November 2022 Volume 4

INDUSTRY NEWS

FIA’s First Ever Mexico Conference – ForjaMex – A Great Success By Megha Patel

Queretaro, Mexico was home to the first-ever ForjaMex Con ference put on by the Forg ing Industry Association. The conference, held on September 7-8, hosted over 75 attendees and seven (7) exhibitors, and included a variety of presenta tions – delivered in both Span ish and English. A big thank you to all those who partici pated and presented, especially our sponsors Ajax TOCCO and FICEP, for making the never before held event a huge success! FIA and its members inMexico believed it was time for a con ference that highlighted FIA members in the region and new opportunities due to reshoring.

The Production Track offered more technical topics to employees directly involved in production. Attendees learned new techniques and the latest technology to increase efficiency and production. Pre senters covered knowledge on wide-ranging topics from advanced lubrication to advanced induction systems. Due to the attendance success and positive feedback, FIA is excited to announce the ForjaMex Conference will be an annual event mov ing forward! The next ForjaMex Conference will be held in Monter rey, Mexico on September 6-7, 2023, and plant tours have already been lined up at prominent forging producer companies for all at tendees. FIA will be forming a Mexico Advisory Group to gather suggestions to create an even more successful event for our mem bers. We look forward to seeing you all down in Monterrey! Interested in joining the Mexico Advisory Group? Please contact Megha Patel, Government Affairs Manager, at megha@forging.org.

As the U.S. continues to face a labor shortage, the domestic forg ing industry needs to strengthen its base in Mexico to bridge the skills gap. Cause for alarm, five million fewer Americans have held manufacturing employment and data suggests the manufacturing sector in America will have over two million unfilled jobs by 2030. Even further, the current manufacturing workforce is aging out and retiring, with the average age of a manufacturing employee at 44 years old. Additionally, friendshoring, also known as reshoring, has become a recurrent theme as COVID-19 made it abundantly clear that the supply chain can be incredibly fragile and therefore neces sary to have production close by to prevent delays in critical goods. Due to the pressing issues facing our member companies, FIA saw great value in holding a conference on all the benefits the country of Mexico has to offer. Speakers in the Executive Track detailed how companies have a significant advantage when they open facilities in Mexico, not only due to proximity, but also reduced cost labor. An alternative method covered was hiring workers from the country to enter the United States on a workers’ visa. Mexico has a large pool of skilled workers as the country produces more engineers per capita annually than the United States. The conference allowed attendees to learn about all possibilities the neighboring country holds and how forgers can im prove their businesses by partnering south of the border.

FIA MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2022 68