Raymond and New York State Educational Institutions work to help shrink the skills gap

Posted on May 29, 2019 in Nuts & Bolts

Sidney High School builds new welding center with support from Raymond

In the 2018-19 academic year, Sidney High School and The Raymond Corporation have collaborated on the Raymond Welding Skills Development Program (RWSDP) to help better prepare students for a welding career. They created the program to take the skills students learned through the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego Board of Cooperative Educational Services (DCMO BOCES) welding curriculum and elevate them by also teaching continuous improvement principles and advanced technical skills — all of which they would utilize in a real-world welding position.

“Our intent is to further build on our technical education, aligned with industry standards, in order to provide students with the additional opportunity to improve and refine their skills,” said Kerrie Johnston, assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and special programs at Sidney Central School District. “In collaborating with Raymond, we are better able to prepare students for the welding expectations at Raymond and other manufacturing employers, as well as reinforce ‘soft skills’ that are needed in any job.”

Raymond also assisted Sidney High School in supporting the building of a new in-school welding center to provide improvement training with the Toyota Production System (TPS) principles and supply materials, including over 300 pounds of scrap metal for students to practice on.

“Raymond is proud to collaborate with educational institutions — like Sidney High School and DCMO BOCES — that support the next generation of our workforce,” said Tony Topencik, senior director of operations, The Raymond Corporation. “Shrinking the skills gap is a priority for Raymond. We are excited to be able to provide any additional support and education to allow students to excel.”