“They do not realize the benefits of them–or understand where they might be useful. “Too often, manufacturers do not have the knowledge to effectively implement many of these technologies,” he said. But you can test and try new things here–and learn what works and what doesn’t work for a particular manufacturing problem without any risks to real-life production.”Ĭentea added that many traditional manufacturing outfits, especially smaller organizations, are intrigued by the potential of Industry 4.0 yet wary of large investments into these newer technologies. You can’t do research into new methods or embedded systems in a working factory. “You can’t go into a real-world factory and try a new automation system with disrupting production. “One of the largest benefits of a learning factory is that it is a safe environment to do testing of new technologies,” said Dan Centea, professor of mechanical engineering and head of McMaster University’s Learning Factory in Canada. Listen to a Podcast on Preparing the Workforce for Digital Transformation It’s a win-win: Manufacturers can try new things and students get the opportunity to do hands-on work with different “smart” technologies before matriculating. Industry players often sponsor specific projects to test innovative ideas, devices, and automation processes before committing to any big changes. Yet, having such large-scale facilities at prominent engineering universities, supported by vital industry partnerships, allows both academia and industry to keep up with the latest and greatest technologies and grow into Industry 4.0 in a rather symbiotic way. To date, large manufacturing companies like Siemens and Pratt & Whitney have created small learning factories within their own operations to train their workforce, as well as a few choice engineering interns each summer. “With our new facility, we hope to not only introduce the technology to our students–but produce change agents that can go out into the manufacturing world and really help usher in these new processes.” “We are generating a new workforce that understands what’s involved in transitioning from Industry 3.0 to Industry 4.0,” he explained. The new facility is expected to open in August 2022 and start welcoming students the following spring semester. Grant Richards, assistant professor of practice in the School of Engineering Technology, who, with professor of engineering technology, Ragu Athinarayanan, is leading the development of a new learning factory at Purdue University, said they are hoping to fill that gap by getting undergraduates into their “cyber-physical manufacturing environment” on day one. Manufacturing Blog: Engineers Needed to Fill AI Tool Gaps
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Industry 4.0 is just a natural way to build those kinds of collaborations, so our students are ready to work with these technologies.”Īs more manufacturing organizations become interested in integrating machine learning, cloud computing, the Internet of Things (IoT), embedded software systems, and other next-generation technologies on to the factory floor, they are finding a lack of skilled engineers to help them do so. “Manufacturing, as an industry, is looking for engineers who can work in this kind of multidisciplinary space, yet, historically, it was a challenge to find ways for mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, and computer science to work together.
“These innovative technologies require a deepened engagement across different disciplines,” said Matthew Parkinson, a mechanical engineering professor and director of Penn State’s Learning Factory. Today, however, it provides unique, hands-on training opportunities for both students and manufacturing workers–offering a foundation in the automation and “smart” manufacturing methods that underlie Industry 4.0. Gordon Learning Factory more than a quarter-century ago, it was primarily a machine shop to support mechanical and industrial engineering students as they worked on their senior Capstone projects. When Pennsylvania State University opened the Bernard M.
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