The 2008 Precision Machining Technology Competition at the SkillsUSA National Championships resulted in the rarest of outcomes as BoiseStateUniversity and Saint Claire Technical High School (Michigan) produced gold medalists for the second year in a row.

Nicholas Shepley of Saint Clair TEC won gold in the high school competition for 2008. Jon Welser, now part of Haas’ Master Apprentice program, took the gold in 2007. Both students were instructed by Duane Emig.

For the college/post-secondary competition, Boise State University’s Ryan Watson won gold in the 2008 event; Josh Bovey won in 2007. Watson was instructed by Dave Sperry and Bovey by Bill Starky.

The participants at the National Championship – all gold medal winners in their respective states– compete against each other and against the clock in both manual and CNC operations based on the NIMS Level I and Level II Skill Standards.

Related knowledge and skill in the areas of engineering drawing interpretation, GD&T, technical math, machining practices, use of precision measuring hand tools and ability to communicate verbally using proper industry terminology was part of the competition.

Major contributing companies include Haas Automation, Clausing Industrial, Crossland Machinery, LS Starrett, Industrial Press, and Sandvik Coromant.

Sponsors include the Association for Manufacturing Technology, the TMA Educational Foundation, the PMPA Educational Foundation, the PMA Educational Foundation, and the National Tooling & Machining Foundation. NIMS has again chaired and directed the national competition.

The objective of SkillsUSA is to offer students the opportunity to demonstrate through competition their leadership and hands-on occupational skills, to learn current industry expectations and to receive recognition for achievement. SkillsUSA represents more than 300,000 students in 130 different occupational areas. Contest standards are quickly incorporated into classroom and lab teaching all across the country. SkillsUSA participants are better prepared for lifelong learning and for transition into the workforce or into higher education.

The following is from Roy Sweatman’s address to volunteers of the Precision Machining Technology Competition, SkillsUSA 2008. Mr. Sweatman is Chair of the National Tooling and Machining Association (NTMA).

I was raised on a dairy farm in Northwestern PA. I got my start in the machining industry as a Machinist Apprentice at GE in Erie, PA. After 13 years at GE with various assignments in machining, management, purchasing and production control, I spent ­ five years as general manager of a machine shop in Cleveland. Twenty-five years ago, I moved to Tampa and bought a small machine shop with ­five employees and no CNC equipment. Today, we have approximately 100 people and over twenty CNC machines.

We machine components for the aircraft, aerospace and defense industries and have made or make components for General Aviation Magnetos, Commercial Aircraft Fuel Controls and the Advanced Tactical and Joint Strike Fighters. We also have parts we’ve made on the Phoenix that just landed on Mars, on the Space Shuttle, in many satellites and in a number of missiles in the Missile Defense System including the Ecto-atmospheric Kill Vehicle which is part of the “Star Wars” system of shooting down a missile with another missile.

I have been an active member of the NTMA for 24 years. NTMA is made up of about 1600 companies that are in the tool and die, mold building, special machine building or precision machining businesses. As Chair, one of my roles is to travel around the country speaking to local chapters.

Our industry is challenged every day to compete and survive in today’s global economy. But, despite media reports to the contrary, not all machining and manufacturing has moved off shore. I see a tremendous number of fantastic tooling and machining companies in my travels. The vast majority of them have a critical need for skilled workers. The SkillsUSA program is extremely important to ­ filling the pipeline with a skilled workforce for the future.

SkillsUSA – and especially this competition and the local ones leading up to it – couldn’t exist without volunteers. The people and companies recognized here tonight comprise one of the most amazing groups of people I have met. I do not think that too much can be said or too many accolades given to the sponsors, judges and volunteers that make this competition possible.

We all need to work as hard as we can to support all the workforce development programs that exist. I mentioned my apprenticeship at GE – that program used to start 30 apprentices a year. It, like so many others, no longer exists. It is up to us to train. We need to support competency-based skills standards such as NIMS to bring people along as rapidly as possible.

The future is bright for manufacturing in the USA but it won’t be if we do not have a skilled workforce to support it. Just think what a shame it would be if, after ­ fighting the multi-nationals to keep work in America, we gave them an excuse to send more off shore because we couldn’t do the work.

After seeing what is going on here this week, it is obvious that, thanks to all of you, the future of tooling and machining in the USA is very good hands. Thank you all for all you do.

Front Row: Jessica Stellenwerf, NIMS; Fernando De La Garza; Nicholas Shepley; Brian Harbeck; Jim Wall, NIMS. Back Row: Paul Huber, NIMS Board of Directors; Bob Skodzinsky, Haas Automation, Inc.; Cory Mahn; Greg Chambers, NIMS Board of Directors; Ryan Watson; Keith Kimmel; John Kovalchuck, PMA Educational Foundation

For list of all metalists go to www.skillsusa.org.