Making a Difference

The concept was to allow young professionals currently working in the industry to share their own personal journeys and thereby help educate a future generation of workers about the fulfilling, lucrative career opportunities available in mold manufacturing. We thought the best way to convey these stories would be through a video, so we sought support from key moldmaking organizations to help this idea come to life.

The American Mold Builders Association, the Society of the Plastics Industry, the Mold Making and Mold Design Division of the Society of Plastics Engineers, Project Lead the Way, produced by Creative Technology, NyproMold, and Nypro jumped on board. Then we were off to script, shoot and edit the video Moldmaking Matters: Your Career Can Make a Difference. 

This video focuses on the NyproMold/Nypro team that helped create an IV tube check valve that ultimately can save people’s lives. It offers an inside look at the processes and people behind mold manufacturing. Our hope is that it also shows promising career opportunities for creative, technology-minded youth who want to make a difference in the world. The article on page 36 highlights the strategies NyproMold uses to recruit and retain its young talent and spotlights the video project.

What an exhilarating experience—from learning about the making of a lifesaving medical device to meeting an incredibly passionate group of young mold manufacturing professionals to making my directorial debut (with plenty of assistance) to seeing the finished product.  

The stars of the video are six young employees: Ryan Johnson, a program manager; Ryan Bergeron, a CT engineer; Tim Baird, a project engineer; Amber Zapatka, a plastics engineer; Keene Huntoon, a CNC specialist; and Nishit Shah, a mold design engineer and mold simulation analyst. All six excel in their current positions but also strive to become even better at what they do. In the video, they share what led them to careers in plastics/moldmaking/molding, describe their current positions, explain the best parts of their jobs and express how they believe they are making a difference. They also do a great job of helping to dispel the many myths about manufacturing.

The end result is a new recruitment tool, which we hope you will view and then share with your local communities, schools and government officials. In addition to the video, we published a teacher’s discussion guide and DVD that will be mailed to 5,000+ Project Lead the Way STEM educators. You can view the video online at short.moldmakingtechnology.com/mmcareers.  MMT would like to thank all the sponsors and participants.