College sets up new center for manufacturing

As manufacturing in the Flathead Valley continues to grow, several local companies have taken steps to pool their resources.

Their efforts and those of the occupational trades programs at Flathead Valley Community College have led to the founding of the Center for Manufacturing Advancement at the college.

The center seeks to be a resource for manufacturers in the valley, connecting them to opportunities and other businesses that can boost the local economy.

Chris Parson is the project director.

“The idea is that we’re going to strengthen and grow manufacturing in our region,” he said. “The college is here to provide talent to fill the needs of employers.”

The center, while ostensibly a college program funded by a U.S. Department of Labor Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grant, is industry-led, Parson said.

“They tell us what they are looking for,” he said. “It’s not just what the college can do to produce better employees, but also what can we do to help them become stronger.”

An example would be introducing two industry leaders to one another who might be able to assist one another in production.

“There could be partnerships they might not be aware of,” Parson said. “They might be looking to improve supply chains or improve marketing. Maybe there is a part to be completed another local company can do.”

The center was started in April and Parson said a few local manufacturers — especially those who showed interest in the center from the beginning — were fully on board. He plans to start an advisory panel of those who would most utilize the center.

“The ideal would be for us to be a liaison between manufacturers and professors” at the Occupational Trades Building, Parson said. “Like we know that the machining side is a trade definitely needed across our region, Montana and the country, so there is a lot to be said for training. But there is a lot to be said for experience as well.”

Parson hopes to set up apprenticeships with local businesses so machinists or other skilled workers can not only be educated but graduate with experience and a possible job under their belts.

The center will host weekly meetings of local industry leaders to talk about new opportunities and to keep on each other’s radar. It will make for a convenient exchange of ideas to improve industry in the valley, Parson said.

Parson’s background with small business makes his role at the Center for Manufacturing Advancement not too much of a stretch.

The Kalispell native was the director of the Small Business Development Center at the college from 2009 to 2013 and was vice president of the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce. He spent 10 years as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps flying helicopters as well.

With his leadership and business background, Parson hopes to bolster the economic development of industry well into the future.

“We want to be working collaboratively with everybody,” he said. “We want companies to learn from our work as well as us learning from theirs.”

Parson hopes to educate K-12 children on the value of manufacturing and will provide an open house in the fall for students to see exactly what happens in the occupational trades programs.

For more information on the center, contact Parson at 756-4377 or cparson@fvcc.edu.

Reporter Ryan Murray may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at rmurray@dailyinterlake.com.