Host a Sign Manufacturing Day

A COMMON SONG IS sung by many a sign company these days, accompanied by a sad trombone: “Why don’t young people want to work like my older employees?” (see ST, June 2025, page 42). Other refrains ask how to attract and hire new workers, and most of all, where to look?

Sign Manufacturing (MFG) Day is an annual one-day event sponsored by the International Sign Association (ISA; Alexandria, VA) and hosted by scores of sign companies all over. Following from ISA are several tips and anecdotes of recent MFG Day events. If you are recruiting new employees, why not give one a try? — Mark Kissling

burnishing skills: Students learning vinyl graphic basics at North American Signs (South Bend, IN).

“You Make Signs, Right?”

As safety manager at Allen Industries (Greensboro, NC), Andrew Davis understands what goes into making a sign. But when he taught a lifeguard class at a local pool, he was surprised to find he wasn’t the only one.

“I told a kid, ‘I work at Allen Industries,’ and he said, ‘I know who you are and what you make.’”

That level of community awareness was surprising to Davis, since sign and graphics manufacturing is often considered one of the largest industries no one is aware of.

But word is getting out, thanks in no small part to Sign MFG Day, an event each fall in which sign companies are encouraged to open their doors to their communities. Participating companies focus on connecting with local high schools and technical institutions as a way to recruit the next generation of workers. While Sign MFG Day is typically held the first Friday in October, companies are free to participate at a time that is more convenient. At Allen Industries, that meant holding five different events in 2024 and early 2025.

“Word started getting around, and we had different schools reach out to us,” says Brandon Dennis, Allen Industries’ project manager who works closely with Davis on coordinating the event. Allen has participated in Sign MFG Day for the last decade at their Greensboro facility.

Sign MFG Day was created by the International Sign Association to help solve a pressing issue of worker shortages in the sign and graphics industry. It’s something Shaun Ensign, co-founder and COO of Legacy Sign Group (Westville, IN), sees every day. “It’s an aging industry, and a lot of knowledge and experience is walking out the doors,” he says. “It was important to us to get the younger generation in.” Legacy Sign Group has participated in three Sign MFG Day events at their facility near Chicago.

classes in session: Allen Industries (Greensboro, NC) has hosted five MFG Day events in 2024-25.

Event Growth and Success

ISA produces Sign MFG Day in conjunction with the National Association of Manufacturers. The event began in 2013 with just nine companies participating. In 2024, 105 companies around the world participated. There is no cost to participate; ISA provides a toolkit to help companies make the most of the day with sample emails, scripts and suggestions for crafting a successful day.

“This is a way for local companies to connect with their communities,” says Kyle Craig, ISA’s associate director of programs and point person on Sign MFG Day. “Some companies are the first call when a school needs a sign because they have the relationship that comes through Sign MFG Day. Beyond that, they are able to make connections with students straight out of high school or technical schools.”

“Through the years, companies have had students complete a job application at the end of the day.”

With the program’s longevity, some companies now have employees leading their Sign MFG Day efforts who first connected as students on a tour. While participating companies largely reach out within their own communities, in 2024, ISA started marketing the event to career and technical educators at the national level to raise awareness. Nearly two dozen educators asked ISA to help coordinate a tour for their students. “We found the same thing with teachers,” Craig says. “We heard, ‘I’d never thought of this as a career path for my students.’”

Sign mfg abc’s: North American Sign’s Jameson Parker (center) discusses manufactured letters.

Forging Relationships and Leaders

Sign MFG Day is more than just one day on the calendar. It’s the start of a relationship between a sign company, students and educators. Through the years, companies have had students complete a job application at the end of the day. They’ve built relationships with educators who can send future hires their way. Some have developed internships, co-ops or job-shadowing opportunities.

Allen Industries now participates in job fairs at local schools and works to “keep the doors open by showing people who we are, what we do and what we offer to the community,” Davis says. “I know there are a lot of skilled people out there desperately looking for work. If they know who we are, we’d have more people knocking. If the kids are talking, maybe by word of mouth, it will get them in the door and interested.”

new school: Some students have gone on to become employees at participating signshops.

Touring students get to see a fully working manufacturing facility with some safety parameters in place, Davis says. “We’re not shutting down the shop. We’re creating lanes, putting barriers up in places and reminding workers, ‘Don’t weld when you see the kids walk through.’ We want them to see exactly what this is.”

Still, there is an impact on day-to-day operations. Ensign says commitment from staff is needed to pull off the day — but that it has paid off.

At Legacy, workers conduct the tours, Ensign says. “It’s not something they get to do every day. I saw them really blossom in being able to showcase what they do day in and day out. I saw new leadership potential come out of these individuals from just walking some students around.”

After Sign MFG Day 2024 ended, his employees were already discussing “areas we can improve,” Ensign says. “They were already starting to brainstorm. It’s a day they enjoy, and they want to see that through to the next year.”

Participating in the event “improved morale,” says Shaun O’Brien, Legacy’s co-founder and CEO. “You have time to get your shop cleaned up and everything looks nice and clean. It’s not just one day. The morale stays high for a while after.”

old school: Even the teachers find Sign MFG Day interesting at an Allen Industries’ event.

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