MCCC’s new technology center is not scheduled to begin construction until July, but a bevy of people got their first glimpse of what the new technology center would look like, as well as what it would offer.
“A lot of paperwork needs to be completed at the state and local level,” Peter Coomar, dean of the Industrial Technology Division, said.
“It should take 14 months from start of project to finish.”
The 71,300-square foot facility, which will take approximately $17 million to construct, will include many classes. Ten of them were on display during the X-Tech event on Wednesday April 20.
“A state of the art facility that will prepare residents of the region and county in particular for the 21st century jobs,” Coomar said.
“This is a long-anticipated need, not a want.”
During the four-hour open house, attendees were encouraged to do things such as weld various metals, draw with the CAD (computer aided-design) equipment, and run certain state-of-the-art machine tools.
In the product and process technology classroom, every person who stopped by to see what Professor Bob Leonard and his class were doing was given a keychain made by students.
DTE Energy was also on hand at the X-Tech event. They provided information for people that are interested in a career in nuclear engineering technology.
An outline regarding the new nuclear engineering program was made available to people who attended.
The outline included classes that accumulated to a total number of 68 credit hours over five semesters – an average of over 13.5 credit hours per semester.
“All existing programs including new ones in the area of Green Construction, Alternative Energy, Nuclear Engineering Technology, Automotive Service and Engineering,” Coomar said.
