ShopBot Tools signed on as a sponsor of the "Manufacturing Makes it Real" Tour. Presented by North Carolina State University's Industrial Extension Service, which recently completed a campaign to produce a billion dollars in economic value for the state of North Carolina, the statewide bus tour will recognize North Carolina manufacturers, their products and their employees.

From Sept. 27 through Oct. 1, the tour will travel to each of the state's seven Economic Development Partnership regions and will stop at two to three sites each day for mini-celebrations. Manufacturers from around the region will be recognized for the products they make and each company will have the opportunity to contribute an item to be presented to the governor at the end of the tour.

VIPs from state and local government, the university system and state organizations will be riding the bus from stop to stop and will help promote the manufacturers and products they see. On the afternoon of the last day of the tour, when the convoy pulls into Raleigh, representatives will deliver to the governor a small sample of items from a few of the 10,000 manufacturing companies in North Carolina.

For information, visit http://mfgmakesitreal.ies.ncsu.edu; www.ies.ncsu.edu; www.ncped.com; and www.shopbottools.com.