Input Stories

Howmet Aerospace Vice President of Procurement Gina Govojdean never doubted that she would have a career in manufacturing.

• “I was always interested in manufacturing, because I was drawn to the idea of making things that matter,” she said.

Govojdean’s breadth of experience within the industry has shaped the leader she is today—from her first internship at what was then Alcoa Inc. to more than a decade of leadership in procurement, internal audit, operations and plant management.

The beginning: Govojdean’s early career in procurement gave her a chance to hone her negotiation skills. But it wasn’t long before she asked herself: how do I compete with colleagues who have decades more experience? Her answer: diversify. After four years working in procurement, she moved into an internal audit role—a position traditionally held by accountants.

• “I saw it as an opportunity,” said Govojdean. “The internal audit team travels, and that was the first lens for me that showed I could get closer to the plants that make things. I’d see all these processes and all these operations. I decided to diversify my skill set—and that became a key theme for me.”

Learning on the job: Govojdean has held 13 roles in 13 years—each one helping her grow and get closer to the action on the factory floor.

• “Stepping away and diversifying what I was able to experience really made me a much better leader,” said Govojdean.

Lots of opportunity: Her experiences in different areas demonstrate the wide range of opportunities that are available in manufacturing, and she’s enthusiastic about encouraging others to join the industry.

• “There are so many different functions and so many important people when it comes to making something—there’s something for everyone,” said Govojdean. “It’s something that’s special about manufacturing, and something that should draw in the kind of people who chase opportunities and want different experiences. It’s there. Sometimes you just have to raise your hand and say ‘yes.’”

Leading the field: Govojdean is grateful to the mentors who have encouraged her throughout her career—and as a leader in manufacturing herself, she’s enthusiastic about mentoring others.

• “It’s a fast-paced environment, and things really need to go right when you’re serving such a critical customer base—but being tough and kind is not mutually exclusive,” said Govojdean. “You can lead with grit while also being kind.”
• “Really believing in people and empowering them—that’s one of the most rewarding things about being in manufacturing leadership.”

Gaining recognition: Thanks to her passion for manufacturing, her dedication to mentorship and her relentless pursuit of excellence, Govojdean was named a 2025 Women MAKE Awards (now STEP Ahead Awards) Honoree by the Manufacturing Institute. The awards honor 130 individuals who have achieved excellence in the manufacturing industry, everywhere from the shop floor to the C-suite, helping the next generation see themselves in modern manufacturing careers.

Filling a need: At a time when manufacturing faces a significant employment gap—with an estimated 3.8 million positions needing to be filled by 2033—Govojdean sees the breadth of opportunity as the industry’s strong suit.

• “I see every day as an opportunity to challenge outdated perceptions around the manufacturing workforce and open doors to others,” said Govojdean. “This field thrives when diverse voices are part of the conversation.”

Looking to the future: As manufacturing continues to evolve, leaders like Govojdean show what’s possible when talent meets opportunity. Her journey is a reminder that this industry doesn’t just build products; it builds careers, leaders and futures. And as the next generation looks to make an impact, manufacturing is ready for them.

Get involved: Do you know someone like Govojdean who is making an outsized impact on the manufacturing industry? If so, you can nominate your peer or colleague for the 2026 STEP Ahead Awards here.

The Manufacturing Institute’s recent Heroes MAKE America ‘Military to Manufacturing’ Career Fair at Fort Bragg in North Carolina highlighted Johnson & Johnson’s commitment to helping our nation’s heroes.

What’s going on: The day’s event, which also comprised an employer spotlight and was held last Thursday on the 107-year-old military base, delivered on HMA’s mission: connecting military members seeking jobs with national and regional manufacturers looking for talent. More than 20 employers attended, hoping to recruit top talent.

• Since launching in 2018, Heroes MAKE America—an initiative of the NAM’s 501(c)3 workforce development and education affiliate, the Manufacturing Institute—has exposed nearly 50,000 participants searching for their next manufacturing careers through training and events.
• Johnson & Johnson Chief Technical Operations and Risk Officer and NAM Board chair and MI board member Kathy Wengel was on hand to give remarks to the audience, which consisted of HMA alumni, future class participants, active duty and transitioning military members, veterans, military spouses and state and military leadership.
• Wengel was joined by MI President and Executive Director Carolyn Lee, NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons, who serves as Chair of the MI’s Board, Johnson & Johnson Wilson plant manager and U.S. Army veteran Pete Goodridge, and North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs General Counsel Jimmie Bellamy.

Manufacturing needs you: A common theme among the manufacturing leaders’ remarks was the still-high number of open (and rewarding) jobs in the industry—currently at about 400,000.

• “We want even more people from across the nation to join this industry,” Lee told the crowd. “The skills you bring as transitioning service members—leadership, discipline, problem-solving, teamwork, technical expertise and more—are exactly what manufacturers are looking for. That’s what today is all about: connecting you with companies eager to meet you and that value your experience.”

Investing in the state—and the military: Timmons talked about the groundbreaking earlier this year of J&J’s new biologics facility in Wilson, North Carolina, as well as the health company’s announcement of its intention to invest $55 billion in U.S. manufacturing over the next four years.

• “That investment sends a powerful signal about the opportunities in store for those considering this career path,” Timmons added.
• Added Wengel, “In addition to our partnership with Heroes MAKE America, we have several initiatives at J&J to support military hires and the military community as a whole.”
• Through the Veteran’s Leadership Council, the group gives its workforce access to mentors and volunteers, leadership and development opportunities. It also has a strong military leave policy, which provides full pay and benefits to activated employees for up to three years. J&J partners with leading veterans service organizations to offer a wide range of services to veterans and their families.

Why Heroes? Heroes MAKE America—which has a Skillbridge Certified Logistics Technician course in partnership with Fayetteville Technical Community College, near Fort Bragg  also offers in-person and virtual training programs nationwide to assist veterans and transitioning military members in earning industry recognized certifications and skills needed in modern manufacturing.

• These include courses in manufacturing operations, industrial system maintenance, automation and robotics, and aviation maintenance.
• “These programs don’t just train you,” Lee told the audience. “They open doors.”
• More than 500 companies in 49 states have hired HMA graduates at salaries exceeding $72,000. The program has a 96% graduation rate and a 92% placement rate.

Dive deeper: Learn more about how your company can get involved with Heroes MAKE America here.

For the U.S. is to continue its “rich history of innovation, production and global leadership,” it will require a comprehensive 5G wireless network strategy with more licensed spectrum—and soon, according to a new report from the NAM and CTIA.

What’s going on: The report, “How 5G Is Modernizing Manufacturing,” looks at ways manufacturers and wireless providers are using commercial 5G networks to power Manufacturing 4.0 and improve safety, efficiency and innovation at American factories—while making the U.S. more secure and prosperous.

• “5G is vital to the Manufacturing 4.0 movement that’s propelling America to be the global hub for smart, modern manufacturing,” NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons said. “By enabling real-time actions and supporting new technologies like AI, 5G is giving manufacturers more tools to sharpen our competitive edge, support more people and secure America’s leadership in the global economy.”

Standout takeaways: Among the salient findings from the paper:

• More than 50% of manufacturers already use artificial intelligence in their operations, with 61% expecting investment in AI will increase by 2027; and
• The impact of AI on operational performance, cost savings and worker productivity/efficiency is above 60%.

In real life: The report includes examples of how 5G is changing manufacturing, including:

• Powering VictoryXR and Taqtile’s augmented reality headsets to provide immersive training;
• Providing Hitachi with a real-time, high-definition monitoring system that uses machine learning to improve quality control by identifying defects at a sub-millimeter level;
• Safeguarding Cummins’ intellectual property using highly secure 5G networks that power robotics to detect product defects, enhance employee training and monitor equipment through sensor systems, among other applications; and
• Supporting innovation and productivity on the factory floor at numerous other manufacturers, such as Newport News Shipbuilding, General Motors, Rockwell Automation, Ericsson, Samsung and more.

Why it’s important: 5G networks will add $1.5 trillion in GDP and 4.5 million in jobs to America’s economy in this decade alone, Boston Consulting Group found.

The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to use artificial intelligence models to speed up the chemical review process (POLITICO Pro, subscription). The only catch? The models don’t yet exist.

What’s going on: “EPA is eyeing development of an ‘AI Chemist Assistant’ that ‘will help chemical reviewers search various repositories to identify chemical and chemical analog information used in [Toxic Substances Control Act] submission reviews and risk evaluations, possibly saving hundreds of staff hours per review/evaluation.’”

• Another tool listed on the EPA’s internal AI use case inventory, “EcoVault,” is meant to summarize key information from scientific studies and other long, unstructured documents.
• Though the technology for these models is already in play, “experts … caution that the agency still faces significant hurdles in data quality and trust.”

How it could help: For years, the chemical sector has been beset by lengthy, complex review processes that hamper innovation.

• EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has called expediting these processes a priority, and he told Congress in May that he was “confident” his agency could successfully get through review backlogs—thanks in part to AI use.
• The strategy is part of a larger use of AI in the EPA under the current administration.

A caveat: “The problem is nobody has found everything yet, nobody has compiled it yet, in the way that we have been doing over the last five to six years,” Arizona State University chemical engineering professor Bhavik Bakshi told the news outlet.

• And the EPA’s AI policy prohibits it from relying on AI-generated responses “without thorough verification.”

As Congress prepares the next surface transportation reauthorization package, lawmakers and the Department of Transportation must implement policies that will support manufacturing in the U.S., the NAM said.

What’s going on: “It is vital that Congress—supported and informed by DOT—continue to reauthorize surface transportation programs that support manufacturing in the U.S.,” the NAM told Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy last month in response to a DOT request for public input on the legislation.

• Surface transportation authorization, which is typically renewed every five years, sets funding levels and can include policy changes.
• This year’s reauthorization provides an opportunity to build on recent bipartisan infrastructure measures, including the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act and the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act, the NAM told Secretary Duffy.

What should be done: To make the most of this year’s legislation and ensure strong growth of manufacturing in the U.S., Congress and the DOT should “consider several policy proposals,” NAM Vice President of Domestic Policy Chris Phalen said. These include:

• Continuing strong investment levels for federal infrastructure;
• Strengthening transportation supply chains; and
• Reforming onerous permitting laws and regulations.

The details: “Manufacturers encourage continuing current spending levels for highway programs, consistent with the scope of the reauthorization language,” Phalen said, adding that the legislation should also continue support for transit and certain energy technologies.

• To mitigate supply chain problems and boost manufacturing competitiveness, the reauthorization measure “should continue to expand highway capacity, increase connectivity and build on the progress made since [the 2012 reauthorization] to improve our nation’s freight network.”
• And when it comes to permitting, “[m]anufacturers request that DOT work with other agencies and … Congress to undertake … commonsense permitting reforms that will make it possible to grow manufacturing operations, modernize infrastructure, shore up supply chains, create jobs and ensure responsible American energy dominance.”
• Specific reforms include expedited judicial review, the creation of enforceable deadlines and the unlocking of access to domestic minerals.

Johnson & Johnson recently announced a $2 billion investment, which will expand its operations in North Carolina with a 160,000+ square foot manufacturing facility at FUJIFILM’s new biopharmaceutical manufacturing site in Holly Springs.

• The investment will bring about 120 new jobs to the area.

Thanks to tax reform: In its announcement, the company explicitly attributed this investment to the recent passage of legislation that secured pro-growth, pro-manufacturing tax provisions—a victory for the NAM and all manufacturers in the U.S.

• “Johnson & Johnson has more manufacturing facilities in the U.S. than in any other country, and we continue to strengthen our presence here,” said Joaquin Duato, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Johnson & Johnson. “With the recent signing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, we continue to expand our investment in the U.S. to lead the next era of healthcare innovation.”

Previous investment: Johnson & Johnson announced in March that it would invest more than $55 billion in its U.S. operations over the next four years.

NAM and J&J: The new investment was also celebrated by Johnson & Johnson Executive Vice President, Chief Technical Operations & Risk Officer and NAM Board Chair Kathy Wengel.

• “Today marks an exciting milestone for [Johnson & Johnson] and for the future of healthcare innovation in the United States. We’re proud to be building capabilities and partnerships that enable faster, flexible expansion of our manufacturing to meet the needs of patients who rely on us every day, and create high-paying jobs here in the U.S.,” she said.

The last word: “Johnson & Johnson continues to expand manufacturing in America, creating new jobs and increasing investments. As NAM Board Chair, Kathy worked tirelessly to ensure Congress and the administration delivered the pro-growth tax policies our industry needs to grow, compete and win,” said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons.

Exxon Mobil is urging the Supreme Court to hear a Colorado case that allowed a local climate change lawsuit against it and Suncor Energy to advance in state—rather than federal—court (POLITICO Pro’s CLIMATEWIRE, subscription).

What’s going on: The two companies “filed a petition with the high court Friday, asking it to review a Colorado Supreme Court decision that allowed a climate lawsuit brought against the companies by a local city and county to proceed to state court.”

• The petition, which holds that climate change is a federal matter, says that by reviewing the state court’s decision, the high court could “determine whether dozens of similar lawsuits filed in state courts should be heard in federal court.”
• The Supreme Court hears approximately 1% of the petitions it receives.

Why it’s important: “No state has the authority to govern, let alone impose liability on, the production and use of energy in other states and countries around the world,” Phil Goldberg, special counsel for the NAM’s Manufacturers’ Accountability Project, told the news outlet, adding that such litigation “could impose significant and unwarranted costs on all American consumers for their essential energy needs.” The Colorado case is one of more than 20 such lawsuits that have been brought by states and municipalities.

• In May, the Colorado Supreme Court sided with the local Colorado governments, “rejecting the industry’s contention that the lawsuit involves global greenhouse gas emissions and should be barred by federal law.”
• Next month, the NAM Legal Center will file an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to grant certiorari and resolve this longstanding issue.

Other recent cases: In March, the Supreme Court rejected a request by 19 Republican state attorneys general to end a set of climate suits against the traditional energy sector.

• And in January, the high court declined to hear an appeal from energy companies to dismiss a lawsuit by Honolulu, Hawaii, alleging they had misled the public for years about the perils of climate change.
• Meanwhile, earlier this month a South Carolina court dismissed a climate change lawsuit against oil and gas companies by the city of Charleston.

New White House, new priorities: While the previous administration asked the court not to intervene in the cases, the current one “has aggressively sought to curtail the lawsuits, starting with an executive order in April that targeted state climate efforts.”

• It has also filed preemptive suits against Hawaii and Michigan, seeking to stop those states from going to court.

Both houses of Congress have moved to reaffirm support for the Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR program, which has been rumored to be on the chopping block for months under the new administration (E&E News, subscription).

• The ENERGY STAR program sets efficiency standards for a range of products and materials, including air conditioners and heat pumps, allowing them to display the program’s logo if they meet the criteria.

Appropriations: The Senate Appropriations Committee approved legislation this week that “would give [ENERGY STAR] … $36 million in fiscal 2026, roughly the same amount it is receiving this year.”

• Meanwhile, the House Appropriations Committee approved its own version of the spending bill, setting “a minimum funding level at $32 million for [ENERGY STAR].”

What’s next: Congress will need to approve funding legislation for fiscal year 2026 by Sept. 30 to continue to fund this popular program.

The NAM in action: In June, the NAM and dozens of partner associations told legislators of the importance of ENERGY STAR to their industries, saying “electricity saved by ENERGY STAR helps free up space on the grid needed so the U.S. can lead the world to power and grow artificial intelligence, support the burgeoning crypto asset industry and bring more manufacturing plants back to our shores.”

The last word: “ENERGY STAR is a critical and popular voluntary program that benefits manufacturers that make more energy-efficient products,” said NAM Director of Energy and Resources Policy Michael Davin.

• “Both consumers and manufacturers benefit from its existence, and we applaud Congress for affirming their support for maintaining the program.”

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index for the U.S. edged down 0.3% to 98.8 in June, after staying the same in May. Over the past six months, the LEI has fallen 2.8%, much faster than the 1.3% rate of decline in the prior six months. For the second month in a row, a recovery in stock prices helped buoy the index but was again not enough to offset falling consumer confidence, weak new orders in manufacturing and rising claims for unemployment insurance.

Additionally, the index’s further decline in June puts the six-month growth rate into more negative territory, triggering the index’s recession signal for the third month in a row. Furthermore, a tariff-influenced slowdown in consumer spending is becoming more apparent. Nevertheless, the Conference Board does not anticipate a recession in 2025, although it expects a significant slowdown in economic growth compared to 2024, with U.S. GDP growth forecasted at 1.6%.

Meanwhile, the Coincident Economic Index ticked up 0.3% to 115.1 in June, after no change in May and April. As a result, the CEI has grown 0.8% in the past six months, down from the 1.0% growth rate over the previous six months. The Lagging Economic Index stayed the same in June at 119.9 and has risen 1.4% over the past six months, fully recovering from a 0.8% decline over the previous six months.

Existing home sales decreased 2.7% in June and stayed the same over the year. Housing inventory slipped slightly to 1.53 million units, reflecting a 0.6% decline from May but a 15.9% jump from last year. The median existing home price was $435,300, up 2.0% from last year. The Northeast, Midwest and South registered decreases in existing home sales, while the West posted a modest monthly increase.

Single-family home sales fell 3.0% in June but were up 0.6% over the year, with the median price increasing 2.0% from June 2024 to $441,500. Condo and co-op sales stayed the same over the month at 360,000 units in June, but fell 5.3% from last year. Meanwhile, the median price for condos and co-ops rose 0.8% from the prior year to $374,500.

Homes were typically on the market for 27 days in June, unchanged from May but up from 22 days in June 2024. First-time buyers made up 30% of sales in June, the same as May but up from 29% at the same time last year.