Hydrotech partners with Cincinnati State to combat manufacturing skills gap
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 27, 2015
CONTACT
Robert White
Media Relations/Communications Coordinator
(513) 569-4775 (office)
(859) 468-6640 (cell)
robert.white@cincinnatistate.edu
Jim Pickrell
Hydrotech Inc.
(513) 881-7000
Hydrotech, Inc. partners with Cincinnati State
to combat manufacturing skills gap
Donation will help build modern manufacturing skills in Cincinnati
Hydrotech, Inc., a Cincinnati-based fluid power and motion automation solutions provider, has donated four brand-new hydraulic training stands to Cincinnati State Technical and Community College.
The training assemblies, valued at $30,000 per unit, will be used by students in Cincinnati State’s Mechanical Engineering Technologies program.
Announcement of the donation came during a groundbreaking ceremony Friday (July 24) for an expansion of Hydrotech’s headquarters and production facilities in West Chester Township.
This marks the second major donation of lab equipment by Hydrotech, Inc. to Cincinnati State in the past year. In 2014 the company donated pneumatic training stands to the same program at the College.
“These students may be working for us someday or for one of our local clients or partners,” said Pete Jones, Hydrotech CEO. “It’s a blessing to us that we can help them develop the crucial skills necessary to be successful. Cincinnati State has a wonderful program that’s dedicated to advancing manufacturing in this area. Everyone can benefit from that.”
More than 75% of manufacturers nationwide report a moderate to severe shortage of skilled resources, according to a 2014 Manufacturing Skills and Training Study conducted by Accenture in conjunction with The Manufacturing Institute. This has encouraged employers to work with colleges and universities to ensure these institutions have not only the necessary curriculum to create employable graduates but also the equipment to simulate today’s modern manufacturing environments.
“It’s like going from an original IBM to an iPhone”
The four hydraulic training stands donated by Hydrotech to Cincinnati State form a system where students can test and train different scenarios they may encounter in the fluid power industry.
Between 300 and 350 students will use these stands per year. Cincinnati State’s Mechanical Engineering program trains two-year technicians who will eventually work in field or factory environments, designing components used to produce materials or products. These components are often designed on software and then tested in the factory. For these students, the hydraulic training stands provide that factory testing without leaving campus.
“I let them start on the old equipment, then put them on the new stuff,” said Prof. David Simmermon, a Cincinnati State faculty member who uses the lab frequently in his classes. “They can create so many more circuits and have a better understanding of new versus old technology. It’s like working on an original IBM personal computer and then switching to an iPhone.”
Cincinnati State President O’dell M. Owens said the Hydrotech donation is most welcome. It comes at a time when revenue is scarce for capital equipment of this type. Fortunately, Dr. Owens said, Cincinnati State has been able to turn to industry partners such as Hydrotech to keep its labs and programs up to date.
For information about Cincinnati State’s Mechanical Engineering Technologies program, please visit www.cincinnatistate.edu/real-world-academics/academics/center-for-innovative-technologies.
For more information about Hydrotech and its line of hydraulic training stands, please visit www.hydrotech.com.
ABOUT CINCINNATI STATE
Cincinnati State (www.cincinnatistate.edu) offers more than 130 associate degree and certificate programs in business technologies, health and public safety, engineering technologies, humanities and sciences and information technologies. Cincinnati State has one of the most comprehensive co-op programs among two-year colleges in the U.S.
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