Manufacturing Workforce News

Victaulic, a manufacturer of mechanical pipe joining solutions, has unveiled a plan to build an additional state-of-the-art manufacturing center in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. The 400,000 square foot facility is the result of increased domestic demand for the company’s products. The facility is expected to break ground later this year and be fully operational in 2019. “This new facility will play an important role in meeting increased customer demand, while also producing the highest quality products in the industry -- something our customers have come to expect from us since our first innovation nearly 100 years ago,” said John F. Malloy, CEO of Victaulic.

A new shipbuilding and repair training program in Alaska aims to develop an advanced manufacturing workforce comprised of state residents. Shipbuilder and repairer Vigor has teamed up with the maritime workforce development network Maritime Works for a public, private and philanthropic initiative called Advancing Alaskan Workers, which will train Alaska’s next generation of advanced manufacturing workers. The initiative strives to combat the high turnover rates seen at Vigor’s Ketchikan shipyard and elsewhere that result when non-Alaskans are recruited to fill the state’s critical skills gap.

U.S. “The Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower convenes this afternoon to examine Navy shipbuilding programs. We welcome our three distinguished witnesses: The Honorable Sean J. Stackley, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition; Vice Admiral Joseph P. Mulloy, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Integration of Capabilities and Resources; and Lieutenant General Robert S. Walsh, Deputy Commandant for Combat Development and Integration, as well as Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command.

The Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) and the Det Norske Veritas (DNV) Clean Technology Centre has announced the WDA-DNV Excellence In Safety Training (WEST) programme to raise safety standards and skills for the manufacturing workforce to benefit 80 local workers over the next year. The programme is the first collaboration between WDA and DNV to equip the Singapore manufacturing workforce with safety excellence skills which are critical in managing risks and preventing major accidents for the high value-added manufacturing sector. At times, these companies could have neglected safety and may result in dramatic loss of economic returns and social losses.

American Commercial Lines Inc. (NASDAQ: ACLI) (ACL) announced results for the quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2009. Revenues for the quarter ended September 30, 2009 were $216.0 million, a 31.1% decrease compared with $313.7 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2008. The decrease in revenue was primarily due to changes in the mix of commodities shipped by our customers in the respective quarters into lower revenue commodities and to lower volume in the current year. The impact of lower fuel prices which contractually is passed through to our customers in the current year quarter also contributed to the decline in revenue and was partially offset by the increase in manufacturing segment's revenues in the quarter.