AIST Grant Supports Teaching Industry 4.0
MMET Assistant Professor David Labyak received a $25,000 Steel Curriculum Development Grant from the Association for Iron and Steel Technology (AIST). Dr. Paul Sanders (MSE), Dr. Nathir Rawashdeh (AC), and Dr. John Irwin (MMET) are co-PIs. The team will use the award to teach Industry 4.0 to MET students in pilot-scale metal/steel processing facilities at Michigan Tech.
Michigan Tech CTE Offers a Seamless Transition from High School to College
Last fall Michigan Tech launched a year-long Career and Technical Education (CTE) program for high school juniors and seniors in the area of mechatronics. The partnership allows local students a seamless transition from high school to college. The program is offered through a partnership between Michigan Tech and the Copper Country Intermediate School District (CCISD).
This fall, Dr. John Irwin received funding from CCISD to support the two MS Mechatronics students who prepare, teach and administer the program. The CCISD provides a total of $40,000 per year from local millage funds to support the delivery of the program. “Our hope is that upon completion of the program students will enroll in mechanical engineering technology and/or applied computing degree programs at Michigan Tech,” says Irwin.
The CTE program utilizes facilities in Michigan Tech’s EERC building for specialized training. Courses take place from 10:15 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. each day.
MiLEAP: Getting Michigan Back to Work
Last summer a $1,695,000 grant was awarded to Upper Peninsula Michigan Works! to help UP residents transition from short-term education programs to high-wage employment. The funding from Michigan Learning and Education Advancement (MiLEAP) will implement innovative, short-term, customized education and training programs in manufacturing and healthcare, with the goal of assisting over 450 participants from across Michigan’s Upper Peninsula who have been impacted by COVID-19.
Michigan Tech contracted $61,703 for the MMET department led by Dr. John Irwin, and $61,703 for the Advanced Power Systems Research Center (APSRC) Mobile Lab, directed by Dr. Jeremy Worm (ME-EM).
MiLEAP aligns with the state of Michigan’s “60 by 30” goal: to increase the number of working-age adults with a skill certificate or college degree to 60% by 2030.
More details about specific training opportunities will be coming soon from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity’s Office of Employment and Training. Opportunities will be available until June 30, 2023. Learn more here.
Parker Donates Funds to Support Parker Motion and Control Lab
John Irwin, MMET Professor and Chair, received $8,500, a grant from Parker Motion and Control Lab Upkeep, in support of MMET Applied Fluid Power courses at Michigan Tech.
The upkeep funds have been allocated for a hydraulic platform, hydraulic pump, and hoses to expand the teaching labs in the Parker Motion and Controls Lab. An order has been placed with Triad Technologies for early February 2022 delivery, so that the new equipment can be used in the MMET Applied Fluid Power course. The course is available as a technical elective for students working toward BS and MS degrees in either Mechanical Engineering and Mechatronics, as well as MET majors.
“Fluid power engineering is growing in the US and globally, which is one of the conclusions of the recent 2021 NFPA Industry Brief,” says Irwin. “According to the brief, fluid power has a major downstream economic impact. It is estimated that the top industries that depend on fluid power represent thousands of companies in the United States, employing more than 845,000 people for an annual payroll of more than $60 billion.”