The nomination period for the WBJ's Manufacturing Excellence Awards honoring the area's top manufacturers is open for two more weeks.

By: Matthew Tota

In Massachusetts, home to about 7,000 manufacturing companies, lawmakers, school officials and manufacturers have met at roundtables and chamber of commerce meetings to discuss the need for a pipeline of skilled workers. The state has formed a Legislative Manufacturing Caucus and spent millions of dollars in workforce development. Last week, the state announced $2.5 million for advanced manufacturing training.

By: Jim Kinney

Instead of regional workforce boards competing for grants, the state provided four regions in Massachusetts $625,000 each to train workers and come up with a regional manufacturing workforce plan.