Is Machine Technology Education on the Rebound?

Innovative programs like Mastercam’s target CNC training to meet diverse industry needs at Cape Fear Community College

A little over a year ago the Machining Technology program at Cape Fear Community College (CFCC) of Wilmington, NC, was struggling to survive with just five students in two sections. Now the college has added a third section to accommodate the 55 students currently enrolled and is looking forward to more growth during the 2006-07 academic year.

The school’s decision to shift instructional emphasis from traditional machine operating skills to CNC (computer numerical control) programming and machining saved this program. When the outlook for manufacturing turned upwards in 2004, the local manufacturing community and students discovered that CFCC had exactly what they were looking for.

Students are still given a solid foundation in manual machining including metal cutting band saws, drill presses, lathes, milling machines, and surface grinders. However, 60% of the work centers are CNC machines. “For Associate’s Degree candidates, the second year is all CNC,” said instructor, Randy Johnson.

In their second 16-week semester, students take an entry-level CNC programming class covering different types of CNC machines, their controllers, and how to program using G-codes. “During their third semester,” said Johnson, “students become totally immersed in the world of CNC machining when we introduce them to off-line computer automated programming with 160 hours of training in Level I and Level II of Mastercam, a popular Computer-Aided Manufacturing program from CNC Software, Inc. (Tolland, CT).”

The students of the one-year certificate program are not finished until they pass the NOCTI (National Occupational Competency Testing Institute) exam. They must also complete the 6-hour Mastercam Certification exam that includes writing a program for manufacturing a three dimensional, six-sided object.

Both Johnson and his teaching colleague, Ben Bowie, have met the stringent academic and hands-on requirements to become certified Mastercam instructors and administer the national Mastercam exam to their students. While passing the national Mastercam exam is not a Machining Technology Certificate requirement, it is a bonus since certified Mastercam programmers are frequently offered high paying jobs right out of school.

The college also offers standard and custom training programs for a number of local manufacturers. This includes a special initiative with the GE Energy Division and its technical manpower subcontractor, Penpower, to provide technical training to students who will eventually go on to become nuclear power technicians. Currently there are 20 students from this program enrolled in Machining Technology classes. In the future, there could be as many as 100 at any given time. At the other end of the training spectrum, Cape Fear is involved in providing CNC training to high school students for college credit.

Only a year ago, CFCC was weighing the possibility of eliminating one of its three Machining Technology Instructor positions. Today each of the instructors has a heavy workload. “Everyone wants CNC qualified people,” Johnson concluded.

To learn more about Mastercam in the Educational Market, go to www.mastercamedu.com.