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INDIANAPOLIS (Inside INdiana Business) – Conexus Indiana and Goodwill of Central and Southern Indiana are teaming up to launch a paid training program in advanced manufacturing and logistics.
Make & Move Up will implement training through Conexus’ Catapult Indiana program for 50 residents of northeast Indianapolis. The state’s advanced manufacturing and logistics initiative says the effort aligns with the Bloomington-based Cook Medical manufacturing plant, currently under construction in Indy, which will create 100 jobs.
In an interview with Inside INdiana Business, Conexus CEO Fred Cartwright said the program aimed to address a need in a neighborhood that has experienced high unemployment rates.
“The program is a significant way to help the local community provide jobs and career opportunities,” Cartwright said. “And in partnership with Goodwill Commercial Services and others, this is a big step forward in creating a network of jobs here in central Indiana.”
Cook’s medical facility at East 38th Street and Sheridan Street will manufacture medical devices such as drainage catheters and needles for Cook, although the workers will be employed by Goodwill Commercial Services. Installation plans were announced last November, and the project is a collaboration between Cook, Goodwill and United Northeast Community Development Corp., among others.
The goodwill of Central and South Indiana CEO Kent Kramer said there was a lack of investment in some communities in the state and the area where Cook’s installation is underway construction is a prime example.
“It’s been several years since new jobs, especially new jobs like this, manufacturing jobs, have been created in this region,” Kramer said. “Our hope is that others will see this work being done, see the collaborative nature of this work between Cook and Conexus and Goodwill and CICF and Chase. There are a lot of organizations and companies behind it that want it to be successful and our hope is that other organizations will see it and see the success it will have and replicate this model.
Kramer says Make & Move Up will also help other companies in the advanced manufacturing and logistics sector fill jobs, including Goodwill Commercial Services, which has manufacturing and logistics operations under contract in Indy and Bloomington. .
Catapult Indiana is a 160-hour entry-level workforce training program that has been implemented in other areas of the state. Cartwright says about 90% of the students who completed the program have found employment and he hopes to continue that success in central Indiana.
Cartwright says Make & Move Up will help get things done for manufacturing and logistics companies that are constantly on the lookout for skilled talent.
“We hear it from businesses almost every day. They need the people and the situation that I think we see in the state, with retirements pending, baby boomers planning to retire and those who are already over 65 and still working. will be retiring soon, creating an even bigger gap for manufacturers, ”Cartwright said. “We’re focused on what we need to do to develop new programs, new pathways for people in these advanced manufacturing and logistics jobs, as well as what we can do to move the state forward with manufacturing companies.” in terms of adopting new technology, because that’s something we’re lagging behind here as well.
Conexus says training for Make & Move Up will begin later this year ahead of the Cook Medical Center opening, which is slated to take place in the first quarter of 2022.
Cartwright says he hopes the collaborative nature of a program like Make & Move Up serves as a model that can help other underserved neighborhoods in Indiana.
“There isn’t one organization that can really make a difference on the challenges we have here in central Indiana and across the state. I think what’s going to be key for the future, as it has been in the past, is to create those partnerships and alignments where it makes sense to really have a huge difference and that’s a great example of doing it. It just needs to be replicated and expanded statewide. “
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