Article from BCRNEWS.com, November 5, 2014
Eight manufacturers open facilities for expo
About 270 area high school students from 13 schools toured eight manufacturers Oct. 22 as part of the North Central Regional Betterment Coalition’s (NCRBC) North Central Illinois Discover Manufacturing Career Expo.
Carus was one of eight manufacturers who sponsored the event and hosted plant tours for local students. About 270 students from 13 high schools participated. After visiting local manufacturers, students ended their day with educational breakout sessions and a closing ceremony at Illinois Valley Community College’s Peter Miller Community Technology Center.
Students met chemists, engineers and other manufacturing professionals and learned about career opportunities ranging from operations to information technology.
“I was very surprised that this changed my mind about engineering,” said Hall High School student Brandon Simpson after touring Carus Corporation’s LaSalle manufacturing facility. “The whole process of it. The different machinery that is used got me really thinking about engineering.”
“Engineering interests me a lot more today than it did before,” said Marcquis Briddick, a Hall High School junior. “I realize now there are a lot of different types of engineers. After today, I’m going to take engineering more seriously.”
“Many students are surprised by what they find at the expo,” said Ralph Moshage, corporate engineering manager for Carus Corporation and event co-chair for the Discover Manufacturing Career Expo. “It’s a great opportunity to learn more about careers they expect to see in manufacturing, like engineering, mechanics, or welding. It’s also an opportunity to discover more unexpected manufacturing career paths, such as chemistry, finance, sales and marketing.”
Students also toured the facilities of Sabic, Black Brothers, MBL USA, Vactor, Allegion (LCN Closers), Gardner Denver and Eakas.