Forging the Future Industry bands together to address emerging technology trends. By / Jessica Kirby • Photos courtesy of SMWTC
Reprinted with permission from the March 2020 issue of Partners in Progress. Visit pinp.org to subscribe and learn more about labour-management success.
The Sheet Metal Workers Training Center (SMWTC)
has taken the leap into a technology-driven future with the support of SMACNA-BC’s contractor members. The centre participated in a project called, “Technology and an Inclusive Workforce: Forging our Future Sheet Metal Industry,” which was developed among industry partners including SMANCA, SMART, the ITI, and several others. Funded through the government’s Union Training and Innovation Program (UTIP), this federal cost-sharing initiative was developed to improve the success of sheet metal workers using new equipment and to address emerging technology trends in the sheet metal industry. “We have implemented several pieces of equipment and software that will help apprentices stay abreast of the latest offered in training and work and ensure they are prepared to help their contractor employers stay profitable and productive,” says SMWTC Training Co-ordinator, Jud Martell. Through the program, SMWTCS apprentices and journeys will have access to and benefit from training on a mobile elevated work platform simulator, virtual reality/augmented welding technology, and fan service equipment for new a specialty training course.
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Sheet Metal Journal
The center’s welding equipment will also be upgraded to harmonize with technological changes to the welding process. Learning the equipment takes place using augmented reality in which the learning components are added to actual reality. “When the user looks through the screen they can see the world,” says Martell. “When you turn on the machine, it adds the welding points, equipment, and materials to create welding situations in your real world.”
