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Spartanburg Community College recently installed $500,000 in automated robotics equipment
to bring the latest in smart manufacturing into training programs offered on its SCC
Cherokee County Campus.
The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) made funds available for the college to
provide mechatronics students with training in the latest technology used in an Industry
4.0 system. Mechatronics is a hybrid of mechanical, electrical and computer engineering.
Often called the Internet of Things or smart factories, Industry 4.0 allows students
to use the latest computer applications in robotics and control systems in training
for advanced manufacturing jobs at local industries. The state-of-the-art equipment
was installed at the Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Industrial Technologies
(CAMIT) facility on the local Spartanburg Community College campus.
Spartanburg Community College has the largest mechatronics program in the state. About
400 students are expected to enroll in the specialized program in August.
Major upgrades are being made statewide to train faculty at the 16 technical colleges
in the Siemens Mechatronics System Certification Program. The year-long Level 1 certification
and two-year Level 2 certification programs are designed to produce maintenance and
engineering technicians.
It s not just a local or regional certification, said Jay Coffer, who chairs the
advanced manufacturing department at Spartanburg Community College. This gives our
program and our graduates a global certification that s recognized anywhere in the
world.
The Heritage Classic Foundation, sponsor of the state s lone PGA Tour golf tournament,
has committed $300,000 over the next three years towards faculty training in the South
Carolina Technical College System.
What this funding from the Heritage Classic Foundation is going to allow us to do
is really work to expand this program statewide, Coffer said. We re going to host
the second round of training for instructors the last week of July and the first week
of August.
A $2 million investment will be necessary in the South Carolina Technical College
System to provide the necessary equipment needed for mechatronic programs. Although
the equipment is expensive, Coffer noted program graduates with no experience can
start out earning $40,000 to $50,000 annually at area manufacturing facilities.
This opens a lot of doors for students right here at SCC that they can use anywhere
across the state, or anywhere else they want to go, Coffer said. Now we ve got an
opportunity to spread that to other technical colleges across the state.