The Circle 5 family welcomed students from high schools across Windsor and Essex County on October 6th as a part of Manufacturing Day. Organized by Invest WindsorEssex, Workforce WindsorEssex, and CAMM (Canadian Association of Moldmakers), Manufacturing Day is an initiative that strives to raise awareness of the skilled trades as a career option for the younger generations. As a learning company, Circle 5 is proud to support the enrichment of young people, particularly in providing them with opportunities to discover career paths they may not have known about.

Manufacturing Day was a buzz of excitement, for students and Circle 5 staff alike, as we waited for the big yellow school buses to fill our parking lot. Students filed into gaps around molds and machinery to learn what goes into building plastic injection molds. They left with a deeper appreciation for what goes into creating the molds that mass-produce plastic objects for aerospace, mobility, consumer goods, and medical industries. We’re hopeful that some students left with a spark of passion for starting a career in the skilled trades.

One thing we can guarantee: the students will never look at plastic the same way again. They’ll see where the plastic was injected into the mold. Depending on the object, they may even notice the seam where the two halves of the mold came together. They might even notice flash (excess plastic that overflows from the mold cavity) that didn’t get trimmed off a plastic item.

We’re happy to help usher the next generation into the skilled trades and share about what we do. To see the world through the eyes of a young person helps to bring meaning and novelty to what we do every day. It gives us a moment to reflect on the impact we have, because we all have impact.

We want to extend a warm thank you to the hard-working staff of Invest WindsorEssex, Workforce WindsorEssex, and CAMM for their efforts in coordinating over 1,000 students and 21 local businesses. We truly appreciate what you’re doing for our industry and for future generations. Thank you to our staff who helped make Manufacturing Day happen. Time and again we ask you to do things outside your comfort zone, and you rise to the challenge each time.

Working as a moldmaker or a machinist is an opportunity to shape the world around you. To see plastic items in a store and know that you had a hand in making that. To sit in a car and touch the door handle that came from the tool you created out of a block of steel. Here at Circle 5, we don’t just make molds, we manufacture experiences.