2019 MSSC CPT and CPT+ Workshop – Another Successful Educational Synergy Connecting Industry & Workforce Needs to Support Manufacturing Educators

FLATE, partnered with the Manufacturing Skill Standards Council (MSSC), AMATROL, JAEGER Corporation and the Florida Association for Career and Technical Education (FACTE), on a MSSC CPT and CPT+ Workshop to provide the latest on the MSSC Certified Production Technician (CPT) standards, classroom implementation, and hands-on Skill Boss training. Twenty five attendees from around Florida had the opportunity to participate in this workshop, hosted by the Hillsborough Community College on April 11th and 12th. Sessions included MSSC resources required to build a Florida talent pipeline in advanced manufacturing and Transportation, Distribution and Logistics by Neil Reddy, CEO, three hands on activities, mentored by D.C. Jaeger Corporation and Amatrol personnel, that support each of the four MSSC assessments, a luncheon with industry panel of employers, and last, but not least, a review of the Florida Frameworks and MSSC alignments presented by Bob Blevins, from the Florida Department of Education, who is the State Supervisor for Manufacturing.
The industry panel detailed how some companies used MSSC CPT and the benefits, their need for skilled, knowledgeable workforce, they partner with colleges and schools.  Bayne Beecher from PGT Industries, Peter Cirak from Seal Dynamics, Shannon Guzman with Chromalloy, Shirley Dobbins from HCC Engineering Technology, Mercedes Ramirez-Cruz, and Tam Onieluan, Heat Pipe Technology, Inc. made up the distinguished industry panel.

The Manufacturing Skill Standards Council (MSSC), is a non-profit industry-led, training, assessment and certification system focused on the core skills and knowledge needed by the nation’s front-line production and material handling technicians. The nationwide MSSC System, offers both entry-level and incumbent workers the opportunity to demonstrate that they have acquired the skills increasingly needed in the technology-intensive jobs of the 21st century.
The statewide articulation agreement in Florida provides 15 credit hours of the Engineering Technology Core for anyone enrolling in the degree program and having a current CPT credential. Therefore, anyone in the country who holds a valid MSSC-CPT credential can graduate with the A.S. Engineering Technology degree after completing 45 instead of the required 60 credit hours.
 The CPT+ Skill Boss program is designed to prepare students with the next generation skills to work in a computer-driven, data-intensive advanced manufacturing workplace. The centerpiece of this new program is a new AMATROL training device which enables MSSC to offer hands-on training and assessment as an enhancement to its CPT training and certification system.  “Skill Boss” is a computer-controlled machine that performs a wide variety of functions aligned with 55+ skills drawn from the MSSC’s National Production Standards. The Skills Boss is especially helpful for those who have little or no hands-on experience in the manufacturing workplace, including high school students.

Manufacturing educators from around the state who answered the survey, 100% (15) found the workshop to be of great professional development value and anticipate that as a result of attending the workshop they will share and use FLATE, Made in Florida, and MSSC available educational resources, and. Over 95% of the attendees agreed that all aspects of the works were very good or excellent.
FLATE could not provide a workshop like this without help from various contributors and we want to thank them all for their participation and support: MSSC, D.C. JAEGER Corporation, AMATROL, HCC, and FACTE for sponsoring educator’s travel. Thanks also to our speakers, instructors, and industry panelists for their contribution to this successful workshop.

Some comments from participants:

“I wanted to say thank you for a great workshop. Bringing in the employers was an added bonus and it was a great networking opportunity for me. The employers expounded on introducing careers to learners earlier than high school.”
“The workshops are changing lives of scholars today, impacting earning potentials of tomorrow and shifting future generations forever! Thank you so much for your ongoing commitment and efforts to open unseen doors for thousands of young people.”

For more information about MSSC, visit their website or, locally in Florida, visit the D.C. Jaeger site.  To learn more about FLATE and our educational resources visit the FLATE website, sign up for our monthly FLATE Focus Newsletter, or contact Dr. Marilyn Barger, FLATE Executive Director at barger@fl-ate.org. Resources and presentations from the workshop will be posted on FLATE’s wiki.

No comments :

Post a Comment