A world class skills powerhouse to create leading engineers of the future has officially opened at Furness College.
The £4 million state of the art Advanced Manufacturing and Technology Centre is the first training facility of its kind in Cumbria on the Channelside campus.
It was officially opened by the Chairman of the Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership, George Beveridge, as part of the 10 year strategic economic plan for the area.
The facility will help to meet the growing local demand for highly skilled workers by enabling students to develop skills on real life projects for firms ranging from SMEs to major employers.
Students will be given access to the latest high tech machinery and equipment, learning hub, a metrology lab for the study of materials, industrial size workshop and CAD classrooms.
Opening the new multi million pound site, Beveridge said that it would help more local people gain the qualifications they needed to access new jobs being created in sectors such as advanced manufacturing, nuclear and biopharmaceuticals, as well as providing technology led businesses with a supply of skilled staff.
It will focus on science, technology, engineering and maths related subjects and skills, with a key emphasis on ensuring that the county can fill the many thousands of projected new jobs coming on stream here with fully qualified candidates.
Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership and partners such as Furness College will continue to help accelerate economic growth in the county by ensuring that its workforce has the skills to meet future employer needs. The new centre will certainly help us do that.
Steve McAloone, head of engineering and advanced manufacturing at the college, said it would support Cumbriaâs economic growth strategy and was a âwin-winâ for engineering students and employers.
We want to prepare tomorrowâs engineers and technicians for the workplace and enable current workers to retrain and enhance their skills.
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