Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti helped celebrate Manufacturing Week Monday by announcing an initiative to train 300 young Angelenos in manufacturing jobs at a 10,000-square-foot "Cyber MakerSpace" set to open next year.
"Young Angelenos from all backgrounds deserve to find their passion, discover their talents, and get good-paying jobs that put them on a path to the middle class," Garcetti said. "This partnership will give them the tools and training they need put that opportunity within reach."
The partnership with the Clean Energy Smart Manufacturing Innovation Institute and the Youth Policy Institute will result in the opening of the facility in the spring of 2019 at YPI's location at 2707 Beverly Blvd. in Westlake. The facility will be equipped with state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies and provide local youth with the resources required to succeed in advanced manufacturing jobs, according to Garcetti's office, which said the youth will be trained in predictive analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotics.
"The LA Cyber MakerSpace will showcase how innovation in manufacturing happens -- through a transformative effort to simplify how hardware, software, and people work together," said John Dyck, CESMII's CEO.
The initial cohort of students will come from existing YPI programs, including YouthSource Center, TechHire, Women in Tech, Diversity in Tech, and Young Professionals, and students will range in age from 16-24.
"Manufacturing has a long history in LA and has built up our middle class. Today, advanced manufacturing is transforming the industry and creating new opportunities for underrepresented populations to build careers in STEM fields," said Dixon Slingerland, YPI's president & CEO. "We are looking forward to working with the City and CESMII to build a space to provide youth career opportunities in advanced manufacturing."
