College Hosts Manufacturing Challenge Competition at Center for Advanced Manufacturing Skills
November 15, 2019
Teams of Hudson Valley Community College students and alumni participated in the Next Generation Manufacturing Challenge Series Team Challenge on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 8 and 9, in the new Gene F. Haas Center for Advanced Manufacturing Skills (CAMS).
Manufacturing competencies within the modern workforce are interdependent, and employees must be cross-trained in multiple areas to meet evolving business needs. The challenge, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense, mirrors the modern workforce by pairing training with technology. Teams are required to design, manufacture, assemble and test equipment and compete in machining and welding skill areas. The theme of the competition was “Manufacturing in our DNA.” For this event, two teams, composed of present and former Hudson Valley students, competed in a 5-axis machining competition to create a trophy and stand, and also machined a surprise project during the competition.
The teams will now go on to participate in the regional competition during the summer of 2020. The winner of that event will have a chance to go on to the finals at the 2020 Chicago Machine Tool Show, where the winners can be awarded more than $25,000.
On Friday, during the competition, students from the Brooklyn STEAM Center and Pine Bush High School visited to tour the new Gene F. Haas Center for Advanced Manufacturing Skills, which opened in late August. This $14.5 million, 37,000-square-foot facility will allow the college to double enrollment to 288 students in the Advanced Manufacturing Technology (A.O.S.) degree program and meet an urgent workforce demand for skilled manufacturing employees in the region. The program trains students for careers as CNC machinists, tool makers and industrial technicians, along with marketing, sales, procurement and supervisory jobs. It is the only community college training program of its kind within 125 miles and has a 100 percent job placement rate for graduates, with nearly all students securing work prior to graduation.
