Throwback Thursday: Dreadful Losses and Rare Opportunities

 The headline of this week’s Throwback smacks of mystery and intrigue – like some suspense films – and yet back in May 2009 there existed just that: dreadful losses and rare opportunities. I can very clearly remember the stacks of auction notices that accumulated in the mail; hearing every week about more and more shops – those we thought were strong and would be around forever – closing their doors for good. It was a scary time that lasted way too long.

I don’t care to go into the why of it, though I have my theories. Rather, I wanted to simply call attention to this short but realistic view of our industry during the last, terrible recession. As the deck of the article says, for the first time in 20 years there were many qualified and very experienced mold and die makers looking for work – a highly unusual opportunity that many companies dared not seize given the unstable market. Now some probably wish they had.

Today, we are also experiencing dreadful losses and rare opportunities, but in a different way. We’re watching as many highly-skilled moldmakers and die makers retire, taking with them valuable experience in our trade. That’s dreadful, of course, because there are not enough skilled, young workers coming up behind them, learning from them. But here is also a very rare opportunity to rebuild manufacturing and rekindle interest in the many viable manufacturing careers available to those who recognize them. Here’s to the individuals, trade organizations and schools who are fanning the flames! You can read about some of them in recent issues of MMT – just check out our archives.

Now, click here to read today’s throwback.