ABOVE PHOTO:Students work on a flexible robotic arm in a lab at UW-Stout’s Fryklund Hall, home to the Robert F. Cervenka School of Engineering.
Manufacturing is going high-tech — robots, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, analytics and more to help make and distribute products. It’s called Industry 4.0, or smart automation.
Much of the next generation of the manufacturing workforce won’t make the products but will program and manage the automated systems that do it for them. To address the growing, skilled workforce needs, a first-of-its-kind bachelor’s program, automation leadership, was approved for University of Wisconsin-Stout on June 9 by the UW System Board of Regents. Enrollment is open for the fall semester.
“Industry partners have asserted that their workforces need upskilling in automation leadership and requested this program to fulfill that need,” said Glendali Rodriguez, UW-Stout provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs.
The online program is designed for technical and community college students who have an associate degree and incorporates training in SACA — the Smart Automation Certification Alliance. Students also can begin their career path in high school while taking college credits or, if working in industry, return to school as adult learners to finish their degree.
Matt Kirchner, a national advanced manufacturing expert and SACA board member, said that having worked with educators across the country and world “we can say with full confidence that this degree is the first of its kind – anywhere.
“The integration of industry-backed stackable credentials from the Smart Automation Certification Alliance, the alliances with technical colleges and the hands-on nature of the degree are unmatched,” Kirchner added.
State manufacturers that supported development of the program include Harley-Davidson, Kohler, Mercury Marine, Oshkosh Corp., Ashley Furniture, Generac, Greenheck Group and Plexus, as well as many medium and small manufacturers.
“We consult with advanced manufacturing employers in Wisconsin and throughout the Midwest – from smaller contract manufacturers to the Fortune 500,” Kirchner said. “Almost all of them tell us one of their greatest needs is for team members who understand automation, Industry 4.0, advanced control systems and process optimization and who can integrate highly advanced industrial technology and help lead a company’s digital transformation. People with these skills are in unbelievably high demand. This degree hits the mark with precision and does so in a genuinely innovative fashion.”
Kirchner has 20 years of experience as an advanced manufacturing CEO, is president of ATS/LAB Midwest, a leading distributor of technical education learning materials, and serves on many corporate and nonprofit boards, including SACA. He hosts the weekly TechEd Podcast.
