A recent skilled trades bootcamp at Postma Heating and Cooling drew plenty of interest.
A total of 43 people attended the day-long event at the Chatham business to get a taste of what it’s like working in the trades. There were 23 people enrolled in the plumbing stream, while 20 learned some of the basics about being a millwright.
According to Postma marketing co-ordinator Carissa Gonzalez, the event was intended to showcase what modern skilled trades careers look like, specifically in relation to plumbing and millwright work.
The bootcamp featured hands-on demonstrations, real tools and realistic environments.
“It’s designed to highlight local career opportunities, long-term stability, and the role trades play in supporting our community and economy,” Gonzalez said.
Bootcamps like the one at Postma are part of the provincial push to raise awareness about current and future opportunities in the skilled trades. Officials said Ontario is facing a critical worsening skilled trades shortage with an expected need to recruit 100,000 to 190,000 new workers by 2030-34 to replace retiring workers and to meet infrastructure demands.
Sinteris investment in C-K
Investment in manufacturing by Sinteris has caught the eye of the provincial government.
Through the Regional Development Program’s Southwestern Ontario Development Fund (SWODF), the Ford government is providing Sinteris with $121,538 in funding.
The investment was announced recently by Trevor Jones, MPP for Chatham-Kent–Leamington.
“By supporting strategic investments from regional businesses, our government is protecting Ontario’s workers and creating the conditions for a strong, stable, and resilient economy that can weather any storm,” he said in a media release. “Sinteris’s investment will support growth and innovation across the local manufacturing sector and create better paying jobs for workers and families in Southwestern Ontario.”
With this investment, Sinteris will modernize and upgrade the manufacturing capabilities and processes with new equipment. The project will create six new jobs and will retain 47, provincial officials said.
- Business Voice is a bi-monthly column in The Chatham Voice that highlights some of the achievements made and efforts underway in Chatham-Kent’s business community. Send your information to bruce@chathamvoice.com.
