The Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber and Northeast Ohio’s Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network (MAGNET) celebrated the newly branded conference room at the Regional Chamber’s Youngstown office with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Tuesday.
The space, to be known as the MAGNET East Conference Room, will serve as a meeting space for Chamber and MAGNET staff, peer organizations and regional businesses and can be used by Chamber members at no cost. The conference table seats six, and users will have access to a kitchen just outside of the space.
For more than 30 years, MAGNET, a non-profit consulting group, has been focused on growing northeast Ohio’s manufacturing industry by helping start-ups thrive and supporting small- and mid-sized companies transform with technology, innovation and talent.
“As technology revolutionizes the modern factory, MAGNET will help the Mahoning Valley’s small and mid-sized manufacturers turn industry disruption into economic growth,” said Regional Chamber President and CEO Guy Coviello.
“We’re no longer content with stabilizing our economy,” he added. “Our focus is on expanding the Valley’s economy. MAGNET will help us do that.”
The Regional Chamber and MAGNET have had a long-standing relationship through their economic and workforce development work, and in 2022, they entered into a formal contract for the Chamber to generate greater exposure for MAGNET’s services throughout the Valley.
MAGNET President and CEO Ethan Karp said, “The Youngstown-Warren region has thriving manufacturers that are innovating and transforming every day. They continue to be the backbone of the economy with great family-supporting salaries and careers. We are proud to partner with the Chamber and do our part to grow manufacturing locally, the lifeblood of the Valley and America.”
In addition to MAGNET branding throughout, the room will highlight past Excellence in Manufacturing Award recipients, which were selected in partnership with MAGNET beginning in 2017. The award is given to longstanding companies located in Mahoning, Trumbull or Columbiana counties that have excelled in business, product development or workforce innovation. Past recipients include Boardman Molded Products, Haltec, Quality Switch, Panelmatic Building Solutions and Commercial Metal Forming. The 2022 recipient, Schaefer Equipment, a Division of Wabtec Corp., will be celebrated Nov. 3 at the Chamber’s Annual Economic Forecast Breakfast.
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About the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber
The Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber (Regional Chamber) is a private, non-profit organization that provides leadership and business services to promote the growth of our 2,900 members—representing more than 125,000 employees in the Valley. Membership with the Regional Chamber provides exclusive member perks like cost-saving discount programs and services that help businesses maximize their bottom line. In addition, the Chamber advocates on behalf of its members to contain the cost of doing business, improve the overall business climate and advise policymakers on the impact laws and regulations have on the Valley’s economy. The Regional Chamber also supports local expansion, attraction of new investment and job creation in the two-county area by providing services such as site selection, customized research and program coordination. The team is currently managing more than $1.4 billion of pending investment. For more information, visit regionalchamber.com.
About MAGNET: The Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network
The mission of MAGNET is to play a vital role in growing the manufacturing sector in Northeast Ohio, thereby creating more vibrant communities, increasing economic inclusion and building a stronger middle class in our region. Since 1984, MAGNET has offered a wide range of hands-on consulting services to manufacturers as part of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) and Ohio MEP. These services, which include product and process development, workforce initiatives, start-up support, technology implementation and lean/operations consulting, help companies grow locally and compete globally.
As manufacturers grow, they need to hire, train and retain diverse employees; build relationships with other companies and organizations to address systemic issues; pioneer new products and services; and maximize use of smart technologies. MAGNET is uniquely positioned to help manufacturers address these challenges as Northeast Ohio becomes a global leader in smart manufacturing with the workforce to power it.