It’s been about two years since Andrew Crowe, public speaker and Founder of the New American Manufacturing Renaissance, was last on the show in episode 46 – and so much has happened since then.

This time around, we sit down over a couple of beers in St. Louis to catch up on what he has been working on and how much The New American Manufacturing Renaissance has grown since.

The New American Manufacturing Renaissance is a movement intended to show how manufacturing is a great career option for anyone – no matter your background or demographics. Andrew speaks about why this is so important to the industry and America in general and the barriers we must overcome in manufacturing to make it more of an open industry that people want to get involved in.

Andrew explores what companies, and the industry as a whole, can do to make manufacturing more appealing to a wider variety of people and why that diversity is so important. We also delve into what Project MFG is all about and his plans for the future.

In this episode, find out:

• How The New American Manufacturing Renaissance has grown
• The disconnect between the old and new in manufacturing
• What Andrew learned from his tour
• The importance of having diverse voices in manufacturing
• What companies can do to improve industry awareness and encourage new talent
• External things we can do in the wider community for the industry
• What Project MFG is
• Andrew talks about his side hustles and projects
• Why collaboration is key in manufacturing

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Tweetable Quotes:

• “How do we show people that their ideas matter? How do we take those ideas, make them, show them the process of it, and then put them into the world to help solve some of these problems?”
• “Let's have those conversations. Let's have those dialogues. And then, let's reach out and collaborate amongst our ecosystem. That's how we began to build.”
• “People are not necessarily trying to uphold these old systems. But they are recognizing that they're a part of them and reaching out trying to figure out how to improve them and make them better for everybody.”

Links & mentions:

• The MFG, Andrew Crowe’s website
• Project MFG, a catalyst that helps elevate the next generation of highly skilled trade professionals by changing mindsets, fostering community preparedness, and challenging how the critical skills needed to succeed in modern advanced manufacturing are taught.

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.