ABC News segment will feature A-B Tech workforce-development program

Posted on by Margaret Williams

FULL PRESS RELEASE FROM A-B TECH:

A-B Tech to be Featured Thursday on ABC World News: An A-B Tech workforce development program that helped Asheville land a major new manufacturer will be the subject of a segment scheduled to air Thursday, Oct. 20, on ABC World News with Diane Sawyer.

The story, part of a World News series called “Boom Towns,” will be reported by White House Correspondent Jake Tapper, who was in Asheville Monday to cover the first stop in President Obama’s tour through North Carolina and Virginia to push his jobs plan.

Tapper and ABC Producer Mary Bruce visited A-B Tech’s Enka campus Monday morning, interviewing students of the Fundamentals of Automated Machining class, as well as A-B Tech President Hank Dunn and Linamar Human Resources Manager Jain Hayes.

A-B Tech’s ability to provide training for Linamar’s workforce was one of the key factors in its decision earlier this year to locate its newest manufacturing facility in the former Volvo plant in south Asheville. Founded as a one-man machine shop in a basement in Canada in 1966, Linamar has grown into a supplier for vehicle and mobile industrial equipment markets worldwide. The company expects to create 400 jobs and invest $125 million in Asheville by 2020.

Linamar expects to begin production in its Asheville facility in January. The company is working with A-B Tech to develop a training program for its initial hires.

The college’s 330-hour, 11-week “Fundamentals of Automated Machining” class teaches students how to use manual machines and CNC equipment, as well as blueprint reading skills, math, measurement and safety.

For more information on the class, contact Ken O’Connor, A-B Tech’s executive director of Economic and Workforce Development, at 254-1921, ext. 5823.

 

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About Margaret Williams
Editor Margaret Williams first wrote for Xpress in 1994. An Alabama native, she has lived in Western North Carolina since 1987 and completed her Masters of Liberal Arts & Sciences from UNC-Asheville in 2016. Follow me @mvwilliams
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