Caterpillar Expands Workforce Initiative to Arkansas to Strengthen Pathways to Manufacturing Careers

Caterpillar Expands Workforce Initiative to Arkansas to Strengthen Pathways to Manufacturing Careers

• Investment will focus on making training more accessible, defining what skills are needed for future jobs and connecting individuals to careers in modern manufacturing
• The Academies of Central Arkansas, University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College and Little Rock Regional Chamber to help advance the effort

IRVING, Texas, Aug. 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT), alongside Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, today announced the launch of its workforce commitment in Arkansas, marking another meaningful step in its five-year, $100 million Building the Future Workforce Initiative. With an allocation of up to $3 million, the funding aims to prepare Arkansas workers for jobs in modern manufacturing and industry technician roles.

"Every community has the talent to build a strong manufacturing workforce. Investments like this can help create more opportunities for that talent to grow and succeed," said Christy Pambianchi, Caterpillar's chief human resources officer. "Arkansas has exciting momentum within our industry, and this commitment will help build the training pathways and programs needed to prepare workers for the modern manufacturing careers that lie ahead."

Arkansas as a Strategic Manufacturing State 
As Caterpillar places growing emphasis on strengthening U.S. manufacturing capabilities, Arkansas represents an opportunity for growth, and the state's rising potential made it a natural fit for this investment. Caterpillar employs more than 530 people in Arkansas and works with 60 suppliers across the state.

"You can't build the industries of tomorrow without building the workforce to power them," said Gov. Sanders. "Caterpillar understands that the future of manufacturing depends on investing in people just as much as technology. By connecting training directly to the needs of employers, this initiative will give more Arkansans the skills to step into good-paying careers and give businesses another reason to invest, expand, and create jobs in our state."

In North Little Rock, Caterpillar's facility opened in 2010 as a dedicated motor grader plant and later expanded to add medium wheel loader and paving products to the product line. The facility is also embracing modern manufacturing technologies to improve efficiency, quality, velocity and cost and has established itself as a safety leader and an early adopter of technologies to keep team members safe. 

Caterpillar's commitment helps strengthen collaboration among Arkansas training institutions, students, employers and other key community-based organizations to ensure individuals have access to affordable, relevant training that supports career advancement. The initiative seeks to expand hands-on manufacturing pathways for students, increase technical training capacity across the region, and deepen employer engagement through collaborations with leading organizations, including the University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College, Little Rock Regional Chamber and Academies of Central Arkansas.

This marks the fifth allocation for this initiative, which includes launches in Indiana, Texas and Illinois, and an innovation challenge. For more information on how these funds are upskilling talent for manufacturing and industry technician roles, and to stay up to date on future announcements, visit the Caterpillar Building the Future Workforce Initiative.

About Caterpillar
For more than a century, Caterpillar has built a better, more sustainable world. With 2025 sales and revenues of $67.6 billion, Caterpillar Inc. is shaping the future as the world's leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and diesel-electric locomotives. Backed by one of the largest independent global dealer networks and financing services through Cat Financial, the company's primary business segments: Power & Energy, Construction Industries and Resource Industries are solving customers' toughest challenges through commercial excellence and advanced technology, driven by a highly skilled, dedicated global team. Learn more at www.caterpillar.com. 

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SOURCE Caterpillar Inc.