Thursday the Marcellus Shale Coalition sponsored a widely-attended supply chain and workforce development seminar at the Community College of Philadelphia.

The event – which primarily focused on educating small- and medium-sized businesses about the growing opportunities along the Marcellus Multiplier supply chain as well as identifying workforce training needs – featured key government officials and economic development leaders, including Department of Labor & Industry secretary Julia Hearthway, state Senators Lawrence Farnese and Anthony H. Williams, Public Utility Commission chairman Robert F. Powelson, Community College of Philadelphia president Dr. Stephen M. Curtis, as well as African-American Chamber of Commerce chairman Steven Scott Bradley and Women’s Business Development Center president Geri Swift.

The event builds upon the MSC’s ongoing supply chain efforts, including a Recommended Practice on local hiring and sourcing, an online business network – MarcellusOnMainStreet.org – connecting small businesses and suppliers with the natural gas industry, and the industry’s broader and ongoing educational outreach initiatives focused in southeastern Pennsylvania through the Learn About Shale campaign.

The MSC and its member companies – including Aqua America, EQT, PVR Midstream, Range Resources, and Universal Well Services – also partnered with PUC and Drexel University earlier this month for a jobs forum aimed at engineering, science and information technology students.

“These forums continue to play an important role in providing businesses and entrepreneurs the insight needed to further capitalize on opportunities along the robust natural gas supply chain. While Marcellus Shale development is not occurring in southeastern Pennsylvania, the economic opportunities and potential for even more job growth, particularly as it relates to manufacturing, across the region continue to be realized in every part of the Commonwealth,” said MSC president Kathryn Z. Klaber. “Collaborative, solutions-focused events like this are making certain that our shared goals of a cleaner environment, more affordable American energy and a stronger economy are being achieved.”

MSC member company representatives Kelly Beaver of UGI Energy Services, Inc. and Mike Dynan of Schramm, Inc., as well as Sarah Binckley of CH2M Hill, provided firsthand insight about economic development opportunities, and a separate panel focused on workforce training needs and solutions.

Specific to regional workforce training, the MSC announced a $15,000 donation from its foundation to the Community College of Philadelphia’s newly formed Energy Training Center.

“We recognize that the Marcellus Shale, considered to be potentially the world’s second largest natural gas field, represents a historic opportunity. Literally tens of thousands of natural gas related jobs are being created across the Commonwealth, with many in the Greater Philadelphia region,” continued Klaber. “Safely producing clean-burning natural gas while building a strong local workforce are among our core commitments, which is why we’re so pleased to make this donation today aimed at building upon our successes and ensuring that those who want jobs in our industry have the training they need.”

11/19/2012