Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1052339
20 Worcester Business Journal | Fact Book 2018 | wbjournal.com B l a c k s t o n e V a l l e y R E G I O N S ICCreditUnion.org or businessbanking@iccreditunion.com Focus on your BUSINESS, We've got the BANKING! Lending Intelligent Checking Visa Credit Card Remote Deposit (RDC) Intelligent Business Solu ons Online Banking Merchant Services BizNow Services 800.262.1001 | Federally Insured by NCUA Tax rate per $1,000 Community in assessed value Blackstone Valley property tax rates Northbridge 12.94 Douglas 16.07 Millbury 16.34 Sutton 16.55 Millville 16.56 Grafton 16.59 Mendon 16.96 Uxbridge 17.17 Upton 17.23 Blackstone 19.49 Hopedale* 28.24 *Residential rate is 17.58. Source: Mass. Department of Revenue Community Avg. net worth Household average net worth Sutton $1,881,752 Mendon $1,699,621 Upton $1,632,289 Hopedale $1,554,477 Grafton $1,463,231 Uxbridge $1,217,685 Millville $1,124,328 Millbury $1,042,083 Northbridge $1,032,653 Douglas $1,013,422 Blackstone $944,135 Sources: Esri's Updated Demographics, 2018 estimates, Esri Tapestry Segmentation, www.esri.com Community Minutes Average commute Millbury 25.7 Sutton 29.1 Uxbridge 30.4 Northbridge 30.6 Blackstone 30.8 Millville 31.2 Mendon 32.8 Upton 34.1 Grafton 34.6 Hopedale 35.3 Douglas 35.8 Sources: U.S. Census Bureau 2012-2016 American Community Survey Knowledge needed Robin LeClaire, president of Lampin Corp. in Uxbridge, finds connections in manufacturing, within the cham- ber and state such as Massachusetts Manufacturing Partnership to be valuable commodities in a short- staffed industry. The industry's labor shortage and how other companies work to solve it is always relevant. The Central Massachusetts Regional Workforce Board's blueprint for 2018-2022, for example, shows manufacturing overall as one of its top employment priorities – along with healthcare and transportation/ warehousing – especially for CNC machinists, quality-control techni- cians and production workers. LeClaire said Lampin – an employ- ee-owned manufacturing company which makes components for medical devices and other markets – saw some activities grind to a halt in recent years. "It actually happened to us," she says of the widespread industry staff- ing shortage. "We were stuck with new machinery here with no one to run it." This year, Lampin worked to cross- train employees on equipment. LeClaire said second-shift workers were moved to CNC machining – trained by the machine operators, who she said are best to teach it – with others hired for second-shift duties. Another predicament in manufac- turing, said LeClaire, is manufacturing equipment out there is being sold to companies, due to a robust economy – which leaves fewer units in showrooms for companies to train on. And train- ing on the actual machines is the best way to learn, she said. Robin LeClaire, president of Lampin Corp. Continued from Page 19