Superintendent Mr. Gibson was selected to be part of a 30-person educators delegation to visit Amatrol's training facility in Jeffersonville, Indiana to learn more about their Electric Vehicle (EV) curriculum. Amatrol is a global leader in online career and technical education (CTE) courses and their equipment is what our students currently train on in our Industry 4.0 lab.
Industry 4.0 technologies are rapidly transforming how people work in manufacturing, engineering, and other industries. These technologies help companies become more productive by connecting cloud-based and mobile data analytics software to smart devices. Industry 4.0 integrates the cyber world and the physical world of robotics, CNC machining, programmable controllers, and mechatronics. The networking of machines and devices with the cloud-based storage of the Internet has led to the term “industrial Internet of things.”
Gibson made the trip in early September 2023, attending as part of Governor DeWine's Ohio Electric Vehicle (EV) Workforce Strategy group. The group's goal is to strengthen and build Ohio’s advanced manufacturing workforce through educational opportunities. "The trip to Amatrol was a great experience; it provided an opportunity to meet with and discuss workforce development in Ohio with a variety of individuals that represent universities, community colleges, and technical centers across the state," Gibson says. "The information presented by Amatrol helped confirm that the Brookfield Local School District is approximately 80% ready to train students specifically for Ohio's fast growing EV Manufacturing workforce demands."
Students at Brookfield High School are already gaining valuable career technical education within our Industry 4.0 and robotics lab. Also known as the fourth industrial revolution, Industry 4.0 is characterized by computer-controlled machines, intelligent devices, and sensors interconnected in communication networks to coordinate operations, analyze data, and interact with the system from remote locations, often via the Internet. Students in this class have an opportunity to become SACA certified at the silver or gold level. The Smart Automation Certification Alliance (SACA), is a non-profit organization with the mission to develop and deploy modular Industry 4.0 certifications for a wide range of industries. Those who earn the certification can leave high school ready to be employed in the industry.
Adding an EV component to our already robust Industry 4.0 curriculum would provide Brookfield students with one more career training opportunity and keep them on the leading edge of technology.