WILKES-BARRE – Data provided voluntarily to independent researchers from 541 small and medium-sized manufacturing companies throughout Pennsylvania for the year 2022 – and then verified by the US Department of Commerce – asserted that the state-wide Industrial Resource Center (IRC) initiative has produced positive results amid a turbulent economy.
IRC is the Commonwealth’s program to strengthen the competitiveness and sustainability of smaller industrial enterprises.
“Over the past year, nearly 2,000 small and medium-sized manufacturers across Pennsylvania have called on regional IRCs to help them address the persistent challenges of infectious disease, the emerging threat to domestic and global economic conditions and the shortage of qualified workers,” said Eric Joseph Esoda, President & CEO of NEPIRC, the IRC that provides manufacturing services throughout the Northeast, North and North Central i Pennsylvania. “The outstanding results reported by the 541 companies selected to participate in the external business impact process are impressive, but also reflect a small fraction of the true impact of IRC services on the manufacturing economy there. Pennsylvania.”
In the past 12 months, manufacturers using IRC professional services avoided 4,099 layoffs, and added 1,226 full-time workers to their payroll.
They also realized $398.9 million in retained sales and received $108.9 million in new customer orders as a result of IRC assistance.
In addition to increasing their workforce and increasing their top line of revenue, companies that have done consulting projects with regional IRCs have reduced their non-employee costs by of $43.1 million in the past 12 months and invested more than $212 million in new equipment. building expansion, advanced technology and workforce training.
In the past three years, since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, IRC services across Pennsylvania have enabled manufacturers to avoid 12,565 layoffs, create 3,506 new manufacturing jobs and increase revenue of nearly $370 million.
Pennsylvania’s IRC initiative consists of seven partners – DVIRC, Catalyst Connection, Innovative Manufacturers Center (IMC), MANTEC, Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC), NEPIRC and NWIRC.
In addition to providing a specific financial impact, 442 of the 541 companies that participated in the survey stated that cooperation with the IRC has improved their overall competitiveness, and 468 said that they expect the they will use IRC again in the future and recommend their IRC to other Pennsylvanians. manufacturer. A more detailed survey can be obtained by contacting [email protected]
NEPIRC is a non-profit organization that provides technical, engineering, consultative and training services to small and medium-sized manufacturers throughout 11 counties in northeastern, north and central Pennsylvania.
More information is available at www.NEPIRC.com or by email to [email protected] or Eric Joseph Esoda at [email protected]
Contact Bill O’Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.
