First Ever Print Apprenticeship Certified by the State of Maryland

First Ever Print Apprenticeship Certified by the State of Maryland

In 2021, Hub Labels became the first manufacturer in the State of Maryland to offer a Manufacturing Apprenticeship Program certified printing press apprenticeship position certified through the Maryland Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). In 2022, Hub Labels hired the first apprentice for the new program. From the initial green light of starting the program to hiring the first apprentice, Hub spent the time in between working with MEP to build out the meat and bones of the brand-new program.

Press operation is an acquired skill that can be a fulfilling and beneficial career path. The goal of the program was to make sure all of Hub Labels’ processes for press operation were formalized to ensure a robust apprenticeship program could be built around them. The apprenticeship program combines classroom training hours and on the job industry specific training to fill out the curriculum.

The classroom training hours earn apprentices an FTA Flexographic Image Reproduction Specifications & Tolerances (FIRST) certification. The accompanied in-house training gives apprentices on-the-job applicable skills and experience. The in-house training was approved by the State of Maryland prior to the launch of the program.

Hub Labels developed the apprenticeship program in partnership with the MEP to create a clear career path for our press men and women. “We felt that this was a good way to create a more defined career path while also providing candidates various forms of training and advancement opportunities,” said Vice President of Human Resources, Carrie Aaron. “We believe that setting criteria for advancement, including pay and training, was necessary to attract and retain employees.”

“For our first time doing something like this everything has been going great,” said Randy Renner, Upstream Production Manager. “Before this apprenticeship we were doing training a few different ways. Now we have hammered out a streamlined and more standard procedure for how we train people for press. Ultimately, we feel this is the next step for the continuous improvement of our manufacturing procedures.”