Center of Excellence

Concrete Certifications

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By Jennifer Ferrero

Training and certification does not always = Work readiness. Quantifying and qualifying trained and work-ready employees is what National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) is about regarding careers in manufacturing. There are a variety of certifications that are now being reviewed for implementation in Washington State.

The NAM-Endorsed Certification System is comprised of components as follows:

NCRC: National Career Readiness Certificate verifies competency levels in three areas: applied math, reading for information and locating information.
MSSC: Manufacturing Skill Standards Council certification verifies mastery in essential Production modules in Safety, Quality Practices & Measurement, Manufacturing Processes & Production, and Maintenance Awareness.
AWS: American Welding Society certification uses performance-based testing to validate procedures used in the structural steel, petroleum pipelines, sheet metal and chemical refining industries.
NIMS: National Institute of Metalworking Skills includes both “hands-on” performance and theory tests. Assessments are scored against the 24 NIMS national standards that are modularized to specific skills and competencies ranging from entry level to master level.
SME: Society of Manufacturing Engineers has two certifications, both of which are acquired through a baccalaureate program of study or a combination of academic work and work experience. The Certified Manufacturing Technologist (CMfgT) focuses on the fundamentals of manufacturing. The Certified Manufacturing Engineer (CMfgE) focuses on applied and advanced manufacturing knowledge.

Recently in a white paper being developed by the Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Materials Manufacturing as an annual report to the National Association of Manufacturers, it was determined that adding NAM- Endorsed Certification to the state's community and technical colleges, skills centers and high schools, may have traction, but that full-implementation could still be some time off.

Some colleges and other instituions have already implemented components of the certification. For example, the American Welding Society (AWS) certification is already being utilized by 11 schools.

The certification takes development and committment from educational institutions and some feel that they have the support needed from industry to go through the implementation process.

However, for many schools, their goal is to obtain industry committment that the certifications issued through NAM for their graduations will carry weight when hiring.

Movement is occuring for enhancing certifications in Washington. In Spokane, an initiative called Work Ready Spokane led by Spokane Area Workforce Development Council to advance the competitive position of the Spokane region in Eastern Washington State by providing workplace skill assessments and the NCRC to its workforce.

According to the report, "Since 2008, more than 3,000 individual assessments have been given throughout Spokane County. Since April 2011, more than 300 National Career Readiness Certificates have been earned and awarded to Spokane job seekers and students. Testing centers with trained staff and weekly testing schedules have been established in two locations in Spokane, and NCRC assessments and certificates were made available to all job seekers free of charge through June 30, 2011."

So while some certifications are in process, and there is energy behind the movement of enhancing skills certification training, the report concludes, "Washington State is committed to an exploration of a skills certification system and platform for manufacturing, and it has agreed to begin that exploration with the NAM-Endorsed Certification System. The state has allocated resources to this exploration including the governor’s Pegasus Program, a portion of the WIA 10% grant funds and a portion of the DOL Air Washington grant. While there is still resistance to a system-wide adoption of a certification system, progress is being made.

There is a highly successful initiative regarding NCRC through the Workforce Development Council in Spokane, and it is growing across the state. NIMS certification is being sought by nine institutions in the state. And the Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Manufacturing is engaged with a number of projects which will increase dissemination of information about the certifications, and enhance the exploration of their use in the training and education system."

The report was produced by Terryll Bailey, The Allison Group on behalf of the Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Materials Manufacturing.