NIMS and AMT (The Association For Manufacturing Technology) are pleased to announce the launch of the newly updated NIMS Manufacturing and Machine Maintenance, Repair, and Service (MMRS) Updated Standards and Certification Exams for its Level 2 and 3 credentials. The necessary changes were made in response to the availability of new technologies and modernized equipment, which resulted in updated standards and the need for higher level scenario-based final exam questions to be added to the current NIMS exams to validate its new standards.

“AMT has been an industry stakeholder in NIMS since its founding in 1995,” said Greg Jones, AMT Vice President of Smartforce Development, and a member of the NIMS Board of Directors. “AMT supported the update of the MMRS Level II & III standards because we believe that industry-recognized standards and credentials are a necessary tool in assisting companies in recruiting, hiring and retaining a competent workforce and in reducing the overall size of the skills gap in U.S. manufacturing.

With the MMRS standards and credentials, NIMS and AMT seek to assist educators at technical schools in developing programs that lead to career pathways in manufacturing for Field Service Technicians – those individuals who install, maintain and repair state-of-the-art equipment like computer numerical controlled (CNC) machine tools, robotics and automation equipment.

“We look forward to the positive impact that these new standards will have, not only on educational programs, but on the individuals whose lives and career trajectories will change as a result of earning their NIMS credentials”, said Montez King, Executive Director of NIMS.

Members of the AMT Global Service Committee volunteered their expertise in updating the existing MMRS standards, developing additional standards to address advances in technology and equipment, as well as developing and validating scenario-based final exam questions for the new MMRS credentials. The MMRS Level II & III standards build on the foundation of the NIMS Level I standard for Industrial Technology Maintenance.

For more information, contact NIMS at (703) 352-4971, www.nims-skills.org.