SkillsUSA Additive Manufacturing Competition: Young minds, bright impact

During the 58th annual SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference in Atlanta, SME co-sponsored the 2022 Additive Manufacturing Competition with Stratsys in partnership with nTopology Inc. and Allegheny Education Systems.

More than 6,500 state contest winners competed in 108 trade, technical and leadership fields to reach the national event, at which three high school and three postsecondary teams won scholarships, Tooling U-SME subscriptions and SME memberships. The top teams also received a professional-grade 3D printer, and postsecondary winners received full conference passes to RAPID + TCT 2023. Of the 70 students participating in the additive manufacturing competition, 23 also passed the industry-standard Additive Manufacturing Fundamentals Certification Exam.

High School Winners

Gold Team

Alejandro Colon and Daniel Hulse, West-MEC Northwest Campus, Surprise, Arizona

Silver Team

Keegan Phillips and Jason Todd, Spokane Valley Tech, Spokane Valley, Washington

Bronze Team

Martin Mendoza and Daniel Palma, Cypress Bay High School, Weston, Florida

Postsecondary Winners

Gold Team

Sarahi Lopez and Zach Covington, Wayne State College, Wayne, Nebraska

Silver Team

Zachary Stansifer and Andrew King, Tulsa Technology Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Bronze Team

Benjamin Collier and Dallin Hansen, Utah Valley University, Orem, Utah

Bridging to the future

Manufacturers will continue to solve society’s greatest problems. Whether it is the electrification of high-tech vehicles or the reconfiguring of operations to respond to global pandemics, manufacturers advance civilization in often unrecognized ways.

Industry stands at a precipice. We must build a bridge to the future — a bridge to digitization and democratization of data that enables people to utilize new, advanced technologies to create a future not yet envisioned, as well as to create the skilled workforce to build that future. For SME, we use our history as a reminder that the value of accomplishment lies in what it makes possible, and that the past can teach us to anticipate opportunity proactively so we can react to it holistically.

Our story speaks for our industry in more ways than one — as a narrator of manufacturing’s triumphs as well as its future potential. As we expand our influence and visibility, we never lose sight of our strengths as an organization devoted to making an impact for our members and our industry.

We look forward to serving manufacturing, and developing the partnerships and solutions that work to ensure North American manufacturing competitiveness, security and superiority on the global stage.

SME in the 2010s

SME enhanced the depth of its training capabilities with the acquisition on October 14, 2010, of Tooling University LLC, now Tooling U-SME. One year later, on October 24, 2011, the SME Education Foundation established the Partnership Response In Manufacturing Education (PRIME) program to provide a comprehensive, community-based approach to manufacturing education.

We shortened our name to SME on June 2, 2013, as we connected ourselves even more deeply to the manufacturing industry as a whole. With the launch of Smart Manufacturing magazine on May 3, 2016, we broadened our publications roster to focus on industry 4.0. After announcing a major new endeavor with long-time partner AMT — The Association for Manufacturing Technology on September 13, 2016, we began co-production of a series of four industry-focused, regional trade shows designed to connect manufacturers with leading suppliers of advanced technologies and equipment.

SME in the 2020s

In 2020, the SME Education Foundation received $6 million from the State of Michigan School Aid Fund Budget. We will use this award to help double the number of schools in the Partnership Response In Manufacturing Education (PRIME) program, which provides technology and career education to high school students. That same year, SME and CESMII - The Smart Manufacturing Institute joined forces to accelerate smart manufacturing adoption and develop the current and future talent needed.