, colleges and trade schools by 2030. That expansion would bring the total number of sites to more than 100. IACMI also plans initiatives aimed at engaging more than 50,000 K-12 students and creating hundreds of internship opportunities.