CHICAGO – Thirty students from Bowen High School’s manufacturing program toured CRRC Sifang America’s state-of-the-art passenger railcar assembly facility in Hegewisch as part of a program developed by CRRC to encourage the next generation of manufacturing professionals.
Students got an exclusive look at current railcar production methods and met the employees who are building the 7000 Series railcars for the Chicago Transit Authority.
CRRC partnered with the City of Chicago Committee on Workforce Development, Chicago Federation of Labor and the Calumet Area Industrial Commission to educate students on future careers in manufacturing in their own backyard.
“CRRC is proud to show Chicago Public School students real manufacturing job opportunities in their neighborhood,” said Marina Popovic, Human Resources Director & Chief Legal Counsel for CRRC Sifang America. “We continue to support the local community and are committed to hiring and training the next generation of manufacturing professionals in Chicago.”
In 2016 CRRC Sifang America was awarded a contract by the CTA to supply more than 840 new 7000 Series railcars, which will replace approximately half of the agency’s current fleet. As part of its proposal to the CTA, CRRC Sifang America committed to assemble the railcars in Chicago and engage in innovative workforce development partnerships to help train residents to hold jobs at the plant.