Advanced Manufacturing
What Is Advanced Manufacturing?
The field of manufacturing involves creating new products either from raw materials or from components. Manufacturing often involves the use of some kind of machinery to create or assemble parts, and it may also involve a lot of work with your hands. To be part of manufacturing, at least at the higher levels, you’ll need knowledge of how to get the best raw materials and how to process them in order to produce the end product. You’ll also need to know what to do when the system breaks down.
The education and training needed depends on which level of manufacturing you’d like to work in. You can work as a tradesperson, doing various odd jobs in the factory/plant, with some on-the-job training. You can work as a technician–diagnosing and repairing equipment, organizing the warehouse, dispatching trucks loaded with finished product—with a certificate or an Associate’s degree in manufacturing technology. Or you can manage the plant or work as an assistant plant manager in charge of production, safety, logistics, or quality assurance for which you’ll need a Bachelor’s degree.
So, if you’re interested in steady, fairly predictable work for good pay, Manufacturing could be a good choice.