Building and maintaining a pipeline of talented and qualified workers was always a priority for manufacturers. Cultivating a skilled workforce able to adapt to changing technical needs is critical to staying competitive and continuing to grow.

Always a challenge, finding and training qualified engineers and others who can thrive in high-tech manufacturing environments became significantly more difficult over the past few months with the spread of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and the COVID-19 disease around the world.

The hands-on experience so essential to training the manufacturing workforce suddenly became something to avoid as schools and workplaces closed, limits on gatherings were advised, and physical distancing became the norm.