The Aluminum Extruders Council (AEC) is launching a new industry-specific Apprenticeship Program, which aims to provide addition opportunities for AEC members to educate their employees.
Phase I of AEC Apprenticeship Program initiative was rolled out in 2023 and is designed to help members recruit, hire, and train Industrial Maintenance Technician apprentices in a two-year program that will combine on-the-job training and classroom and/or online education. The main program goal is to offer potential aluminum extrusion workers a true career path by developing needed skills in a structured program to learn the trade with national accreditation and potential funding from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The program is also available to existing employees who want to enter a career path in a particular trade.
Phase 2 of the AEC Apprenticeship Program, developed in 2024 and rolling out in 2025, offers trades education for aluminum extrusion press operators and die shop technicians. These apprenticeships were accepted as official new occupations for the DOL’s Apprenticeship Program in September 2024, providing AEC members with a way to train new and existing employees in the unique requirements of the aluminum extrusion process.
“The AEC Apprenticeship Program offers our members a real option for building tomorrow’s workforce in the aluminum extrusion industry,” said Duncan Crowdis, Alexandria Industries, who has led efforts to launch and promote the program among members. “The Extrusion Press Operator and Die Technician roles are game changers that will enable our industry to thrive and grow. We are now developing “Train-the-Trainer” on-the-job training materials that enable our most senior subject-matter experts in the field to train up journeymen at member plants who will provide the critical knowledge and skills that these workers will require going forward.”
And finally, Phase 3 will add other skilled trades, depending on specific member needs, such as CNC operation, robotics, and welding trades. The AEC Apprenticeship Program involves specified on-the-job training and related technical instruction at an accredited community college, trade school, and/or online learning.
Michael Todisco, CEO of Apprenticeship Connections & Consulting Corp. in Melville, NY, AEC’s apprenticeship program consultant, is helping the Council navigate the DOL’s apprenticeship application process, who noted, “This initiative provides AEC members the opportunity to invest in their apprentice’s education and training while the AEC facilitates and supports the process, with AEC Members acting as individual sponsors, and AEC serving as liaison between members and the DOL.”
AEC’s role includes assisting members in applying for various government funding reimbursement opportunities at the federal or state level, depending on extrusion plant location and assisting with processing and filing the member-provided apprentice data and required documentation with the DOL, such as designated training and education milestones, on-the-job training hours, and education registration and transcripts.