The push toward digitally enabled manufacturing is exposing a growing shortage of skilled industrial labor across the United States. To help close that gap, a major workforce development effort is scaling up training for electricians and manufacturing professionals who will support smart factories and advanced infrastructure. The initiative focuses on hands-on technical skills, digital fluency, and emerging technologies such as generative AI, aiming to prepare workers for the realities of modern industrial operations by the end of the decade.The Demand for Highly Skilled WorkersSiemens is strengthening its commitment to training and upskilling willing and passionate individuals to become part of the future manufacturing workforce.They are actively tackling what the Manufacturing Institute terms the “crisis of readiness,” in which there may simply not be enough willing, educated, and highly skilled individuals available to fill new, high-demand manufacturing jobs. As artificial intelligence continues to integrate with existing manufacturing hardware and systems, new communication and technological boundaries shift operational capacity and open new skills and knowledge for operating these systems.Annual hiring for highly skilled, hands-on roles in industrial manufacturing and construction settings (such as electricians, ironworkers, welders, solderers, and material-moving-machine operators) is projected to exceed 20 times the number of jobs generated annually between 2022 and 2032, according to McKinsey and Company (McKinsey and Co).The same insightful article from McKinsey and Co. highlights the desire for workplace progression and development among younger and older millennials (Gen Z), while both Gen Z and Gen X (older individuals aged 45 to 64) favor workplace flexibility. These key retention drivers are areas where the manufacturing and construction industry is falling behind.Supporting Sustainability and the Industrial WorkforceEarlier this year, Siemens announced the opening of its $190 million manufacturing hub in Fort Worth (Texas), complete with carbon-neutral, all-electric technologies that help the company reach its net-zero by 2030 goal. The announcement represents the company’s holistic approach to evolving its operations, while strengthening the U.S. economy, delivering critical infrastructure, and creating 460 job opportunities out of a targeted 800 jobs by 2026. Siemens is also investing in upskilling its workforce, onboarding teaching talent in the form of school teachers and principals to Fort Worth’s employee training team to help design flexible/approachable learning programmes for new Siemens employees to fast-track learning and get them ready for advanced shop floor operations.Expanding Development EcosystemsSiemens is forging cross-sector partnerships (across trade organizations, technical programs, community colleges, and industrial businesses) to build a nationwide network through which to support the development of local talent, and by doing so, help businesses flourish and grow the American economy. Siemens has trained as many as 50,000 workers already, and has a partnership network of 100,000 organizations across the nation.Siemens is educating the future workforce in the power sector through three main channels: Siemens Educates America, Siemens Foundation, and Siemens Power Academy. The Power Academy provides participants with professional training in grid automation, safety, and control. Continuing education credits are provided through Wake Tech Community College, with leading experts helping develop overall performance and encourage growth. The academy has trained as many as 887 professionals across 300+ courses.Siemens Foundation is designed to enhance workforce readiness through interactive training, standardized curricula, and certifications. Around 7,500 trainees benefit from the Foundation and its nationwide partnerships. Siemens Educates America focuses on schools and education, with a network spanning 32 states and providing teaching materials to 32,000 apprentices nationwide. One standout offering is Siemens’ Pneuma, an immersive platform that simulates real-world working conditions.Siemens Automation Corporates with Education brings educational benchtop practices into the manufacturing environment by connecting with 1,000 educational institutions to impact the learning of more than 10,000 students. Siemens also offers its Mechatronic Systems Certification Program, which fuses electrical, computer, and mechanical engineering to deliver certified educational training. The Certification Program connects with 16 schools, with 200 students participating.Getting behind the development of the future industrial workforce is key to developing and strengthening America's economy. Siemens’ substantial investment is a commitment to evolving innovative operations, enhanced by integrating knowledge of generative AI. The skills offered to Siemens employees and trainees are intended to bridge the knowledge gap and instill confidence in approaching new technologies and digital transformation initiatives required to further U.S. business growth.
