Florida Manufacturing Career Fair to return to PBSC Oct. 14

Second Florida Manufacturing Career Fair on Wednesday, Oct. 14 at Palm Beach State College’s Public Safety Conference Center on the Lake Worth campus

Second Florida Manufacturing Career Fair on Wednesday, Oct. 14 at Palm Beach State College’s Public Safety Conference Center on the Lake Worth campus

Fair is part of statewide campaign to fill advanced manufacturing jobs

Lake Worth, FL - by Joyce Edelstein - Local manufacturers hope to find qualified job candidates at the second Florida Manufacturing Career Fair on Wednesday, Oct. 14 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Palm Beach State College’s Public Safety Conference Center on the Lake Worth campus, 4200 Congress Ave. The career fair is free and open to the public.

Veterans with ID may enter the fair early, from 8:30 to 9 a.m. All attendees are encouraged to pre-register by sending an email with contact information to manufacturingjobfair@careersourcepbc.com.

More than 25 hiring manufacturers will exhibit, representing industries such as energy, marine and consumer products. Exhibiting employers include Aerotek, Brown Distributing, Coastline Cooling, Serta, SolarTech Universal, U.S. Foods and Viking Yachts.

The fair is an encore of the successful Florida Manufacturing Career Fair held April 22 at PBSC. The fairs are part of the Florida TRADE Consortium’s statewide “Drive to 1,000” campaign to place 1,000 Florida TRADE students and others into advanced manufacturing jobs by April 1, 2016. The previous fair attracted 234 job seekers, who found more than 130 open positions at the companies that participated.

Palm Beach State is a member of the Florida TRADE Consortium, a coalition of 12 state and community colleges with the mission to develop and deliver accelerated technical training programs for jobs in advanced manufacturing. The training programs are funded by a U.S. Department of Labor grant awarded in 2012. Advanced manufacturing defines the new way manufacturing is done, integrating computerized data, automation, robotics and other technologies for improved efficiencies and products. As a result, advanced manufacturing jobs are high skill and high wage.

Training Opportunities and Information Sessions
At the fair, attendees can learn about PBSC training in various advanced manufacturing areas. Information sessions for the Welding and Machining programs also will be held Oct. 14, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the Education and Training Center, room ETA 107, on the Lake Worth campus. Palm Beach State’s manufacturing-related programs and courses provide new and experienced workers with skills and industry certifications that are in demand in Florida and nationwide.

The Florida TRADE grant team at Palm Beach State College has joined with CareerSource Palm Beach County, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, the Manufacturers Association of Florida, the South Florida Manufacturers Association, and the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County to host the Florida Manufacturing Career Fair.

To learn more about the fair and advanced manufacturing training at PBSC, visit www.palmbeachstate.edu/AdvancedManufacturingGrant or call 561-868-3864. For more information about the Florida TRADE Consortium, visit www.FLTrade.org.