Above: artist's rendering of the Center for Energy Conservation and Advanced Manufacturing. Beyond Borders Center Supports New Vision of Manufacturing Milwaukee Area Technical College is moving forward with an applied technology center designed to help business and industry compete in a rapidly changing global marketplace. The planned center for Energy Conservation and Advanced Manufacturing will be a $9 million, 32,500-square-foot addition to MATC’s Oak Creek Campus, 6665 S. Howell Ave. ECAM’s mission: Serve as a model for energy efficiency and manufacturing resource technologies Provide customer-driven services Deliver innovative education and training to support emerging energy and manufacaturing methodologies Develop a new breed of worker geared to continuous change and possessing much higher technical skills “This is an attempt to bundle energy technologies and manufacturing processes together in new and beneficial combinations,” said Vicki Martin, Oak Creek Campus interim vice president. Martin noted that manufacturing is among our economy’s largest consumers of energy. “If we are going to increase the success of manufacturing in southeastern Wisconsin, there is no magic bullet, no single answer. The problem needs to be addressed through a systems approach, drawing on a mix of strategies, including energy conservation and renewable energy strategies,” Martin said. Martin pointed out that process improvement also can promote energy efficiency. “ECAM will help employers through that process, while simultaneously assuming a major role in workforce training. We will be focusing on the high skills needed by the region’s industries in light of a large number of looming retirements.”
		Partnerships That Work The project cleared its final hurdle March 29 with approval by the Wisconsin Technical College System Board. Applied technology centers are public/private partnerships that provide workforce development and help industries grow. The Wisconsin Technical College System Board has established a process to allow MATC to borrow up to $5 million to develop ECAM, contingent on a 30
percent level ($2.2 million) of private investment. MATC has received cash and technology pledges in excess of $4 million, but continues to raise money aggressively with the goal of maximizing ECAM's usefulness to employers and high-tech training. “Our fund-raising progress has been encouraging,” said Robert Hartung, vice president of college advancement. “We’ve been asking companies to give us their best thinking and help us develop this facility in a way that really meets their needs. They are telling us that something like this is needed desperately.” “We want employers to help us plan the basic elements of this facility,” Martin said. “To make sure it works for them, they have to be engaged at ground level.”
Specialized Facilities Plans for ECAM include five dedicated teaching and learning labs: Advanced Manufacturing Technology and Welding HVAC Digital Control Energy Solutions Skills Assessment and Certification Advanced Software Applications Each will address different aspects of the twin problems of employee productivity and operational efficiency. Educationally, the center will offer associate degree programs, apprenticeship training, journeyperson upgrading and certificates. The center also will provide just-in-time customized training aimed at upgrading targeted skills needed by individual companies.
In 2004, the Wisconsin Technical College System conducted a statewide series of focus group interviews with manufacturers. What emerged was recognition by the industry that it needs an image makeover in order to attract the right kind of future employees. Ability to work cooperatively as part of a team emerged as the most sought-after attribute, along with higher-level technical skills. “In short, participants seemed to be looking for a new kind of worker,” the focus group report said. “The need to develop individuals who can increasingly think critically, make decisions independently and work productively in teams was strongly emphasized." The report went on to say that employers share a vision about the workplace of the future: It must evolve into more of a knowledge-based culture “in which innovation is encouraged and even expected.” To get involved in the ECAM project or for more information, please contact Vicki Martin, 414-571-4616. Latest news coverage - Business Journal Latest news coverage - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel