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MI Takes Roadshow to Smurfit Westrock, Highlights Success of FAME

By NAM NewsroomOctober 14, 2026

The Manufacturing Institute, the NAM’s workforce development and education affiliate, brought its “Training for the Future” tour to North Carolina this week in celebration of Manufacturing Month, highlighting the growing success of its Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME) program and its new AI Skills for Manufacturing Training Suite.

  • The event brought together manufacturing executives, educators and regional leaders to address the growing skills gap in manufacturing and showcase scalable, employer-led workforce solutions.

The tour: Attendees toured global packaging manufacturer Smurfit Westrock’s Winston-Salem facility, observing how students combine classroom instruction with paid, on-the-job experience at sponsoring local manufacturing plants.

  • The event also showcased FAME, the MI’s employer-led apprenticeship program that delivers real results for manufacturers and their future workers, which has an active chapter in the Triad region.
  • Attendees heard from Smurfit Westrock PM tech Charley Crowther, a 2026 graduate of FAME’s First in Flight chapter, alongside Smurfit Westrock Vice President of Operational Excellence Travis McDonough and Charles Little, general manager of the Smurfit Westrock plant in Winston-Salem.

AI: MI leaders also highlighted the rollout of the AI Skills for Manufacturing Training Suite, which offers free, practical courses designed to build AI skills among manufacturing workers. The North Carolina events are part of the MI’s multistate road show hitting key industrial hubs throughout October to showcase practical AI training and employer-led workforce models.

Smurfit Westrock says: “Students learn the most when they can put classroom concepts into practice on the manufacturing floor,” said McDonough. “FAME equips future manufacturing workers with the skills and experience they need to succeed from day one. These programs also help us build a strong local workforce that keeps our operations running safely and efficiently.”

The MI says: “To close the skills gap, manufacturers need to be proactive. Workforce needs to be a centerpiece of long-term business strategies,” said MI President Carolyn Lee. “North Carolina’s First in Flight FAME chapter proves that when you equip workers with hands-on technical skills and digital tools like AI, you can build a resilient, world-class workforce—and we’re seeing the dividends here at Smurfit Westrock.”

MI in the news: The event was covered by ABC 45, the Triad Business Journal (subscription) and Fox8 News.