Workforce Development
NFPA Helping Create More Fluid Power-Educated Tech School Graduates
By Eric Lanke NFPA President/CEO At our recent Annual Conference in Laguna Beach, California, I shared the key ways NFPA is fulfilling its mission to strengthen the fluid power industry. In this, the fourth NFPA News post in this series, I’d like to share some of the things I said regarding NFPA’s objective to…
Read MoreFORCE America Holds 4th Annual Fluid Power Action Challenge
FORCE America recently held their fourth annual Fluid Power Action Challenge at Alexandria Technical and Community College (ATCC). Co-sponsored by BRAAS Company and SMC, this year’s event boasted 17 teams. One middle school teacher from a school that sent four teams to the event had this to say about the experience: “The students learn in-depth…
Read MoreNFPA Continues Endorsement of Manufacturing Day 2019
Manufacturing Day℠ (MFG Day) is an annual celebration of modern manufacturing meant to inspire the next generation of manufacturers. This year’s MFG Day will be Friday, October 4. Again this year, because of its alignment with our workforce development objectives, NFPA will support events related to MFG Day through our own programs and encouraging member…
Read MoreCCEFP Summit Scheduled for October in Madison
Save the date for the next Center for Compact and Efficient Fluid Power (CCEFP) Summit, scheduled for October 22-24, 2019 at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The Summit will cover the latest breakthroughs in fluid power research, including projects supported by the NFPA Research Supplements. Attendees will learn about innovations in energy conversion, storage, fluid power…
Read More2019 Robotics Challenge Scholarship Winner Announced
Noah Santoni of Richardson, Texas, is the winner of the 2019 NFPA Robotics Challenge Scholarship. The scholarship program received 76 applications this year and helps build awareness of fluid power benefits and careers among high school students. This scholarship program awards $40,000 ($10,000 per year for four years) to a high school senior who participates…
Read MoreAction Challenge Grant Helps Promote In-Demand Careers
The NFPA Education and Technology Foundation awards grants of up to $500 per year to middle and high schools to help facilitate hydraulic and pneumatic instruction that introduces students to fluid power technology and career options. Schools can apply for these grants annually, and they can be used either for classroom activities or to help…
Read MoreAction Challenge Enhances Project-Based Learning for Middle Schools
Master Pneumatic held its fifth annual Fluid Power Action Challenge at Macomb Community College this spring. While Master Pneumatic welcomed a new middle school, Detroit Waldorf, to compete this year, Warren Consolidated school district has been participating since the beginning. The director of MMSTC, (MS)2TC, MSVPA, and Special Programs for Warren Consolidated had this to…
Read MoreUniversity Fluid Power Clubs Will Connect Students to Local Industry
NFPA is building resources for students at all grade levels to be educated in fluid power and working to connect these students to NFPA industry members for career information and jobs. Most recently, we have begun helping support fluid power clubs at universities in order for engineering students to explore fluid power in greater depth…
Read MoreMSOE Dedicates New Motion Control Lab
By Eric Lanke NFPA President/CEO On May 13, I attended a dedication event for the new Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) Motion Control Lab. The NFPA Education and Technology Foundation supported the project by giving MSOE a $97,000 Lab Grant in 2013, which they used to rebuild and upgrade the existing lab to reflect…
Read More2019 Vehicle Challenge Students Win Major College Award
After this year’s NFPA Fluid Power Vehicle Challenge, the Director of Senior Design at Cleveland State University (CSU) followed up to share that out of the 75 projects on display at Cleveland State’s 2019 Senior Design Symposium and poster competition, this year’s Cleveland State Vehicle Challenge team won! Seven industry reps representing each of the…
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