Bishop State’s new Center for Advanced Manufacturing Technology prepares students for next-generation careers in Alabama’s Port City
Officials cut the ribbon at Bishop State Community College's grand opening of the Gene Haas Center for Advanced Manufacturing Technology. (Allanah Taylor / Alabama News Center)
A new, advanced-skills training facility at Bishop State Community College in Mobile has local business leaders thrilled about its capabilities, and industry recruiters excited about showing it off.
Local leaders recently celebrated the grand opening of Bishop State’s Center for Advanced Manufacturing Technology. The event included Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson, Mobile County Commissioner Mercia Ludgood, Mobile Chamber President and CEO Bradley Byrne and a number of industry professionals and honorees.
“In this new facility we have programs such as 3D printing, computer-aided drafting, electrical engineering technology, additive and subtractive manufacturing, mechatronics, robotics and process technology,” said Olivier Charles, Bishop State president. “You will get to see a building today, but more importantly you will get to see the direction that Bishop State is going, and all of the impact we are having and will continue to have on this community.”
The new Gene Haas Center for Advanced Manufacturing Technology is a pivotal milestone for STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) education and advanced manufacturing at not only Bishop State, but for the city of Mobile.
“Nobody has it over Mobile right now when it comes to advanced manufacturing training and other aspects of training that is going on at Bishop State,” Stimpson said.
A sense of pride and accomplishment was palpable among those present at the grand opening of the state-of-the-art facility.
Reggie Sykes, former Bishop State president, said a goal that stemmed from a dream 27 years ago was to create a facility to meet the demands for manufacturing jobs in Mobile County, and they did just that.
Byrne said the number one question Chamber officials are asked is, “Where is my workforce coming from?” Now, he said, there’s a facility to show local and prospective businesses where the people they need can obtain the skills to do the job.
To learn more about the Gene Haas Center for Advanced Manufacturing Technology, click here.
