Hermle Machine takes on manufacturing skills gap

It’s no secret that shop owners and managers frequently bellyache about the difficulty of attracting skilled workers and poach staff from other manufacturers by offering better pay.

Quit complaining and commit to a German-style, dual-training apprenticeship program so you can grow your own talent. That was one piece of advice Mario Kratsch, director, skills initiative for German American Chamber of Commerce of the Midwest Inc., Chicago, provided at an informational event about GACC Midwest’s Industry Consortium for Advanced Technical Training dual-training program. Hermle Machine Co. LLC hosted the event March 2 at its Franklin, Wis., facility to highlight the program’s benefits.

Modeled after Germany’s apprenticeship system and billed as a company-driven approach to technical training, GACC Midwest developed ICATT in 2015. The organization is seeking around a dozen Wisconsin manufacturers to join Hermle Machine so the program can successfully launch this fall.

“We need a critical mass of 10 to 12 students in order for a technical college to say, ‘Yes, we will provide those classes,” said Manuel Merkt, vice president of operations for the machine tool builder.

This is because the qualifying apprentices in the 3-year program attend classes as a group to earn a customized associate degree and also work at the participating manufacturers that hired them to receive training tailored to each company’s needs. Depending on the program, an apprentice might attend school 3 days a week and work 2 days or attend classes in, say, 8-week blocks with each followed by a multiple-week block of work.

“The ICATT program was initially developed in Illinois due to the high demand from German companies looking for skilled employees, but more and more U.S. companies are joining to keep a competitive edge,” said Geneva Scurek, manager, skills initiative at GACC Midwest, who moderated a panel discussion with three ICATT companies and their apprentices. “This is why we are now expanding the program to Wisconsin.”

For more information, visit www.thinkicatt.com.