Michael Shaluly wins 2022 FLATE Distinguished Manufacturing Partner Service Award

Michael Shaluly, President and Founder of Mastercut Tool Corp in Safety Harbor, FL, is the recipient of the 2022 Distinguished Manufacturing Partner Serve Award. The Award represents a joint effort between FLATE (Florida Advanced Technological Education Center), FloridaMakes, and FAITE (Florida Association for Industrial and Technical Educators) to recognize the contributions of educators and industries in advancing technician education and training on a regional and statewide level. Award winners will be recognized at the Florida Association for Career and Technical Education (FACTE) Annual Conference & Trade Show that will be held July 18-20, 2022, at the Sawgrass Marriott in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. At the FACTE Conference, winners will serve as panelists for the Best Practice Award Winners Panel to share manufacturing education insights with educators from across the state.

From the company's humble beginnings in his garage in 1985, Michael Shaluly has built Pinellas County's Mastercut Tool Corp. into an international company, a world class carbide cutting tool manufacturer. All products are still manufactured in Florida, using state of the art equipment, skilled craftspersons and the exclusive Mastercut Automated Production (MAP) technology, a unique method of quality control systems that ensures every tool made is exactly the same, time after time, batch after batch.

Michael developed a desire to promote manufacturing education at the beginning of his career in the carbide cutting tool industry. Starting on the factory floor, he remembers being placed in front of a machine with no formal training, no achievement goals, nor even a safety review. Years later, when his employer closed and he started his own manufacturing firm, Michael found very little in the academic world to help him find, train, and retain employees. As he began shipping tools into the automotive and aerospace industries, he recognized how interconnected and important manufacturing was to the world, and how vital it is for the future of the US economy, and indeed for the global economy. These experiences led Mr. Shaluly to conclude that for manufacturing to grow and strengthen, our country, as well as local municipalities, must be committed to manufacturing education programs. He knew he had to do his part, and strongly believes manufacturers themselves must promote such education.

He recognized that his company’s success was linked to a healthy manufacturing infrastructure that depended upon not only educating individuals in manufacturing, but also educating the community about the positive elements of manufacturing careers. In the 1990’s Mike began attending board meetings of vocational schools such as Pinellas Technical College to lend assistance and frequently spoke to students and parents. In the early 2000’s, he worked with his team to create in-house training programs, such as Mastercut’s Automated Production (MAP) for training, and the Mastercut Operational Refinement Efforts (MORE) to reward successful employees’ contributions.


Along with his wife Mia and his Mastercut associates, he created the Shaluly Foundation LLC in 2015. Sponsored by Mastercut Tool and the Shaluly Foundation LLC, the annual 5K Run or Walk for Manufacturing Education was created to celebrate Manufacturing Day and raise funds to support manufacturing education. Over the past seven years, the event has netted over $136,000 for student scholarships in CTE K-12, post-secondary engineering/manufacturing programs, and summer camps related to robotics/manufacturing along with partners such as SME, BAMA, AMSkills, and Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs.

Click here for information on the 2022 5k Run/Walk for Manufacturing Education.

Over the past 6 years Mike and his team have participated during Manufacturing Month, providing educative and fun tours to students, parents, and educators. These tours have impacted more than 250 MS and HS students, providing the opportunity to inspire the next generation about the industry and careers in manufacturing. In addition, Mr. Shaluly regularly donates tooling to universities and machines to training institutions, such as AmSkills, Inc. for their programs. He is currently conferring with the engineering department of the University of South Florida to develop a cutting tool training center there and he maintains an open-door policy to regularly welcome engineering and manufacturing students for plant tours.

Mr. Shaluly is also active in the community, creating, supporting, and advocating programs that enhance education for manufacturing in the USA. He serves as an active member of the Bay Area Manufacturing Association-BAMA and is chairman of the Safety Harbor Chamber of Commerce. Today, he oversees an operation of more than 100 grinding machines, 120 employees, and multiple warehouses and sales stretching across the globe. The company has a European sales office in the Netherlands, and warehouses in California, Michigan, Texas, Indiana, England, and Shanghai. Products manufactured in the Florida facility are distributed to more than 40 countries, with international exports making up 35% of the business.

For information on the FLATE Awards visit http://fl-ate.org/programs/flate-awards, or contact Executive Director of FLATE, Ernie Friend at Ernie.Friend@flate.org.

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