{"id":4610,"date":"2023-12-06T12:34:48","date_gmt":"2023-12-06T17:34:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.r3a.com\/?p=4610"},"modified":"2023-12-07T16:03:32","modified_gmt":"2023-12-07T21:03:32","slug":"digital-foundry-at-new-kensington-receives-pa-grant-to-kick-off-manufacturing-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.r3a.com\/news\/digital-foundry-at-new-kensington-receives-pa-grant-to-kick-off-manufacturing-week\/","title":{"rendered":"Digital Foundry at New Kensington Receives PA Grant to Kick Off Manufacturing Week"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Originally posted on October 10, 2023 at https:\/\/www.psu.edu\/news\/impact\/story\/new-kensington-digital-foundry-receives-pa-grant-kick-manufacturing-week\/<\/em><\/p>\n

NEW KENSINGTON, Pa. \u2014 Gwen Ross, director of workforce development for the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED), celebrated \u201cManufacturing Week\u201d on Oct. 6 by announcing a $200,000 grant to boost the skill sets of individuals participating in training at Penn State New Kensington’s\u00a0Digital Foundry at New Kensington<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Gov. Josh Shapiro\u00a0<\/strong>proclaimed<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0<\/a><\/strong>Manufacturing Week in Pennsylvania from Oct. 6-13<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0to recognize and highlight the vital role manufacturers have in making the commonwealth the sixth largest economy in the U.S.<\/p>\n

Penn State New Kensington<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is receiving the new\u00a0Manufacturing PA Training-to-Career<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(MTTC) grant to support the Digital Foundry\u2019s learning programs. The 15,044-square-foot innovation and manufacturing lab space helps individuals and companies build future-ready awareness and skill sets for the manufacturing industry through exposure to state-of-the-art digital technologies.<\/p>\n

\u201cManufacturing has always been the backbone of our economy, and Penn State New Kensington is the perfect place to kick off Manufacturing Week as the Shapiro administration works to make Pennsylvania an economic powerhouse,\u201d said Ross. \u201cGov. Shapiro is passionate about giving Pennsylvanians more opportunities to follow their own path to success. Our investment in the Digital Foundry at New Kensington will help students learn the special skills they need to become leaders in the manufacturing industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are various levels of Penn State certificate\u00a0training that can be attained at the Digital Foundry at New Kensington<\/strong><\/a>. Entry-level training covers the fundamentals of design and development, manufacturing, quality, industrial safety, and the building blocks of digital manufacturing. Other training includes components of digital manufacturing essentials as well as deeper dives for manufacturing professionals to learn more advanced techniques and skills. The Digital Foundry also provides FANUC-certified automation training covering programming and operation of industrial robots in manufacturing.<\/p>\n

\u201cDCED was the first agency to provide grant funding for our workforce training programs, and we are thrilled that they are continuing to support our goals here in southwestern Pennsylvania,\u201d said Kevin Snider, chancellor of Penn State New Kensington. \u201cWe will be able to further strengthen and expand upon the success we\u2019ve seen in our first 16 months through our Penn State certificate programs. Our Digital Foundry is just one shining example of our University\u2019s impact and land-grant mission at work here in Pennsylvania.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Digital Foundry at New Kensington\u2019s training programs were started in 2021 with help from a previous MTTC grant of $186,446. Nearly 100 students were trained through this initial round of the program, exceeding its initial target goal of 50 students. Other successes during the Foundry’s first year of programming noted by Snider include:<\/p>\n