Happy New Year to all our CMMA members, partners, and friends! We hope 2024 was rewarding and you share our optimism for the bright future this year will bring for manufacturing in central Minnesota. It’s a great time to make, sell, and ship! 

The CMMA Board of Directors recently completed our annual strategic planning retreat. This productive session yielded a solid and structured plan to keep CMMA moving forward, creating opportunity, and delivering ROI for our members. We reviewed last year’s work, outcomes, and identified growth opportunities. CMMA will continue to focus on educating our members, preparing our future workforce, and promoting and protecting our interests through legislative advocacy. Thanks to our board members and Lynda from MMA for your guidance, input, and support.
There are many ways to connect with, learn, and benefit from CMMA including membership meetings, social gatherings, webinars, and more. Have you checked out the many online sessions that can elevate your skills and success? The 2025 MMA Masterclass Education Series is a great way to gain new knowledge. All webinars are FREE to attend. 

• The Manufacturing Industry Series occurs on the second Wednesday of the month at 11 am. Topics for the webinars will include safety, laws and regulations, policy, finance, foreign trade, succession, and much more!
• The Marketing for Manufacturers Series occurs on the Third Wednesday of the month at 11 am. This helpful informational series started in 2020 and still continues!  We have covered nearly 30 topics!
• The Workforce Development Series is on the last Wednesday of the month at 11 am. The series features topics including human resources, recruiting, workforce development, and more!

You can view the webinar afterwards on the CMMA website and YouTube channel.

CMMA is a longtime partner and supporter of STEM activities in our local schools, including robotics, Tour of Manufacturing, and more. We’re involved, engaged, and present. For example, the Kimball Robotics program hosted its eighth annual “Super Mega” robotics competition on Saturday, January 25, at the Kimball Area High School. There were 127 teams in grades 4-12 that participated in the event, making it the second-largest, single-day robotics event in the state of Minnesota behind the upcoming state championships and CMMA was there, too! More than 550 robotics students and over 2,000 people were in attendance for the tournament. The 100+ volunteers included Kimball robotics parents, visiting team parents, community members, and more than 30 VEX robotics alumni from Central Minnesota organizations and schools. With more than 400 teams from across the state of Minnesota, and more than 20,000 teams worldwide, VEX Robotics is the fastest growing robotics program. VEX brings together Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education in a classroom environment along with a competitive world.

CMMA also supports the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics programs in our area schools. FIRST Robotics Competition is an international high school robotics competition. Each year, teams of high school students, coaches, and mentors work during a six-week period to build robots capable of competing in that year's game. As of 2024, there were 3,468 high school teams with approximately 86,700 high schoolers across 28 countries competing.

CMMA generates funds to support our schools and communities. Mark your calendar now for our largest fundraiser, the CMMA Golf Social on June 10, 2025, at Wapicada Golf Club in Sauk Rapids. Proceeds from the annual CMMA Golf Social are earmarked to support the CMMA Foundation. The Foundation distributes scholarships and grants that support youth manufacturing programs in the region.

Anyone may sponsor or participate in the annual CMMA Golf Social. Participation in this golf social directly impacts the strength of the CMMA Foundation and the future success of manufacturing in our region. Since its inception in 2008, CMMA has provided over $130,000 in support of workforce development and career awareness by offering grants and scholarships to local schools for industry-related endeavors.
Make plans to join us for a fun day of fundraising!

As always, there is much to do and much to gain at CMMA. We’re a dynamic and thriving trade association in action and growing since 2008. We’re member focused and purpose driven. We’re thankful for our members, contributors, and supporters. We’re fueled by passion for manufacturing, we’re propelled by volunteer leadership and service, we’re making a difference, and we’re doing it together!

A heartfelt and sincere thank you to all those involved in CMMA in 2024. Members, sponsors, speakers, tour hosts, volunteers, and many more. It’s said that “it takes a village” and there is no doubt that CMMA is a group that cares about, supports, and appreciates the mission, the work, and the many hands that make it happen with the success we have come to expect.      

Let’s make 2025 a great year of progress and prosperity!

In service,
Les Engel, CMMA President