MMT Chats: 50 Years of Growth and Community at the AMBA

^{This episode is brought to you by ISCAR with New Ideas for Machining Intelligently.}

Silver and gold. That is what we are together this year. MoldMaking Technology celebrates 25 years and the AMBA is celebrating 50 years! Congratulations! Here, I sit down with AMBA Executive Director Kym Conis and Board Member Tom Barr of T K Molds to chat about the association’s 50-year anniversary and the next 50 years!

For the full quick chat, watch above, and for more MMT Chats, click here.

Here’s a bit about the AMBA in Kym’s own words:

“Without a community, there is no connection - and without connection, there can be no growth or evolution. This philosophy was a founding principle of the AMBA and it’s what drove the establishment of its first chapter in the Chicago area, exactly 50 years ago.

Today, the AMBA is a national association, known for its ability to make every

mold builder feel like there’s a local chapter right in their backyard. Whether it includes facilitating executive-level peer connection, distributing industry-wide benchmarking, advocating at the legislative level for American manufacturing or supporting philanthropic efforts for organizations like iWarriors, this association makes a single, concentrated effort to accomplish one thing - to be the competitive advantage for U.S. mold builders.

While a key component of this “competitive advantage” has been a cultural shift towards benchmarking operations against industry peers to share best practices, the challenges faced by the American moldmakers in 2023 are becoming more varied than ever - which means that, like the mold builders it supports, the AMBA’s system of support must continue to evolve.

As it considers its strategy over the next 50 years, the association will examine what challenges from past decades remain and which are rising in prevalence. Whether this examination leads to the growth of advocacy efforts, availability of executive-level resources, clearer guidance on the practical application of data or the internal development of up-and-coming leaders, AMBA believes the path forward is through the consideration and adoption of new ideas and opportunities so that its mold manufacturing members continue to survive and to thrive.

Connection. Community. Growth. While today’s challenges remain – and may continue to increase in intensity – these pillars are the foundation on which the AMBA rests, and their continuation is what will power AMBA into the next 50 years.”