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Mobile Tech Lab Comes to Door County Schools

For students interested in manufacturing careers in Door and Kewaunee Counties, their new classroom is on wheels.

The Computer Numeric Control (CNC) Mobile Lab is 44-feet-long, houses 12 workstations and is equipped with industry-standard software as well as a Haas mil and lathe.

The mobile training lab was purchased through a collaboration between several schools, NWTC, the Door Kewaunee Business and Education Partnership, Door County Economic Development Corporation, and local manufacturers.

CNC refers to equipment operated by computer, which today’s manufacturers depend upon, said Bill Chaudoir, executive director of the Door County Economic Development Corporation.

Door Kewaunee Business & Education Partnership (DKBEP) Manager Tara LeClair said that the effort that culminated in the Mobile Lab purchase started in 2009 when a technical education teacher at Southern Door asked for funding to update his lab.

With the high cost of the equipment, Southern Door Superintendent Joe Innis brought the project to DKBEP to see if local school districts could share the equipment and the costs.

While the committee that sprang from Innis’ request originally wanted a “bricks and mortar” CNC regional training facility, LeClair said Northeastern Wisconsin Technical College (NWTC) came up with the idea for the Mobile Lab.

Since then, numerous manufacturers have gotten on board with the project, citing how vital CNC technology is to their businesses and their growing need for employees versed in the technology.

“We’re addressing our workforce need. It’s very important that we get [students] set in the right direction so they have something to fall back on when they leave high school.” ~ Tara LeClair

David Moore, director of manufacturing for NEW Industries, a machined parts manufacturer located in Sturgeon Bay’s industrial park, said a traveling lab makes it more accessible to students and businesses.

NWTC offers CNC programs at its Green Bay and Marinette campuses, which results in graduates getting “gobbled up” by manufacturers based in those places, LeClair said.

“Frankly, we’re losing all these kids…when there are very good opportunities in Door and Kewaunee Counties,” Chaudoir added.

CNC technology is so key to NEW Industries’ business that Moore said, “It literally is everything that we sell.”

The Computer Numeric Control (CNC) Mobile Lab is 44-feet-long, houses 12 workstations and is equipped with industry-standard software as well as a Haas mil and lathe.

Moore said he hopes the Mobile Lab will help dispel myths about today’s manufacturing industry and introduce students not just to a potential job, but a career path.

“We’ve got some employees in their 20s who’ve bought homes, nice cars, boats…and that’s hard to do at that age,” Moore said.

The facility will travel to Sturgeon Bay, Southern Door and Algoma High Schools 36 times throughout each school year. Teachers at those schools became certified to teach college-level courses in CNC machining during the summer, making the Mobile Lab a key part of their classrooms.

LeClair said students who participate in the set of three classes will take the first two at their respective high schools, with the third meeting in the Mobile Lab.

Because the teachers are certified, students who complete the program receive valuable experience, and if they choose, credit toward the CNC programs at NWTC, Chaudoir added.

After the pilot year is completed, the lab will visit seven other schools four times each throughout the year, but because the technical education teachers aren’t certified, students will not be able to take the courses.

The lab was funded through a $250,000 grant from the Bay Area Workforce Development Board. NWTC and Lakeshore Technical College also provided significant amounts of funding, but following this first pilot year, districts will have to pay $10,000 per year to use the Mobile Lab, LeClair said.

The Mobile Lab was unveiled Sept. 12 at Sturgeon Bay High School, and LeClair said the benefits of the lab will add to the local workforce.

“We’re addressing our workforce need,” she said. “It’s very important that we get [students] set in the right direction so they have something to fall back on when they leave high school.”