Students, teachers, and industry partners attended DMI Companies, Inc.’s fifth annual Manufacturing (MFG) Day event on October 5, 2022, for a day of career exploration and development activities at two of DMI’s plants.

The MFG Day events were held at our Monongahela, Pennsylvania, and Wagoner, Oklahoma, locations simultaneously so that participants at the two locations could collaborate via video conference at various points throughout the day.  Approximately 50 students from Charleroi Area High School, Belle Vernon Area High School, and Elizabeth Forward High School attended our Monongahela facility, while approximately 20 students from Wagoner High School visited our Wagoner facility.

To kick off our MFG Day, students heard from a guest speaker, Allegheny Conference on Community Development’s Chief Corporate Relations Officer Bill Flanagan about how technology and innovation have transformed manufacturing and created exciting new opportunities for the next generations of manufacturers.  After the guest speaker, students were welcomed by Chief Operating Officer (COO) Doug Gudenburr, heard more about MFG Day from Workforce Development Manager Katie Hager, and were given a brief safety presentation by Safety Coordinator Erica Cole to ensure the students’ safety as they walk through our facilities.

Students were then broken into groups and paired with DMI employees from a variety of different career paths including Engineers, Production Workers, Electricians, Machinists, Automation Technicians, and more to tour our facilities and see advanced manufacturing technology in action.

After the tour of our facilities, students participated in a hands-on robotics lesson, assembled Cable Shark components as part of a Lean Manufacturing lesson, and attended group career panels with DMI employees to learn more about their fields of interest.  Over lunch, students learned about DMI’s sustainability initiatives in a presentation by Sustainability and Environmental Compliance Coordinator Edwin Hart.

After lunch, students reassembled to listen to a presentation about careers in manufacturing with Katie Hager.  Students also heard from Automation Engineer Julietta Maffeo about her career path at DMI and how her success started with programs like MFG Day, BotsIQ, and a DMI internship.  Lastly, students participated in an engaging game of Kahoot to reinforce the information they learned throughout the day.

DMI has hosted MFG Day events since 2016 that have provided opportunities for hundreds of students to learn about advanced manufacturing and the variety of career opportunities it offers.  Many of those students have returned to participate in additional DMI Workforce Development programs and have even joined us as full-time employees.

DMI Companies, Inc. thanks all who participated in our MFG Day event, and we are looking forward to the next one.

To view Bill Flanagan and Julietta Mafeo’s full speeches from MFG Day, visit the DMI YouTube channel at rb.gy/3opxm1 or watch below.