Paving Pathways For The Future: America's Central Port Creates Successful Model to Promote Trades

Following two successful visits by high school students to America's Central Port in 2022 and 2023, an idea was generated to create an experimental summer workshop, that would not only introduce teens to the trades but give them real-world hands-on experience.

The idea rapidly transformed into action, gaining the support of the Port's team, Madison County Employment and Training Department, Granite City High School, and the Board of Education. As soon as the Port announced the program, Granite City High School got the word out, and those who responded first were added to the roster.

From Vision to Execution

Structured as a 5-day program, ten students from Granite City High School and the surrounding area, ranging from Freshmen to Seniors, met Monday to Friday from 8 am to 3 pm for one week in June of 2023. A maximum capacity of ten students ensured personalized attention and a one-of-a-kind immersive experience.

The maintenance team at America's Central Port is cross-trained to take on multiple projects across many specializations. Because of this, the Port wanted to make sure the hands-on activities that were chosen reflected the myriad of projects the Port maintenance team tackles any given day of the week.

Project 1: Safety First

Safety isn't just a buzzword. To ensure no detail was overlooked, students were split into pairs and assigned a dedicated maintenance worker. Five staff members from the Port team, including Brian Stahlschmidt, Darrin Jones, Will Moore, Jay Jackson, and Jay Petras, worked one-on-one with each student, an investment the Port found crucial to providing a true hands-on experience. Every day started by discussing the work ahead and challenging students to think along with their mentor counterparts about what tools, materials, and safety requirements are needed to get the job done right, safely, on budget, and on time. In addition, each participant was equipped with a safety pack at the start of the program, containing work gloves and protective glasses, where additional protective gear was provided as needed.

Project 2: Concrete Sidewalk Construction

From tamping a rock bed to pouring and finishing the concrete, and then removing the forms the next day, students built a sidewalk from start to finish. To ensure success in the event of rain, additional sites were pre-prepped with a skid-steer by the maintenance team.

Project 3: Wood Stud Wall Construction

The Port set up shop in one of its off-market commercial spaces where students could construct a wall as though they were building within a real commercial space, not just a classroom. The project included framing, basic electrical placements for lights and plugs, sweating copper pipes, setting a toilet and a p-trap for a sink, and drywalling. At the end of their work, all students were able to turn on the lights they had wired.

Project 4: Residential Walk-Through & HVAC Maintenance Overview

To appreciate the significance of their handiwork, students toured an apartment to see an example of their finished work, as well as understand additional home-related maintenance tasks, such as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems.

Project 5: Wood Stud Wall Demolition

In order to provide the full experience of wall construction, the last project the Port organized to round out the week was hands-on demolition. Supervised and instructed on how to do so in a safe and controlled environment, students got to use a number of power tools and equipment to demo the walls they built earlier in the week.

Additionally, throughout their week, students were given the opportunity to weld and operate a backhoe, two skills in high demand in the manufacturing and construction industry.

Beyond the projects that were facilitated for each student, tenants of America's Central Port like KB Pods, which manufactures modular kitchens and bathrooms, and River's Edge Terminals, which manages petroleum products for customers around the world, provided tours of their facilities to provide a behind-the-scenes look into what it's like to work for a trades-based employer. SCF Lewis and Clark, the barge and river terminal operators, also provided a talk and overview of career paths that have the potential to earn over a six-figure income through various trade-related paths within the river transportation sector.

Inspiring Future Success

The program was conceived to take ten young individuals and give them the confidence to consider a career in the trades. The outcome went far beyond that.

Parents were amazed when their children were up early and ready to go to "work" each day. They were eager, showed enthusiasm, and weren't mopey or dragging their feet at home during that full week. Several parents asked if the program could last all summer long because of the drastic change they saw in their children. Port maintenance staff learned to become teachers, and everyone learned that with a little patience, training, and one-on-one attention, young students have the gift to give back more than we ever dreamed.

America's Central Port Kicks Off Search For Bids For IL Route 3 Planning Study

Illinois Route 3 is a phenomenal asset for the Southwest Illinois region. This four-lane transportation corridor stretches from the McKinley Bridge to Alton, Illinois. It is closely connected to six Class-I railroads, multiple Mississippi River terminals, residential communities, countless employers, and thousands of acres of development-ready sites.

Recognizing the importance Illinois Route 3 plays to our region, the Port is pursuing a planning study that will identify improvements to be made to an 8.5-mile stretch between the McKinley Bridge and Interstate 270. This particular segment of Route 3 serves more than 17,000 vehicles per day and is a Main Street for the communities of Venice, Madison, and Granite City. However, the corridor's condition does not reflect its pivotal role. The roadway lacks identity, is littered with trash and weeds, has a crumbling median and guardrails that are in need of replacement, contains strange, unused road sections, and has a 22-foot wide lane at one location. Speed is also of concern, and numerous bad traffic accidents have occurred due to motorists running red lights or driving well more than the posted speed limit.

In an effort to enhance the roadway’s image for the communities it serves, increase safety for all modes of transportation, and create a stronger sense of identity to the 8.5-mile stretch of roadway from the McKinley Bridge to Interstate 270, the Port is looking to select a top-ranked team with experience in transportation planning, urban design, placemaking, and civil engineering.

Creatively upgrading the image of Route 3 is a prominent requirement of this Study. Accordingly, the Port will be seeking Teams with the following skills:

• Experience with large-scale, highway-speed sculptures and other artistic design

• Experience with traffic calming measures for a mix of trucks and cars

• Experience with corridor planning and placemaking

With the goals of traffic-calming and placemaking, a primary part of the planning study will be the identification of sites for large sculptures to be purchased/placed in quarter-mile increments along the route, as well as the identification of what local theme each sculpture should represent. The study will also identify roadway and wayfinding improvements to be made to promote safety for a mix of cars and semi-trucks and corridor identity. The study will also include renderings, anticipated costs, and potential funding streams. The selected team will be responsible for:

• Conducting stakeholder meetings to define the project needs and solicit input

• Reviewing traffic data to determine baselines for average traffic volumes and speed

• Identifying solutions to be implemented by local communities, agencies, and IDOT

• Identifying themes for 28 sculptures to be located along the highway, their location, and providing renderings of proposed sculptures

• Identifying corridor needs and the potential for placemaking opportunities

• Outlining cost estimates of the proposed improvements, as well as potential grants or funding streams to make the improvements

Interested applicants should submit their proposals by Wednesday, October 25th to cvoelker@americascentralport.com. You can also learn more by visiting the plan-room page by clicking here.

America's Central Port Launches Virtual Tour To Promote Site Selection and Workforce Engagement

Imagine your prospect is half way around the world, or maybe just hunkered in at home and not interested in jumping through hoops to see your facility.

How do you engage their attention?

Let me introduce you to the latest in virtual tour technology.

Nothing beats an in-person tour of America's Central Port. The challenge though is convincing a prospect to come out in the first place. Seekbeak's virtual tour software and advancements in high resolution drone photography have given us a tool crucial to engage, nurture, and close new deals. From real estate, to planning, to workforce engagement, we think it's safe to say this technology will be a game changer moving forward.

Benefit #1: Real Estate & Site Selection Marketing

Anyone in a business or economic development role working in the commercial and industrial real estate space can tell you what it's like to engage and nurture prospective new businesses for your properties.

In the past, you were limited to brochures, maps, aerials, and video. With advancements in virtual tour technology and high resolution photography, engaging new leads and nurturing prospects through the planning and building phases of a project have never been more rewarding. Being able to walk through details that involve spatial data points, such as where a site sits in relation to the entrances and exits to the Port removes significant headaches from the site selection process.

Other phenomenal benefits include our new ability to provide tours of our facility to those outside driving distance. To date, this software has helped us engage prospects from Texas to South Korea and everything in between. In addition, when we are able to have someone out for an in-person site visit, being able to kick things off with an aerial tour followed by a driving tour creates for one memorable experience. This new way of presenting adds an additional layer of value by providing a tool the prospect can take with them where they can easily show our facility to other decision makers throughout their organization.

Benefit #2: Engineering and Construction Planning

Internally, meetings that involve planning, construction projects, and engineering discussions are significantly easier with virtual tour software. When we were in the process of discussing the 4th Street realignment and paving project, being able to demonstrate using 360 views of key intersections and transportation routes was crucial to communicating with Port tenants and our engineering and construction partners. Where we were once limited to engineering drawings and GIS aerials, we can now supplement both with easy to navigate virtual tours. It has shaved hours and even days off the normal allotted time for meetings and planning discussions.

Benefit #3: Workforce Engagement & Awareness

We wanted a way to showcase our manufacturers and the many jobs we have here at America's Central Port. Using a mix of 360 cameras and drone technology, we were able to capture some phenomenal shots of the various employment opportunities here at the Port. To see the full lineup of employers featured in our tour, visit our Job Opportunities page here: americascentralport.com/job-opportunities.

If you have ever wondered what's inside the non-descript buildings you drive by everyday, these tours will give you that behind the scenes look. Mattingly Lumber for example manufacturers trusses, walls, and doors, employs over 150 people at this location, and is always on the lookout for new motivated hires to come on board.

Beyond the manufacturing tours, you'll also get to see what it's like behind the driver seats of tugboats, cranes, locomotives, grain elevators and more. Ever wondered what it's like to be a captain of a tugboat? We weren't able to grab a 360 while the boat was in motion (that's illegal), but what we were able to snag is still pretty cool if you ask us.

If you find yourself interested in seeing any of the facilities featured in our virtual tour, know we are happy to accommodate. Whether you are a manufacturer or industrial enterprise, or an educator, student, or prospective new hire, you can schedule a tour here: americascentralport.com/contact-sales.