May 3—Chattahoochee Technical College hosted high school students and industry representatives from Bartow County for an event celebrating Manufacturers Appreciation Week on April 29 at the college's North Metro Campus.

Nearly 100 students from Adairsville, Cass, Cartersville and Woodland high schools and the Bartow County College and Career Academy gathered with representatives from over a dozen local industries for this event. They toured the college's Center for Advanced Manufacturing and learned about the innovative technologies available for the programs of study taught in this new facility.

The Chattahoochee Tech 20,001-square-foot Center for Advanced Manufacturing houses the college's Precision Machining and Manufacturing program as well as the Industrial Maintenance and Electrical Technology program.

"Many of the students and companies had never been on our campus, so it was a pleasant surprise for them to see what Chattahoochee Tech has to offer," said Chattahoochee Tech Dean of Economic Development Shane Evans.

Following the campus tour, a lunch-and-learn panel discussion highlighted the well-paying career opportunities available locally in advanced manufacturing industries. This panel featured Dayne Hickey of Textron GSE; Gordon Wallin of Nippon Light Metal; and Elizabeth

Johnson, a Chattahoochee Tech student who is working at voestalpine Automotive. Stephanie O'Donoghue, the lead instructor for the college's Electrical & Computer Engineering Technology program, moderated the panel discussion.

The 2022 Manufacturers Appreciation Week was a coordinated effort involving the Cartersville-Bartow County Chamber of Commerce with support from the Cartersville-Bartow County Department of Economic Development and North Georgia Staffing. Manufacturing industries in

Bartow County directly employ over 29% of Bartow County's work force, according to the Chamber, with a total annual payroll of over $744,305,792.

Industries participating in the 2022 Manufacturers Appreciation Week event at Chattahoochee Tech included Anheuser-Busch, Aquafil, Beauflor, Constellium, Georgia Power, IC Biomedical, Nippon Light Metal, Sakai America, Shaw Industries, Textron GSE, TI Fluid Systems, Toyo Tires, Vista Metals Georgia, voestalpine, Wellmade Flooring, Yanmar and Zep.

For more information, visit www.ChattahoocheeTech.edu.