Philadelphia, PA, June 22, 2021 – Rhoads Industries announced its participation in a new workforce development program offered by the US Navy’s Shipbuilding Industrial Base Task Force (SIB-TF) and the Department of Defense’s Office of Industrial Policy (IndPol). Launched on May 27, 2021, the Pennsylvania Pipeline Project: Philadelphia Region Workforce Pilot aligns critical workforce and trade skill opportunities across the academic and shipbuilding communities. This pilot is rapidly expanding across the state and aims to energize and engage the greater Philadelphia region by creating and sustaining a defense-focused workforce pipeline to meet the maritime demand signal and requirement for highly specialized trades now and in the future.
For more than 100 years, Pennsylvania has been a hub for defense shipbuilding with nearly 300 defense suppliers and more than 40 critical shipbuilders. Establishing sustainable high-skill technical trade talent pipelines in the Philadelphia region is vital to addressing existing workforce constraints and ensuring vendors have the resources and competencies the industry demands.
“Pennsylvania’s rich history as a center for defense shipbuilding trades positions it as the ideal grounds for this program,” said Dan Rhoads, President, Rhoads Industries. “This project brings incredible economic support to the greater Philadelphia region by providing a robust and reliable pipeline for entry-level talent into the shipbuilding industry. The initiative also enables Rhoads and many other employers to fill shortages and strengthen industrial workforces through effective recruiting, hiring, training, and retention of skilled workforce members.”
Rhoads Industries is part of a large and varied group of maritime industry employers, educational institutions, regional workforce and trade organizations, and government entities participating in the pilot project. In the coming months, Training Modernization Group, Inc, as the overall pilot project lead, will match the unique demand signal of small- and medium-sized defense suppliers with career and technical education programs from the Philadelphia region. The pilot will formally launch in September of 2021 to coincide with the start of the academic year
About Rhoads Industries, Inc.
Founded and family-owned since 1896, Rhoads Industries, Inc. (Rhoads) is a strategic partner and total solution provider of industrial fabrication, installation and maintenance services and facilities. We enable our commercial and government customers to achieve superior and resolute business performance by integrating industrial services across maritime, large fabrication, and government, with skilled labor pools, state-of-the-art resources, and a legacy of leadership. Visit www.rhoadsinc.com.
Contact
Kristen Everett
Sagefrog Marketing Group on behalf of Rhoads
kristene@sagefrog.com
