Salem High School holds manufacturing showcase

SALEM, Va. (WDBJ) - You might know Medeco and its high security locks, but what about Mersen and its graphite heat exchangers?

Those are just two of the companies that took part in the Manufacturing Showcase Tuesday at Salem High School.

Wayne Adkins is Salem’s Business Outreach Coordinator, and Workforce Coordinator for the school division.

“Our graduating class will normally be made up of students that want to go to a four-year school, two-year school, go into the military, but we also have a contingent of something in the neighborhood of 40-50 students that just want to go into the workforce,” Adkins told WDBJ7. “And one of our objectives today is to introduce those students to the manufacturers we have right here in the local city.”

Students learned about the products the companies make and about the opportunities that could be available when they graduate.

Anashia Crockett is a sophomore at Salem High School.

“One of them I did know, but the others I didn’t know existed,” Crockett said. “And it was pretty cool learning about it and knowing everything and getting a feel of what’s out there.”

Rebecca Lewis is Senior Talent Acquisition Specialist with Integer.

“Very inquisitive about where we are in Salem, and what there are in terms of opportunities when they leave school,” Lewis said of the students. “So it’s been a really good day for us.”

And for evidence that the partnership between Salem schools and local manufacturers is paying off for both, look no further than senior Logan Moore.

“My teacher, basically came up to me one day saying, would you like to do welding as a career. And I said man, it’s something i enjoy,” Moore explained.

He’s been working as an apprentice at Mersen since he turned 16.

“It’s been a great experience,” Moore said. “Definitely been able to jump the gun, and been able to get in and get tons of experience early and still be very young. And you get paid to do it. So it’s just a win-win all the way through.”

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