Manufacture : San Jose (MFG:SJ), in coordination with the Silicon Valley Organization and NextFlex, coordinated San Jose’s Manufacturing Week during the week of October 7^th through October 11^th. More than 550 students from East Side Union HSD, MetroEd, Siatech, and Evergreen Valley CC, participated in tours of eight advanced manufacturing companies across San Jose, bringing exposure to the sector and highlighting potential career pathways in manufacturing.

San Jose’s Manufacturing Week followed National Manufacturing Week, which started in 2012 as an effort to change the misperceptions around manufacturing and inspire the next generation of innovators across the US.

Participating employers included Green Circuits, an electronics prototype and manufacturing service, Cobham, an aerospace and defense manufacturer, Vander-Bend Manufacturing, an electronics and metal manufacturer, Fetch Robotics, a logistics and automation robotics manufacturer, BD Biosciences, a manufacturer of clinical instruments and chemical reagents, Zoll Circulation, a medical device manufacturer, and Bestronics, a medium-volume, high-mix electronics manufacturing service.

San Jose Manufacturing Week culminated with a day of tours at Jabil’s Blue Sky Center in South San Jose on October 11th. Students not only experienced one of the most innovative manufacturing spaces in San Jose, but were also greeted by representatives from NextFlex, San Jose State University, Strive, the SVO’s workforce development initiative, MFG:SJ and San Jose Works, Mayor Liccardo’s effort to reduce youth unemployment, to speak with students about the potential of career pathways in engineering and manufacturing.

MFG:SJ would like to thank our many partners who’ve helped make Manufacturing Week in San Jose successful.