NIMS announces record number of certifications pursued for metalworking jobs

The National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS), a standards and skill certification body for the metalworking industry in Fairfax, Va., awarded a record number of credentials in 2014 to individuals seeking to enter into or advance in jobs in the industry. In 2014 NIMS issued 18,947 industry-recognized credentials — a 36 percent increase from 2013.

More than 6,000 metalworking companies and major industry trade associations have invested more than $7.5 million in private funds to develop NIMS standards and credentials that prepare and advance the industry’s workforce, and continue to upgrade and maintain the standards as the industry changes.

NIMS has developed skills standards from entry level to master level that cover the breadth of metalworking operations, including metal forming and machining. NIMS certifies individuals’ skills against these national standards via credentials that companies can use to recruit, hire, place, and promote individual workers. Training programs, both at the secondary and postsecondary level, incorporate the credentials as performance or completion measures of academic coursework in metal forming or machining programs.