Some may consider manufacturing a “man’s world,” but Central Louisiana industries are encouraging women to pursue jobs and careers.

Women make up about 47% of the American Workforce, but only 30% work in manufacturing, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Agency data show:

• Men still hold 67.9% of manufacturing jobs, but the share of women in manufacturing jobs rose in every working-age category from 2010 until the COVID pandemic struck in 2020, the agency said.

• One out of four manufacturing management positions were held by women.

• Women in manufacturing earned, on average, 16% more than the national median annual income for women who are employed.

What about Central Louisiana?

Crest Industries in Pineville has about 1,200 employees, said Sarah Sasser, talent management director at the company. From 2016 to 2020, Crest saw a 13% increase of women in professional roles. Crest specializes in electric power delivery, industrial services, distribution and natural resources.

“Crest Industries and each of our business units operate in traditionally male-dominated fields, so we often encourage women to question the status quo by extending trust and building their confidence to pursue careers that are not typically held by women,” Sasser said. “We believe in providing opportunity for everyone. Our teams are made up of unique individuals with different backgrounds and experiences, and those differences are what make us stronger.”

Women at Crest fill a variety of roles, including frontline manufacturers and top senior executive positions, she said.

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How are they perceived by male employees?

“We’ve seen growth in women in leadership and professional positions over the years, and our teams have responded well under their direction,” she said. “I immediately think of people like Callie Lohman, Sarah Halbert, Jennifer Gemar and so many more. These women aren’t just engineers and business professionals, they are leading our engineering teams and directing our businesses. They are respected, trusted and inspiring others on their teams. And it’s all a function of our strong teams and culture of trust, inclusion and belonging we have built over the years.”

Crest Industries has a Women in Industry initiative, Sasser said. It’s a way to for the company to celebrate women “for the incredible work they do and showcase the impact they have in an effort to empower and pave the way for the next generation of female professionals and leaders.”

Female estimators

At AFCO Industries in Alexandria, Martha Butts works full-time as an estimator. She is also working toward her associate degree in a design and drafting at Central Louisiana Technical Community College.

“An estimator is a specialized form of drafting," said Butts, who works in the railing department at AFCO. “A drafter actually takes somebody else’s concept, most of the time, and creates the blueprint. There is an architect drafter, which will actually come up with their own ideas.”

AFCO Industries manufactures aluminum columns, fiberglass columns and aluminum and vinyl AFCO-rail, which are sold around the world. It is one of the nation’s leading building-products manufacturers.

“In my case, what I do is look at the blueprint and the customer tells us what parts they want railing on,” she said.

She then draws up a computer-aided drafting sketch of what parts need to be used to create what the customer wants.

There aren’t many female estimators because it’s more of a niche field, Butts said. As far as women pursuing careers in drafting and design, there are definitely more than there used to be.

Butts became interested in drafting and design when she was enrolled as a welding student at Western Technical Institute in El Paso, Texas, and received a technical degree in welding.

Welding is a physically demanding job, she said, and she knew it wasn’t going to be a job she could work at forever.

“While I was there, I got a chance to work with somebody who was drawing the blueprints,” she said. “It looked like something I could retire from at some point.”

Reaching children

Sasser said Crest Industries exposes children to technical careers as early as third grade.

“We champion and support programs specifically designed to expose young girls and other underrepresented groups to hands-on STEM opportunites,” Sasser said. “These include in-school and community robotics programs, partnerships with school as professional mentors and corporate sponsors like the Inventor Lab at Northwood High School or high-school welding programs throughout the state of Louisiana. We also support Electric Girls – a community group whose mission is to empower girls through hands-on STEM education.”

Company emplotees participate in career fairs, outreach programs and host in-class presentations. They also host manufacturing facility tours for students and in-person events at corporate headquarters. Crest also hosts a Crest Career Day and Crest Manufacturing Day for high school students. For Manufacturing Day, Sasser said, the company aims for a high percentage of female participants.

For those wanting to pursue drafting and design work, Butts suggests working on 3-D thinking.

“Try to visualize,” she said. “Because that’s the hardest part I have is visualizing what I want to draw.”

She also recommends taking geometry classes.

The advice Butts would give to women wanting to pursue a career in drafting and design or in any manufacturing job is not to let anyone stop them from doing what they want to do.

Sasser said companies are placing a greater emphasis on helping young people see limitless opportunities, especially young girls and women interested in STEM fields.

“And we all need to do our part to make sure we give them the tools and support they need to succeed,” she said.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Cenla industries encourage women to pursue jobs in manufacturing