Plans Set for 2013 National Robotics League Championship

Mark your calendars for May 17-19, 2013, when one of the most innovative and fun annual events that NTMA supports -- the National Robotics League (NRL) finals -- takes place in Indianapolis.

The NRL allows middle school, high school and post-secondary school students to partner with NTMA member companies in their communities in order to build sophisticated, high-tech robots that do battle with one another inside a ring.  The competition stirs intense excitement among student competitors from across the country, who get the chance to apply their math skills to something that produces a tangible result.  In the bargain, they come to see manufacturing in an entirely different light.

NTMA founded the NRL to address two central challenges that U.S. manufacturing has been facing for years. The first involves the need to fill positions with workers that have the increasingly rare technical skills so many of our members are seeking. And the second is all about overcoming myths to reveal the reality that manufacturing is high-tech, exciting, financially rewarding ... and growing!

Past NRL competitions have been increasingly well attended, with students competing from all over the country.  This year, the competition is timed to closely coincide with the upcoming NTMA Purchasing Fair on May 16-17 at the JW Marriott Indianapolis.  So if you're already in the area, plan to come by to show your support for the students and for our industry!

If you want to stay in the loop about activities related to the NRL, you can click here to sign up for the monthly NRL newsletter to get updates on the competition (and, we promise, nothing else!).

Below: action shot from a past competition:

Out and About - Visit to NTMA Chapters and Members

One of the great strengths of joining NTMA is the ability you get to connect with fellow manufacturers, taking advantage of networking opportunities that can lead to new business, help you learn more about developments in our industry, or exchange thoughts about common challenges we face as small businesses today.

Recently, I had the pleasure of visiting our St. Louis Chapter, where I met with our members, was invited to take a number of plant tours, and connected with two new members, ALM Tech Group and AP Industries.  The photo below shows me swearing in the 2012-2013 Chapter Board of Directors.

Here's a link to a story about the visit with a couple of more photos....

Also, Bob Mosey, the president of Anaheim-CA based Mosey Production Machinists and who will be my successor as NTMA Chairman, recently visited the NTMA chapter in Connecticut - the Connecticut Tooling & Machining Association.  Our active Connecticut chapter has a tradition of inviting the incoming NTMA chair to their holiday party.  Bob (below left) was treated to a shop tour of East Hartford based Horst Engineering hosted by Horst’s President and CEO Scott Livingston (below middle) and Jim Bowtruczyk (below right), who also serves on CTMA's board.

Horst posted a piece about Bob's visit here.

It's great to keep connected with the chapters through these regularly scheduled NTMA events. There's no better way for us as as small businesses to thrive in the future than to stay in touch with each other and stay tuned to what's going on in our industry!