CPD division offers training CNC, industrial maintenance, and millwright.
There’s an area of San Jacinto College that specializes in creating courses at the request of companies.
Instructor Steve McGinley demonstrates how students train in Computer Numeric Control (CNC) using equipment often used in industry at San Jacinto College.
Jeannie Peng-Armao, San Jacinto College.
“If they want a specific class for their employees, we’ll do our best to make it happen,” says Jerelyn Hughes-Glenn, director of computers/IT training with the College’s Continuing and Professional Development division, commonly known as CPD.
The CPD division offers the workforce training programs in computers/IT, applied technology and trades, business and professions, maritime, and health occupations. The model of the division is to train individuals, get them employed, then have them revisit the College at a later date for more training to move up the career ladder.
Three examples of how this process works include the millwright, industrial maintenance, and computer numeric control (CNC) courses.
Computer Numeric Control (CNC)
CNC is the computerized shaping and cutting of material, and nearly every facet of manufacturing is affected by sophisticated CNC machines. The CNC training offered through the College’s CPD division is designed to introduce students to the ever-growing manufacturing industry.
Courses include Introduction to CNC, equaling 64 hours of training, and Intermediate CNC, equaling 96 hours of training. Students will learn the machine’s most basic components, its directions of motion, the tools that come with the machine, the programmable functions included with the machine and how to program those functions.
CNC courses can be offered during the day or at night and to company employees or individuals who want to learn how to use G and M codes for writing programs for the CNC lathes and mills and CNC turning centers and CNC machining centers.
“After these courses, an individual would be able to get an entry-level job in the part manufacturing machine shop,” said Hughes-Glenn. “He or she will also have a certificate that is widely recognized at machine shops.”
Some of the job titles for those trained in CNC include helpers, tool setters, operators, programmers, service technicians and application engineers. The median hourly wage for a person working in CNC is $22.84, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Millwrights and industrial maintenance
Millwrights install, dismantle, or move machinery and heavy equipment according to layout plans, blueprints, or other drawings. They can make an average of $24.26, according to the BLS, and work in a variety of industries like building equipment contractors; pulp, paper, and paperboard mills; commercial and industrial machinery and equipment; sawmills and wood preservation; electric power generation, transmission, and distribution; and motor vehicle manufacturing.
Dr. J.D. Taliaferro, director of applied technologies and trades with Continuing and Professional Development at San Jacinto College, shows the millwright equipment that will be used for training in Fall 2016.
Photo credit: Jeannie Peng-Armao, San Jacinto College.
Their work is closely related to industrial maintenance technicians, whose annual wage of $42,110 varies upon the industries in which a person works and exceeds the average of other occupations, according to the BLS. Maintenance techs can work within a plant to install and maintain machines, mechanical equipment, and buildings. They may work on plumbing, electrical, and air-conditioning and heating systems, and more.
The applied technologies and trades program with the College’s CPD division currently offers training in industrial maintenance levels 1 and 2. Level 3 will be offered in the summer. The millwright program will kick off in Fall 2016. All courses are certified by the National Center for Construction Education and Research, commonly known as NCCER throughout industries.
“There are two career paths for industrial maintenance: Working directly as a maintenance technician for a petrochemical facility or other equipment-heavy industry or working as a contractor in a petrochemical facility,” said Dr. J.D. Taliaferro, director of applied technologies and trades with CPD. “A millwright works for contractors and do the initial installation of industrial equipment. Plant expansions require many millwrights, so this is why they are in such high demand.”
Both Taliaferro and Hughes-Glenn agree that once a person is employed, continued training becomes essential to staying current in fields that include ever-changing technology.
“Employers look for workers who are keeping up with their training, and they’ll know when someone is behind,” said Taliaferro. “Many people who have all the training and experience are looking at retirement, and it’s important to have people trained to step up and replace them. We offer training to fill those skill gaps.”
Grant assistance for training is available for companies and individuals who qualify. An example is the recent Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) $135,838 Skills Development Fund grant that enables San Jacinto College to train 148 new and incumbent workers with DuPont Bayport Plant and PolyOne Corp.
Other grants include the H-1 B Gulf Coast Ready to Work Petrochemical grant, funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, and the TWC small business grant for businesses with one to 99 employees.
To find out more information about millwright, maintenance, and CNC training visit www.sanjac.edu/cpd.
About the Continuing and Professional Development division
This division at San Jacinto College provides continuing education and training for both current and future employees in the professional and technical job sectors, as well as provides the public with noncredit open enrollment course options to enhance their lives. Professional and technical training is available through contract training, open enrollment, and grant funding. For more information, call 281-476-1838 or visit the Continuing and Professional Development division website.
– Jeannie Peng-Armao