Getting people back to work and helping employers fill the void is the task of a local group building a new holiday facility.
AmSkills is expanding its presence off US 19 in West Pasco County. The company has been around since 2014 and has grown since then.
“So it’s going to be a hands-on facility, CNC, machining, DIY, robotics, automation, simulators, all kinds of things. So it’s a place where people learn hands-on how to do these occupations and how to improve the income that they have,” he explained. President and CEO Tom Modano.
Currently, AmSkills is training students at Anclote High School and has a mobile unit to take to other facilities.
But this new facility hopes to open the door to manufacturing for many more people.
“So we have to get creative with the way we bring this, these industries that they don’t even know about. So we do this in three ways: recruiting, training, and sustainability. Recruitment is through our high school program, we’re actually working with Anclote High School, helping kids. On learning these different jobs that they can then actually start once they graduate.Also, a lot of adults between the ages of 18 and 24 have no idea what they want to do.How many people do you know that have a college degree and, I don’t know, don’t use it? Well, we don’t have a chance to explore. So, basically, we have a mobile unit that goes around Tampa Bay, and we run training camps for two weeks, that they get to try hands-on things and a lot of different things. But that results in last-day interviews with a lot of employers. Modano explained.
There is a great need for employees in the manufacturing industry, especially here in Tampa Bay. AmSkills is working with 75 manufacturers to help fill this void.
“So these are jobs, again, that people don’t know about, and there are jobs that pay well, but you have to have the skill to do it. And most people don’t immediately think I don’t have that skill, I can’t do it. We’re here to help you learn that.” skill, put you on the job, and then we help you continue that training,” Modano said.
How do they do that?
They have coaches like Gary Robinson and Jeff Cole.
Together, they help people learn about things like robotics, electricity, and construction machinery.
“They can come to a place like AmSkills and we’ll help them have the skills and say, hey, wow, you know, it’s a new day, it’s a new life. You have a program like this that I think can be designed across the country, where different communities benefit from something like this, where we can uplift people and change one life at a time,” Robinson explained.
While those who use these programs may not know about the hardware on day one, they certainly will when boot camps and apprenticeships are over.
“So the initial reaction is complete shock. I just started on Wednesday starting a pre-apprenticeship class. And one of the ladies in the class said, I’m a nervous wreck. So I told her, I have one rule in my class, you have to have fun. If you’re having fun, I’m doing my job.” , which calmed her down, and she did the work. And I took her around. At the end of the day, she was working on the equipment,” Cole explained.
Together, they hope they can get people back into work at something they enjoy.
“But also just because we looked at the districts. We’re in this low-income community. We think this will help rejuvenate the community. We also built our first neighborhood training center in Pinellas County at the Lealman Exchange because if we could have existing facilities in the local community, we would also It helps people again to say, Hey, I just want to learn how to build a drone or build a 3D printer. But guess what, that’s the first step to action,” Modano said.
This site is scheduled to open in the next few months. But you can still participate in the programming they already have. click here to know more.
Cole is also the boss Gulf Area Manufacturers Association. They hold regular meetings and events for those in the industry.