Directors Message— Everyone’s Working Hard
Posted on Friday, August 17, 2018
The current state of our economy indicates continued positivity, and according to the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), “regional manufacturing surveys have continued to reflect optimism about activity and the outlook for the next six months.” A recent Gardner Business Index noted that “finishing activity and business conditions reported through the first quarter of the year suggest that 2018 will be a very strong year for the finishing industry.”
When I speak to our members, they seem to be in a more forwardthinking mode and optimistically engaged in strategic planning and capital improvement. Strong demand for consumer goods will continue to drive further growth, especially as manufacturers look to powder coatings as a sustainable finishing option for their products.
It’s a great time to join efforts with PCI. Not only can the networking opportunities be effective in building the relationships needed to help make wise decisions in the expansion process, our training curriculum will help your employees strengthen their knowledge and skills. Making investments, such as training, in your employees has become critical as the manufacturing sector struggles to fill their employment needs. In an article by Buckley Brinkman in Industry Today, he states that companies need to be rethinking their value propositions, “investing in new technology, and finding new ways to fully engage the people working with you. Few organizations will find it possible to grow by simply maintaining the status quo.” Training and employee development is a vital step in the process of engaging employees, resulting in a welltrained and confident staff, poised for innovation and growth.
PCI continues to work hard on its mission to promote powder coating technology and we have a lot of projects in progress. Our committees are working to generate our 2019 editorial calendar for Powder Coated Tough, analyze the benefits of and increase membership, update some of our Technical Briefs, promote our updated PCI 3000/4000 Certification programs, develop the 2019 calendar for our Powder Coating 101 and 202 Training Workshops, help select scholarship recipients, and generate and promote PCI’s videos, just to name a few. We have a lot of work to do. If you are looking for a place to plug-in, call or email me (859-525- 9988, trena@powdercoating.org). I am more than happy to discuss the best place for you and your expertise.
As I write today, our staff is working on the final details for the PCI/CCAI Annual Meeting and has already started the planning for the Powder Coating 2019 Technical Conference in Orlando, April 1-4, 2019. The Call for Presentations is open and closes August 15. Our staff also works hard on providing the most current industry insights with each issue of Powder Coated Tough. We certainly hope you are enjoying our publication.