Ask anyone higher up in manufacturing today—like Brian Coglianese, the quality manager and management representative of Helander Metal Spinning Co.—and they’ll tell you a similar story: Recruiting top talent, especially younger post-high school students, is increasingly difficult.

It’s known collectively as the manufacturing skills gap. A recent study by Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute estimates that some 2.1 million U.S. jobs could go unfilled by 2030 if something isn’t done to reverse the trend. The cost of such a shortfall is staggering, ballparked at $1 trillion. To put that figure in perspective, $1 trillion is about the same as the 2021 gross domestic product of Indonesia or Netherlands. (Or the equivalent of two Irelands or two Thailands if you’re keeping score.)

The reasons behind the skills gap are varied. But the primary drivers are:

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