Manufacturers across Carbon County are coming together to share ideas to help them increase efficiency and profits, thanks to a new partnership created by the Carbon County Chamber.

The Manufacturer's Roundtable met earlier this month at Ampal Industries in Palmerton to discuss issues that affect a diverse group of businesses. And they're hoping to expand the group in the future."That's one of the great things about this area, really. People want to partner. We do well when we partner, because there are a lot of small industries around here. It's great to have cohorts at events like this. So we are here to serve you as well," Maureen Donovan of Lehigh Carbon Community College said.At their recent quarterly meeting, the partnership discussed cybersecurity, as well as some of the assistance programs that are available to small and midsized businesses.Patricia Riola of DeSales University talked about how attacks on a company can easily be caused through an employee's negligence. She recommended that companies be clear with their employees about what they can and cannot do using company technology."Working from home is very attractive to people. But you want to have something set up where they're using the work computer, and not their home computer," she said.Riola recommended that businesses try to stay ahead of cyberattacks by constantly updating their approach. That includes regular updates for training and company policies regarding cybersecurity.Be proactive if you can. I know we're still in a reactive state with this," she said.The meeting also dealt with services that are available for small and midsized manufacturers.Donovan talked about the training funding available for manufacturing companies from the state's workforce and economic development network. She's the head of LCCC's Center for Leadership and Workforce Development.Donovan said that companies can get up to $450 per employee per year for training in basic skills such as computers and OSHA training.They can also get up to $850 per employee for more specialized training in fields such as computer-aided design."We are one of the community colleges within the state which gets an allocation to help you with training. The training is a variety of things, anywhere from forklift training to supervisory skills to computer skills," Donovan said.Another service that the roundtable discussed was the Department of Labor's Strategic Early Warning Network.The agency specializes in corporate turnaround services. The companies that contract with them are kept anonymous.Representative Gary Wickham said that each year the agency saves more than 1,000 jobs at manufacturing companies around the state.He asked the group to spread the word about the agency to other companies."My guess is that the companies that are here are not struggling. Because most of the time, strange as it is, the companies that need it, they don't come to functions like this," he said.The manufacturers' roundtable meets quarterly.For more information, contact Chamber Economic Development Director Kathy Henderson at 610-379-5000 or

khenderson@carboncountychamber.org.