News and Events for Montana Manufacturers

Manufacturing Month is here! It officially launched on Friday, October 2^nd with Manufacturing Day 2020, but events are occurring throughout the month. It’s an excellent opportunity to show off the innovative and successful manufacturing enterprises in Montana and build awareness of the career opportunities offered in this sector.

Here are just a few highlights from the first week of Manufacturing Month:

• On October 1, MMEC Director Paddy Fleming and Advisory Board members appeared on the Voices of Montana radio show of the National Broadcasting System.  Neal Blossom of American Chemet, Amanda Markle of Red Oxx and Daniel Pollard with Bridger Brewing Co joined in to discuss the future of Montana's manufacturing workforce. The broadcast streams on the NBS Voices of Montana Program Archive Page (segment is titled Thursday [Oct. 1] Part 1).
• Dean’s Zesty Booch created and premiered a new manufacturing day video, showcasing the production process for its Kombucha beverages.  You can watch the video on the MMEC Facebook page.
• Butte Local Development Corporation (BLDC) is highlighting manufacturing businesses in the Butte-Silver Bow area with business profiles about companies like Headframe Stills and Continental Steel Works on its BLDC Facebook page. Montana Standard also published a feature article on manufacturing in the Butte area.

• The MFGday.com website (now called CreatorsWanted.org)  is an excellent first step. Just register and download materials, planning guides (such as the MFG Day 2020 Host Toolkit), and pre-made promotional items.
• The MMEC website offers a Manufacturing Day 2020 webpage, loaded with additional ideas and resources.
• Check out the list of upcoming virtual Manufacturing Month Events from around the nation in the graphic below.
• Visit the MMEC Calendar of Events page to participate in Montana based MFG Day events. http://www.montana.edu/mmec/training/training-calendar.html
• The Butte Economic Development Group will host a Community Call (open to the public) TODAY (October 13), with manufacturers from around the area sharing what they do, where their products are used, and the workforce issues they're facing.  (Contact MMEC Business Advisor Brian Sullivan to register.)

October is not only Manufacturing Month – it’s also Cybersecurity Month!  For many of us, cybersecurity is both mysterious and ominous – maybe that’s why Cybersecurity is highlighted in the same month as Halloween?

Seriously, though, securing your technology systems to prevent data loss, hacking attempts, and ransomware attempts is one of the most important things you can do to protect your company’s resources, operations, and reputation.

Getting started with cybersecurity planning doesn’t have to be a monumental task.  In the following article, we've described a few things you do in 30 minutes, a few hours, or one day to begin implementing safe practices.

Montana State University Receives Pollution Prevention Grant. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced that Montana State University (MSU) will receive $498,217 in grant funding to support pollution prevention activities. MSU, working with the Montana Pollution Prevention Center and the Montana Manufacturing Extension Center, will use the grant award to provide Montana’s small businesses in the food and beverage industry with on-site technical assistance and training on pollution prevention practices over the course of two years. “We’re excited to expand our technical assistance on topics such as pollution prevention and source reduction, which we believe will be of great interest to Montana’s growing number of food and beverage manufacturers,” said Paddy Fleming, MMEC Director. Read the full announcement in the EPA news release, and watch the MMEC newsletter for program updates!

NIST Awards Project Grants to MEP Centers in 10 States. Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Centers in 10 states will receive approximately $11.0 million in grant funding from the U.S. Commerce Department’s NIST program. Centers can use the funding to develop projects to solve new or emerging manufacturing problems.  Oregon MEP (OMEP) will deliver a project to develop a regional strategy in five western states to focus on the development and delivery of Industry 4.0-related projects, and the Montana Manufacturing Extension Center will have the opportunity to participate as a regional partner.

Governor Adds Funds to Unemployment Trust Fund. Governor Steve Bullock announced he is directing $200 million in state Coronavirus Relief Funds to effectively double the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. This may prevent thousands of Montana businesses who pay into unemployment insurance from experiencing an 85 percent spike in their tax rate. More details are available in the Montana Department of Labor news release.

Minimum Wage to Increase in 2021. Starting in January 2021, the minimum wage for Montana workers will increase to $8.75 per hour.  According to the Montana Department of Labor news release, an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 Montana workers, or 2 percent of the workforce, received hourly wages less than $8.75 per hour in 2020 and are likely to receive higher wages due to the 2021 minimum wage increase.

DON'T MISS THESE EVENTS THIS WEEK!

MEDA Fall Conference. The Montana Economic Developers Association (MEDA) is hosting its Virtual Fall Conference from October 13-15.  It will include the MEDA 2020 Awards, candidate forums, the Tell Us Something campaign, legislative strategy time, and the formation of MT Next Generation of Community and Economic Development Tools working groups. Download the agenda and registration summary.

Outdoor Recreation Summit.  The Montana Office of Tourism and Business Development is hosting the Virtual Business of Montana Outdoor Recreation Summit from October 13-15 for industry leaders, community members, recreation organizations, and conservation groups.

MMEC Events

Other Upcoming Events

SBDC Trainings and Webinars.  The Small Business Development Center has a packed schedule of training events for October.  View the SBDC Training page for more details and registration information on these events:

• DIY Websites: Customer Service During Challenging Times – October 13
• Leadership: Getting Comfortable with Discomfort – October 13
• Business Start-up Workshop – October 19
• Cash Flow Management: Dealing with COVID-19 – October 19
• Customer Service During Challenging Times – October 23
• Leadership: Guiding Teams Through Business Turbulence – October 27
• Making Better Business Decisions with Analytics – October 28
• And more!

Management Excellence Seminar.  Associated Employers is offering a 3-day seminar series on Management Excellence in Bozeman, starting on October 21. This seminar will explore how today’s leaders can maintain technical expertise while demonstrating an effective style of leadership. Find the full details in the downloadable Associated Employers Training Catalog (page 4).

Contracting your Goods and Services with the State of Montana.  Montana PTAC will host introductory webinars on contracting opportunities with Montana state agencies. The next webinar will be held on October 21. Register on the PTAC events webpage.

Innovation Talk. The SME Manufacturing Resource Center will host an innovation webinar on Thursday, October 29, entitled “Digitization is the New Normal – A Machine Story,” which will explore new digital tools that can improve the efficiency and lifespan of your machinery.

Safety Fest Montana Training. From November 16-20, the Montana Department of Labor and Industry is hosting Bozeman SafetyFestMT 2020: five days of free, virtual occupational health and safety classes on more than 40 topics. See the full agenda and registration information on the SafetyFestMT website.

Manufacturing & Technology Virtual Conference. Industry Week will hold its annual Manufacturing & Technology Conference as a virtual event, December 1-3, 2020. The three-day conference will feature five content tracks—Automation, Continuous Improvement, Leadership, Smart Manufacturing, and Talent Management—with an opportunity to learn best practices from and interact with manufacturing leaders.

Associated Employers.  Associated Employers offers a downloadable Fall 2020 Training Catalog, which includes a variety of HR, leadership and customer service courses.

Partner Event Calendars and Recordings:

COVID-19 Resources

General Manufacturing and Funding Resources