A running list of U.S. government sponsored (“free”) training programs in manufacturing technologies…

Backstory: I initially became aware of these programs through a NY Times article on the challenges of finding a workforce to build next generation submarines.

  • Metallurgical Engineering Trades Apprenticeships & Learning (METAL) - focus on casting and forging. 8 hour online course. K-12 3-hour workshops and weeklong bootcamp at Penn State and UT Knoxville for 18+ year olds.

  • America’s Cutting Edge (ACE) - focus on CNC. 6 hour online course, qualifies you for a 32 hour in-person course at facilities in Tennessee, North Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, Florida, Ohio, Kentucky, New Jersey, and Minnesota.

  • ACE Introduction to Composites run by the same parent organization as METAL and ACE, but focused on composites. After completing Introduction to Composites & Composites Machining, there are planned follow-on tracks on: Nondestructive Testing of Composites (February 2025), Composites in Energy Storage (March 2025), and Composites in Aerospace (April 2025)

  • Build Submarines - umbrella organization that steers pepople towards additive manufacturing, CNC, metrology, non-destructive testing, and welding. Online offerngs through ToolingU, in-person work through various community colleges, and also 4-month Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing in Danville, VA

Addendum

(16 Mar 2025) I’ve now completed all of the IACMI online courses—–metal casting & forging, CNC machining, composites, and metrology. Call me when you need help building your submarine.

credly_credentials

I found enjoyed the metal casting and CNC courses the most. (Also, you get a free PDF copy of MMachining Dynamics if you complete the latter…) The content in the composites courses was interesting, but the production quality on the videos and online coursework was not great. (very long videos, audio quality was often poor, typos and ambiguities in the quiz.)

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