Talk to any leader and ask them what they love about their job. They will say that they are doing the work they were trained for and are learning new things at the same time.
It’s this goal that Purdue Polytechnic Institute, which is part of Purdue University, is pursuing. In January, the Insititute announced that it received support from companies and organizations to create a Smart Manufacturing Industrial Infomatics program. Companies such as Rockwell Automation, Caterpillar, General Mills and Microsoft are supporters of the program, as are organizations including Foundry Education Foundation, International Society of Automation, and the US-DoE Clean Energy Smart Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CESMII).
“We have an ideal collaboration with industry partners, that is one of the first of its kind for a research-based public university,” explains Gary Bertoline, dean of the Purdue Polytechnic Institute. “We created working groups that included faculty and people from industry, and we worked for months on designing the curriculum down to the individual courses including how the lab should be outfitted.”
This attention to detail to ensure that the students have access to cutting-edge technologies is the key to the program, says Bertoline. “By providing hands-on training, we are equipping our students to continue the trajectory of innovation that manufacturing will need for the future,” says Bertoline.
Students will earn a Bachelor of Science degree within the Polytechnic’s ABET-accredited manufacturing engineering technology program. They will use technologies such as IoT, AI, machine learning and integrated enterprise operations.
Some of the courses included in the new bachelor’s degree include:
- Industrial IoT Networks and Systems
- Smart Manufacturing Cloud Computing Applications
- Smart Manufacturing Systems Modeling & Simulation
- Mixed Reality Applications & Design
- Smart Manufacturing Production Information System
- Machine Learning Manufacturing Analytics
- Intelligent Manufacturing Systems
- Additive Manufacturing
- Autonomous Human Robot Systems
As part of this program, an Industrial IoT Lab will be located on campus. It's based on labs that operate on Microsoft campuses across the world. The lab will include movable IoT Carts (that were designed and donated by Microsoft) that offer courses as well as activities.
To provide a diverse population for this program, students from an Institute-supported high school system located in underserved areas will be offered spots in the program. Currently, there are two Purdue Polytechnic High Schools in Indianapolis, one in South Bend with more to come. Students who complete the coursework are guaranteed a spot at Purdue University, which Bertoline points out is no small thing as the university gets 4,000 applications for 900 slots.
Bringing a more diverse population into manufacturing is something that many companies are pushing hard to make a reality. “To meet the needs of tomorrow’s workforce, collaborations between business and academia such as Purdue’s Smart Manufacturing program will enable us to build a diverse pipeline of critical thinkers and problem solvers needed for careers that evolve as fast as technology itself,” Becky House, senior vice president, chief administrative & legal officer at Rockwell Automation said in a statement announcing the program. “We applaud Purdue’s differentiated approach, which directly speaks to needs in the manufacturing industry. This program will increase the diversity of student disciplines, background, and thinking required to produce prepared graduates with key skills.”
Making certain that students graduate with the right skills for manufacturing is Bertoline’s mission. He hopes this program inspires other universities. “This is one of the most incredible collaborations I have ever witnessed,” he says. “These students will be the future manufacturing leaders.”
