Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com July 18, 2016 • Worcester Business Journal 7 DON'T MISS THE PARTY OF THE YEAR! Pre-registration required www.wbjournal.com/40underforty MECHANICS HALL, WORCESTER 5:00 pm - Awards Ceremony Cocktail reception & networking to follow. Cost: $55 SEPTEMBER 14, 2016 2016 Honorees will be announced in the August 29 edition! Please join the Worcester Business Journal and our sponsors as we celebrate the class of 2016! REGISTER TODAY! Presenting Sponsors 15th ANNIVERSARY 15th ANNIVERSARY 2016 cent), said Healy. "Why are we different? We have a vibrant small manufacturing communi- ty," he says. A number of Massachusetts counties, such as Bristol and several counties in Western Massachusetts, are not growing manufacturing – or are even declining, which means manufacturing in places like Central Massachusetts are expand- ing at even greater rates than the overall data indicate, Healy said. "Manufacturing growth in Worcester went up 6 percent over the prior period, 2014 vs. 2013," Healy said. A hero John Killam, Healy's successor at MassMEP as president and CEO, said the future of manufacturing needs a skilled workforce, and he credits Healy with doing the groundwork necessary to develop workforce training solutions to prepare people to come in and be ready to work. "Jack was never afraid to be a collabo- rator and share in the success," Killam said. "He never did it alone." Greis, of Kinefac, called Jack is a hero to her and her company. "I have great respect for Jack," Greis said. "He has worked to support and advocate for the major issues in manu- facturing [in Massachussetts] over many years." Healy's important contribution was to keep small manufacturers – who now make up the majority of the industry in Central Massachusetts – ready to com- pete globally, Greis said. Healy, of course, remains more modest. "It takes a village," he said, to get industry, government and education to all work together. Program legacy One of many major achievements for MassMEP under Healy include the 2012 establishment of the Manufacturing Advancement Center Workforce Innovation Collaborative program located at MassMEP's offices on Grove Street in Worcester. MACWIC boasts 124 member companies employing more than 20,000 people in the state and is supported by member companies, partners and individuals. Initiated by MACWIC, the Applied Manufacturing Technology Certification Pathway is a precision-machining certi- fication program that encourages stu- dents to consider careers in advanced manufacturing and creates a standard instruction set and evaluation process, which is continuously improved, so that employers can readily assess an appli- cant's skill set, reducing hiring costs, Healy said. The AMTCP program also has an articulation agreement with Quinsigamond Community College, which recognizes 26 credits for success- ful course completion. Healy collaborated with QCC's Innovative Technology Acceleration Center in Southbridge to create an accel- erated associate degree and certificate program which teaches high-level skills in three high-growth areas: informa- tion-technology, photonics and advanced manufacturing. When people get trained "not only do they have the technical knowledge need- ed, they have a better sense of confi- dence about themselves," Healy said "They become different people." The next chapter While he is stepping down as director of MassMEP, Healy, isn't headed to a rocking chair. Healy, 80, will serve as MassMEP's liaison to the new Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA) Institute and partnership, an independent non- profit founded by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which will run a new, $317-million public-private part- nership announced by U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter – a program designed to accelerate innovation in high-tech, U.S.-based manufacturing involving fibers and textiles. "We need many more Jack Healy's," said Greis. n Leslie Greis, owner and director of Kinefac Corp., said Healy is a relationship person, which is important in getting various industry players to work in concert. P H O T O / F I L E "Jack was never afraid to be a collaborator and share in the success... He never did it alone." John Killiam, Healy's successor at MassMEP as president and CEO

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