The new Advanced Manufacturing Center at Blue Ridge Community College may be a secret weapon for drawing new industry to the Shenandoah Valley.
The $8-million facility is filled with high-tech training modules and working industrial systems that give students experience in a variety of manufacturing jobs. Representatives from 15 valley industries like Hershey, Merck and Coors helped develop the classes and choose the equipment.
That partnership extends beyond the Weyers Cave campus. Advanced Technology Instructor Jim Leech said, "I take my students at least once a quarter to visit companies in the Valley that are doing things similar to what we have been studying in class. So one of the things that we've tried to do is reinforce as quickly as possible their academic training with actual field experience."
The training center is in the middle of a soft opening and should be ready to offer a full slate of classes this summer.
