November 30, 2023 – Eleven students from Alcona Schools toured Moran Iron Works and Industrial Arts Institute in Onaway on Talent Tours coordinated by Michigan Works! Many of the students on the tour are participants in welding courses in conjunction with Alpena Community College.
After a brief video about Moran Iron Works, students were given directions in regards to safety while out on the shop floor before the tour began. Beginning in the very first building that started Moran Iron Works on the property it now sits, students were able to see several aspects of the operation, including the CNC plasma table. As the tour continued, projects currently being worked on were viewed. Students were in awe at the construction of a large dump truck box for Caterpillar in a bay of the shop. Moran Iron Works partners with Caterpillar to construct these boxes, which are then shipped all over the world via the deep water port of Calcite in Rogers City.
The next stop on the tour was the Industial Arts Institute (IAI) where students learned what a typical day at IAI was like, expectations for the students in the programs, how to apply, and much more, before walking throug the welding lab. Students enjoyed learning about the program and the opportunities it can provide for them. The major projects each cohort of IAI created and continue to create interested the students, and many said they could see themselves attending IAI in the future. From how the booths are set-up to the way the program is structured, right down to learning about the placement rate for IAI graduates, students were able to learn and explore the private welding school.
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