Guest blog post by Roger Nielsen, Chief Operating Officer for Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) 

As Chief Operating Officer at Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA), the industry’s leading manufacturer of commercial vehicles, I am humbled and honored to employ thousands of employees across North America. In my adopted home in the Carolinas, I am proud to employ over 6,000 workers in the daily manufacturing of the most technologically advanced vehicles on the road today. Of our company’s nearly 25,000 workers, nearly 80 percent make up or support the manufacturing process at our manufacturing plants in the Carolinas and across North America. DTNA’s manufacturing plants represent a tremendous investment in machinery and technology, but our vehicles are ultimately built by people, the most important part of the process.

Events such as the Manufacturing Day event, held at our flagship Cleveland Truck Manufacturing Plant in Cleveland, NC highlight the incredible technology that is synonymous with the Freightliner and Western Star brand trucks that are produced here each and every day. Our Cleveland plant features state-of-the-art technology and highly sophisticated systems and machinery, including robotics. Our trucks are 21^st century marvels, with more electronics, guidance and monitoring systems than the most modern automobiles available today. Jobs in our manufacturing plants provide workers a living family wage with many opportunities for advancement. Yet, there is a misconception that these jobs are undesirable; nothing could be further from the truth. Simply put these plants are not your father’s factories anymore! We are equally proud of our leadership in sustainability through our commitment to reduce, reuse, and recycle.

Today, there are over 5 million jobs across America that are vacant in manufacturing. At DTNA’s facility in Cleveland, we are hiring over 20 new employees each and every week. It is my sincere hope that these events will demonstrate that manufacturing is a career worthy of the best students out there looking for challenging careers and opportunities for advancement. Career opportunities are not limited to the assembly line; with experience, manufacturing positions can lead to not only supervisory jobs, but also positions in skilled electronics trades, engineering, logistics and design. In fact, we are pleased to support continued education through a generous tuition reimbursement program for higher education after only 90 days with the company.

In a year of many highlights and records for Daimler Trucks North America, Manufacturing Day stands out amongst the best. I took great pride in highlighting our facility and two of our suppliers’ facilities to hundreds of students from three Charlotte area high schools to directly connect students with manufacturing and start to shift their perception of manufacturing today. I encourage anyone interested in a career in manufacturing to visit one of our factories themselves and consider applying to start on a career path that is rewarding and sustainable – for the long haul!