Mohawk Signs National Standards For Apprenticeship Program

  • Monday, November 2, 2015

Mohawk Industries is celebrating National Apprenticeship Week by extending its nationally recognized apprenticeship program to participants in Northwest Georgia and beyond.

After successfully developing and piloting a mechatronics apprenticeship program at manufacturing facilities in Holden, W.V. and Danville, Va., Mohawk announced the program is now available for implementation at facilities operating in Region 1, which includes Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, South Carolina, Texas and Oklahoma. Locally, Mohawk’s Wall Street (Calhoun) and Virgil Drive (Dalton) manufacturing facilities will now be part of the apprenticeship program. Additional apprenticeship opportunities at facilities throughout the region will be announced in the coming months.

“At Mohawk, we use leading-edge technology, which requires specialized training to master,” Senior Vice President of Human Resources Phil Brown said. “We need bright, engaged, and creative employees to optimize the impact of these technological investments. We are actively working to become the safest and healthiest workplace in industry, and we need a workforce that supports those goals.”

The four-year mechatronics apprenticeship combines mechanical, electrical, telecommunications, control and computer engineering and culminates in a certification or the option of completing additional coursework to earn an associate degree in mechatronics.

This week Mr. Brown and Mohawk’s Director of Technical Training Linda McEntire signed the company’s apprenticeship agreement, which signifies the program’s standards meet national Department of Labor requirements and can be implemented anywhere throughout the U.S. John Ladd, from the USDOL Office of Apprenticeship and Training Administration, presided over the signing ceremony at Gordon County College and Career Academy.

“There is no better way to celebrate National Apprenticeship Week and there’s no better place to achieve this milestone,” Mr. Brown said. “With national recognition of our program standards, we are creating incredible opportunities for current and future employees in our Northwest Georgia region to expand their skills with classroom instruction and on-the job-training. When we combine the results of this program with the depth of our existing partnership with GCCCA, the future is bright for our business and the men and women who will gain the skills to build great careers with us.”

As the world’s largest flooring manufacturer and the largest employer in Gordon County, Mohawk identified GCCCA as a key institution for developing qualified potential future employees. The company has donated funds to support the mechatronics lab, promotes ongoing employee volunteer opportunities at the school, provides leadership and input through representatives on the GCCCA board of directors and sponsored an on-site STEM camp this summer. Longtime Mohawk employee and Senior Regional Engineering Instructor Keith Shepherd joined the school’s teaching staff this semester to provide instruction for two sections of a mechatronics course.

In addition to teaching the high school students, Mr. Shepherd has been tapped as the lead instructor for the growing mechatronics apprenticeship program. He will provide the primary classroom instruction for apprentices locally, and he will expand his teaching load as the program continues growing in the region. Georgia Northwestern Technical College is also a partner in local apprenticeship education.

“We are very proud of our apprentices in Holden and Danville, and we are so excited to offer the program to employees in Northwest Georgia,” Ms. McEntire said. “This robust training opportunity allows people with existing talents to develop new skills that will help meet the demands of our increasingly high-tech and competitive industry. It’s an exciting time for technical education, and it’s an exciting time for Mohawk.”

In the United States there are approximately 375,000 apprentices working with more than 150,000 employers nationwide. Last year, President Barack Obama established a goal of doubling the number of apprenticeship opportunities within five years. The inaugural National Apprenticeship Week is one of several initiatives designed to achieve that goal by raising awareness of the benefits these programs offer.

After partnering with Mohawk on the apprenticeship model at the Holden, the Robert C. Byrd Institute for Advance Flexible Manufacturing at Marshall University was awarded $4.9 million from the U.S. Department of Labor. This grant money has been designated to expand programs based on the Mohawk model across the country. In partnership with Mohawk, the Georgia Department of Economic Development was awarded a $2.99 million grant to develop additional apprenticeship programs.

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