Illinois “Makers on the Move” bus tour showcases workforce opportunities and high-tech careers
The Illinois Manufacturers’ Association (IMA) and the Illinois Manufacturing Excellence Center (IMEC) will celebrate Manufacturing Month in October with the fourth annual “Makers on the Move” statewide bus tour. Running from October 3–10, the tour will make approximately 30 stops at manufacturing facilities, colleges, and community centers across Illinois to showcase career opportunities and highlight modern, high-tech manufacturing. The event begins at The Will Group in Chicago, a minority-owned business known for producing infrastructure solutions, before continuing to communities statewide with the support of educators, industry leaders, and public officials.
IMA and IMEC hope to emphasize manufacturing’s vital role in Illinois, which contributes more than $580 billion annually to the state’s economy and directly employs more than 662,000 workers. The initiative aims to inspire the next generation of workers and ensure a strong, skilled workforce for the future of Illinois manufacturing.
What people are saying
In a recent quote, Mark Denzler, president & CEO of the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, said, “We’re excited to hit the road in celebration of our state’s amazing manufacturing sector and look forward to connecting with those interested in learning more about the rewarding career opportunities our industry offers. Manufacturers are making the world a better place to live every single day. Whether it’s making life-saving medicines, producing food to feed our communities, building advanced machinery to help explore new frontiers, or creating energy to power our homes and businesses, the women and men on shop floors are driving solutions for some of the world’s most pressing challenges.”
Other manufacturer news from Illinois
J.L. Clark invests $10M to expand custom packaging manufacturing facility in Illinois The company will invest more than $10 million in high-speed equipment at its Rockford site and grow the local workforce by about 40%.
Raptor Power Systems to open new power distribution manufacturing facility in Illinois Raptor is opening a 65,000-sq-ft facility in Champaign to manufacture PDUs and breaker panels, increasing capacity and speeding lead times.
Rivian invests $120M to build electric vehicle supplier park in Illinois Rivian is building a 1.2 million-sq-ft supplier park in Normal to co-locate component suppliers and strengthen its EV supply chain.
TCCI Manufacturing invests $20M to open Clean Energy Innovation Hub in Illinois TCCI launched a Clean Energy Innovation Hub in Decatur to produce EV compressors, offer workforce training, and support R&D — creating about 50 jobs.
Switched Source to expand Phase-EQ manufacturing facility in Illinois The company will add a 20,000-sq-ft Chicagoland facility to boost Phase-EQ production by ~150%, supporting utilities’ electrification needs.