AMANCF Kick-Off Event
Friday, March 30, 2012 marked the kick-off of the Advanced Manufacturing Association of North Central Florida, AMANCF. A year of hard work by the founding manufacturers and their partners culminated in an informative event with 50 attendees. The group included regional manufacturers, workforce professionals, chamber staff, and others, at a luncheon presentation at the Center for Innovation and Economic Development at Santa Fe College in downtown Gainesville. Participants heard a variety of presentations beginning with the welcome and AMANCF introduction by Chairperson Donna Burdge from Sandvik Mining in Alachua.
Providing a national and state perspective on the manufacturing industry was Mr. Al Stimac, President of Metal Essence Inc. and Machining Solutions, LLC. Al is the current President of the Manufacturers Association of Florida and a Board Member of the National Association of Manufacturing (Biography). Al’s presentation included indepth information and statisitcs on how vital manufacturing is to both Florida and our nation’s health.
Our other keynote speaker was Ms. Jayne Fifer, President of the Volusia Manufacturers Association (Biography) (website). Leading a premier regional manufacturers group, Jayne educated the group of many benefits that a local association can bring to its members and the community. She shared her wisdom from years of leading a successful association and provided valuable information on how to grow AMANCF into a valuable and successful organization.
Dr. Eric Roe, Director of the Banner Center for Advanced Manufacturing (BCAM) discussed the educational assets available for manufacturers within Florida. He particularly addressed the value of apprenticeship and agreements between employer manufacturers and trainers developed in BCAM‘s programs.
Foundation Group members Kevin Williams (Sandvik Mining), Brian Soucek (SiVance), Dan Stewart (Ball Corporation), Aleasha Burnell (RTI Biologix), and Bill Hipp (Maddox Foundry) provided insite on the benefits of belonging to AMANCF, including business opportunities and best practice sharing just within the Founders Group to date.
Kim Tesch-Vaught of the Gainesville Chamber of Commerce gave a concise overview on how regional business development is tied into manufacturing activities and how AMANCF could become a leading team resource for economic development within our region.
The group discussion ended with valuable networking by all attendees as they got to know each other and began to benefit from their new association.