PICO

The U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) is now accepting applications for the American Manufacturing Apprenticeship Incentive Fund, created to address the urgent need to grow and modernize the U.S. manufacturing workforce and expand access to high-quality registered apprenticeship programs. Through the program, eligible Registered Apprenticeship sponsors can apply for $3,500 per new apprentice hired. The Incentive Fund will support the expansion of advanced manufacturing Registered Apprenticeships nationwide, including occupations in advanced manufacturing subsectors such as: • Aerospace • Automotive • Biotechnology • Maritime Industrial Defense and Shipbuilding • Supply Chain & Automation • Nuclear Energy • Semiconductors   Learn more and submit an application at: https://lnkd.in/gYJMSt8D   #manufacturing #apprenticeship #ManufacturingWorkforce #AdvancedManufacturing Arkansas Department of Commerce Arkansas Office of Skills Development

You don’t have to rebuild your work instructions from scratch to move into PICO. Steve Wishau walks through how teams standardize what they already have and import it directly into PICO — including structured platforms like DELMIA and Dozuki, plus other existing formats. With our free import template: 🔹 Text, images, and BOM data map directly into PICO 🔹 You can draft in Word, Google Docs, or a text editor 🔹 We convert it to JSON and run it through our API If you’re sitting on structured work instructions today, this is your bridge. Download the free template and see what’s possible: https://bit.ly/4kOORjM

Why does the speed of software implementation matter? Because it directly affects how quickly a customer realizes ROI 💰 Ryan Kuhlenbeck unpacks everything you need for a PICO implementation so you can start error-proofing assembly processes within a few hours. Learn how easy it is ⏬ https://bit.ly/3wtVW44

Manufacturers are #BuildingToWin. National Association of Manufacturers - NAM joining the United for Infrastructure “Building a Stronger America” campaign is a reminder that infrastructure isn’t abstract. It’s what keeps materials moving, products flowing, and projects on schedule. Strong infrastructure supports strong manufacturing. Simple as that. Appreciate NAM continuing to keep that front and center.

U.S. manufacturing added 5,000 jobs in January, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Transportation equipment drove most of the gain, adding about 4,800 jobs. After a stretch of job losses, it’s a modest but notable shift to start 2026. https://bit.ly/4qMUm3Q by Sara Samora via Manufacturing Dive

It's a bit meta, but... We use PICO to ✨ build ✨ PICO. Co-founder and CEO Ryan Kuhlenbeck demonstrates the process. (And, yes, even the CEO takes a turn on the workbench.)

🚨 NEW INTEGRATION: PICO + Jira Quality issues start on the shop floor. That’s why PICO now integrates directly with Atlassian Jira—automating quality ticketing at the moment an issue is discovered. Operators log issues as they build, instantly generating Jira tickets with full manufacturing context. No duplicate entry. No reconstructing issues after the fact. 👉 See the full integration + feature: https://bit.ly/46suSRK

Don't hold onto the past when the future is right in front of you 😉

This week in North American manufacturing: • U.S. lawmakers voted to overturn tariffs on Canadian imports, signaling relief for cross-border supply chains. • Tesla is ramping up hiring to support a 100GW U.S. solar manufacturing ambition. • Pierce Manufacturing is investing $150M to expand fire apparatus production in Florida. • BYD and Geely are finalists to acquire a Nissan–Mercedes plant in Mexico. • The American Chemistry Council approved six new members. Plenty moving across trade, energy, automotive, and chemicals. https://bit.ly/4c361HU via The Manufacturer

One of the most commonly asked questions by customers" 🧐 "What manufacturing KPIs can I capture immediately after deployment?" PICO founder Ryan Kuhlenbeck explains three manufacturing KPIs PICO tracks exceptionally well immediately after deployment: ✅ Cycle time analytics: What actually happened at each station ✅ Station utilization: Where work is flowing vs. waiting ✅ End-to-end traceability: Who did what, where, and with which tools Of course, these aren’t the only manufacturing KPIs to track. But they are the ones we can start capturing instantly, without custom reporting, lengthy configuration cycles, or disrupting operators.