There’s a lot of optimism amongst local manufacturers for growth and expansion in the next few years, but they also share a common challenge going forward, staffing.
Those were the main takeaways from a recent industrial outreach survey conducted by the Quinte Economic Development Commission (QEDC) and its partners.
The survey took the form of an in-depth questionnaire and personal interviews with the owners/managers of 64 local manufacturers. There are over 100 such operations in Belleville, Quinte West and Brighton.
The process took almost two years to complete.
Here are some of the findings from the surveys, as outlined by Workplace Development Consultant Chuck O’Malley at a Commission meeting in Belleville’s Downtown District Thursday.
-91% planned to purchase new technology and equipment
– 86% planned on hiring employees
-66% planned to expand their operation at some point
-27% were expecting to expand their building to do so
-48% were working on new products to make and sell
However, almost all of the respondents said attracting and keeping new workers was an ongoing challenge
and and four out of five felt they needed training and development support. Many employers have been
examining their pay structure and work scheduling to attract workers with some increasing hourly rates/salaries and reducing 24 hour shift work.
Not surprisingly, people find straight day shifts the most attractive.
As far as manufacturers’ hiring needs, production assistants rank highest, followed by machine operators, management/supervisors, and skilled trades.
Through their interviews, the QEDC and partners were often able to help industries almost immediately with information on marketing, social media use, and ways to obtain funding from local, provincial, and federal governments.
QEDC CEO Chris King said manufacturers welcomed them for the interviews and were proud to tour them through their operation.
“We learned a lot by engaging with them and so did the manufacturers. We plan on doing these surveys on a regular basis to stay in touch with industry leaders so we can modify ways we can help them in the future.”
On another note, both the Commission and member municipalities Belleville, Quinte West, and Brighton reported that the past few weeks have been the busiest anyone could remember as far as inquiries from businesses or their agents looking for another location or to relocate.
There were no announcements about new business but the many leads are being followed up on and site visits are being arranged for some of them.
