One of the lessons learned over the past year has been how crucial the manufacturing industry is to the U.S. Not just for the economy but for those in need of PPE, hospital beds, and other medical equipment that were produced rapidly by manufacturers during the pandemic crisis.

While manufacturers have been essential during this time of need, they’ve been facing a separate crisis for many years now — the skilled labor gap. With baby boomers retiring in droves, metal fabricators need quality talent now more than ever.

Luckily, NBT Camp Hosts are poised and ready to safely kick off the 2021 summer manufacturing camp season beginning in May. The camps will introduce middle and high school-aged youth to career paths in manufacturing as well as practical applications of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) principles. Students will tour local manufacturing companies, work directly with advanced equipment and technology, and design and manufacture a product they can take home.

NBT will provide grant funding and an array of other benefits to community colleges, technical schools, and high schools across the U.S. to host over 130 youth summer camps focused on manufacturing careers.

NBT summer manufacturing camps address the skilled labor shortage by exposing youth to in-demand careers in the vocational and technical trades that often are no longer found in most public education systems. Many students discover that the training needed for a manufacturing career is readily available in their local community at the very school where they are attending camp.

See the Camp Impact Study to learn how NBT camps have a positive impact on technical education programs, inspire the next-generation workforce to pursue careers in manufacturing, and ensure that American manufacturing will remain strong for future generations.

NBT provides each camp with an entrepreneurship curriculum, customized T-shirts, marketing help, and other materials. Each camper also receives a free 365-day license to SolidWorks® CAD / CAM student edition design software.

Major sponsors of the NBT camps program are the CNA Foundation, SolidWorks Corporation, Mastercam, East Iowa Machine Company (EIMCo), Miller Electric, and the PMMI Foundation.