FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                                CONTACT: WUEBKER/FALLON 

6/30/08                                                                                    202-224-3324

                                                                                                RILEY/CHAMBERLAIN

                                                                                                202-224-2841

GREGG, SUNUNU ANNOUNCE $1.8 MILLION IN U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR FUNDING FOR ADVANCED MANUFACTURING TRAINING IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

Monies targeted for public/private partnership including Hanover’s Hypertherm, Lebanon’s Timken, Claremont’s River Valley Community College

WASHINGTON, DC – United States Senators Judd Gregg and John Sununu (R-NH) today (6/30) announced the United States Department of Labor has approved $1.8 million in federal funding for distribution by the New Hampshire Department of Labor for Upper Valley workers to upgrade their manufacturing skills through the implementation of an advanced manufacturing training program.

 “This funding represents a joint commitment on the part of educational institutions and companies to ensure that our state’s workers have the most up-to-date skills and training possible,” said Gregg and Sununu. “By helping workers improve and expand their skills, companies in New Hampshire will have access to the qualified employees they need, and workers will be well trained in state-of-the art manufacturing techniques – a win-win combination for everyone.”

Dick Anagnost, Chair of the Workforce Opportunity Council, said the Department of Labor grant will help improve New Hampshire’s advanced manufacturing industry while improving work opportunities for dislocated workers.

“This $1.8 million grant will offer dislocated workers in the North Country and the Upper Valley, as well as other areas of the State, an opportunity for a good job, a good education, and national certification in advanced manufacturing,” said Anagnost.  “The partnership among the Workforce Opportunity Council; Hypertherm, Inc., of Hanover; Timken, Inc., of Lebanon; and River Valley Community College is an example of the collaboration needed to stay competitive in a global economy.”

The resources, which the state applied for, will be managed in a public/private partnership between Hanover’s Hypertherm, Lebanon’s Timken, and Claremont’s River Valley Community College.