Manufacturing Workforce Hiring Needs • Nearly one-half of all manufacturers plan to hire in 2015, with more hiring occurring in Q1 than in Q2. • This is good news for Northeast Wisconsin, where 1 in 4 jobs are in manufacturing.
strength of manufacturing in the New North,” said Bill Bartnik, director of manufacturing systems for Plymouthbased Sargento Foods Inc. and also the 2015 chair for the NEW Manufacturing Alliance. “With three manufacturing facilities, our corporate headquarters and a technical center all located in this region, Sargento Foods shares the positive outlook summarized in the vitality index. In the past few years we have had facility expansions and modernization projects at all locations. We are expecting our company growth to continue in the New North.” Mike Kawleski, public affairs manager for Georgia-Pacific – one of the biggest employers in the Green Bay area and an alliance member – noted “Georgia-Pacific’s situation mirrors that of many other manufacturers in northeast Wisconsin. One area is investment – Georgia-Pacific’s Green Bay operations
continue to receive capital to help modernize our facilities, some of which have been operating in the city for more than 100 years,” formerly as Northern Paper Mills and Fort Howard Paper Company. In addition to productivity, efficiency and product quality, investments are also directed to infrastructure, Kawleski said. “This may not necessarily help us produce even one additional case of product, but it’s important to our company’s long-term viability.” One current example is a multimillion investment for sustainability renovations at the Broadway mill. Part of this $80-plus million project includes a natural-gas boiler that replaces the mill’s biggest coal-fired boiler, and more efficient environmental controls for the other coal-fired boilers. A new electrical substation has also been constructed. When
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