The widening skills gap is leaving many positions unfilled in the manufacturing industry. The skills gap could leave 2.4 million manufacturing positions unfilled between 2018 and 2028, according a recent Deloitte study.
To get the next generation excited about the future of manufacturing, Rockwell Automation has launched the “You Make It” Challenge, inviting innovators aged eight to 17 to demonstrate their practicality and creativity to improve the tech and manufacturing space.
“Today’s dynamic new technologies are driving advances in nearly every profession and industrial sector—from automotive to life sciences,” said Blake Moret, chairman and CEO at Rockwell Automation. “But there aren’t nearly enough skilled workers to fill the open jobs created by these technologies. It’s up to us, as an industrial automation and technology leader, to inspire the next generation of innovators, problem solvers, and makers.”
Submissions can come in a range of formats, including drawings, essays, videos, or blueprints. They will be judged based on four major criteria: purpose, innovation, creativity, and presentation. Ideas should explain how current standards could be pushed further or what practical and possible applications could exist in the tech and manufacturing space in the future.
Three finalists will be selected for an all-expenses-paid trip to Automation Fair in Chicago, where a Rockwell Automation mentor will guide and help them present their ideas to industry leaders at the show.
These finalists will also receive a grant toward a FIRST program of their choice. The grand-prize winner of the “You Make It” Challenge will receive a personal MakerSpace Kit worth an estimated $7,500.
For more information on the “You Make It” Challenge and for submissions forms, visit www.youmakeitchallenge.com.
