With a reported 70% of Ontario manufacturers struggling to find skilled workers, the Canadian Tooling & Machining Association (CTMA) has found an unconventional solution to address the challenge: high school teachers.
Through a unique program, called Career-Ready with CTMA: Expanding Opportunities, the organization is providing hands-on training in precision metalworking to hundreds of educators at 157 high schools across Ontario and furnishing their classrooms with high tech, shop-standard CNC milling machinery and tooling. The teachers in turn are confidently training their students - 25,000 of them to date - to program and use the equipment, setting them up for profitable and rewarding careers in manufacturing right out of high school.
It's a formula that has already placed 3,500 Ontario students in machining co-ops or apprenticeships at more than 275 companies across the province since the program's inception in 2020. About 1,600 graduates and co-op students - as well as jobseekers and those looking to upskill - have landed work placements to date.
A recap of the program's successes, and government-subsidized hiring opportunities available for Ontario manufacturers, will be presented as the third and final Executive Perspectives panel session at SME's Canadian Manufacturing Technology Show (CMTS) 2025, Canada's national industry event which takes place at the Toronto Congress Centre from September 29 to October 2.
The panel - called Building Canada's Future Workforce: Strengthening Talent Pathways Through Industry-Education Collaboration (October 2, 8:30 a.m.) - will feature speakers Robert Cattle, Executive Director of CTMA, Brian Bendig, President and CEO of Cavalier Tool & Manufacturing, Aaron Tisdale, President Girotti Machine, Tara Clawsie, Tech Teacher at Grand Erie District School Board, and Thomas Douglas, Advanced Manufacturing Tech Teacher at Garth Webb School, 5409 Robotics.
"Our educational system was built by academics for academics, yet there's a huge trade skills shortage that's affecting our country's ability to be economically self-sufficient," explained Cattle. "We realized we had to do something to get students interested in pursuing manufacturing careers and ensure they're work-ready coming out of high school - waiting for college is too late."
Working with the Ontario Council for Technology Education to train teachers, CTMA transforms classrooms into simulated real-world shop floors. A far cry from high school machine shops of the past - which disappeared decades ago - these courses provide the latest technologies in Computer-Aided Design (CAD), CNC machine operation and Fusion software "so that students can work on machines that are actually out there in the industry today," said Cattle, adding that the classes expose students to all facets of precision metalworking, including machining, tool and die making, mould making, jig and fixture building, automation, robotics, and additive manufacturing (3D printing).
"Kids today are computer focused and make things on their computer screens all the time - being a machinist is not that different except you're making something physical," he explained. "Today, being a machinist involves a lot of computer technology, you have to be computer literate and good at math - it's not about turning handles."
Explaining that the labour shortage experienced by the precision metalworking industry has resulted in declines in production capacity and barriers to technology adoption because companies can't find enough workers with the skills needed to operate new technologies, Cattle expressed urgency for the next generation to learn how to make things.
In addition, Thursday October 2 is also Student Day at CMTS. The SME Education Foundation will host the Bright Minds Student Summit at CMTS, for more than 130 Ontario high school students to experience the high-tech nature of manufacturing firsthand and showcase its exciting, growing and lucrative career path. About CMTS 2025
Featuring the latest equipment and technology advancements in machine tools, tooling, metalworking, automation, robotics, additive manufacturing, and digital transformation, CMTS 2025 is expected to draw more than 10,000 professionals in all areas of the industry, including automotive, aerospace, energy, government, commercial, industrial, and oil and gas. The show will present 750+ suppliers and OEMs, three major technology showcases and a national cross-section of decision-makers shaping the future of Canadian manufacturing.
CMTS 2025 is presented by non-profit SME, with strategic event partners including Canadian Machine Tool Distributors Association, Canadian Tooling & Machining Association, Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association, Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, CWB-EWI, and NGen.
Industry supporters include AI4Manufacturing Canada, Automate Canada, Anada-ASEAN Business Council, Canadian Association of Moldmakers, Canada Makes, Dental Industry Association of Canada, Export Development Canada, Italian Trade Agency, Machines Italia, Ontario Centre of Innovation and the VR/AR Association.
For more information and to register for the event, visit www.cmts.ca.
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