There are around 17,000 contract manufacturing job shops in the US. That sounds pretty great, right? The truth is that growth is down 16% since 2008. Now, more than ever, we need new entrepreneurs in the manufacturing industry. Matthew Nix, Paul Van Metre, Drew Crowe, and Mike Payne join me in this roundtable discussion to talk about the vast opportunities available, how to take advantage of them, and why manufacturing leaders should encourage and grow entrepreneurs from within their businesses. Because if manufacturing isn’t growing, we aren’t MakingChips, and we aren’t making money. BAM! – Nick Goellner Segments [1:41] Matthew Nix, Paul Van Metre, Drew Crowe, Mike Payne [2:33] Manufacturing News: Leverage AMT’s custom research [11:07] Our reaction to the declining number of job shops [18:02] What Mike looks for in an acquisition [23:55] Join the AMT community! [24:48] Why every shop can leverage an ERP [28:00] There are vast opportunities available [33:55] Why you should grow future entrepreneurs  Resources mentioned on this episode The benefits of joining the AMT community  ProFab Alliance Connect With MakingChips www.MakingChips.com On Facebook On LinkedIn On Instagram On Twitter On YouTube