On Monday, Oct. 14, the UHart campus hosted 24 leaders from the State of Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, Office of Manufacturing, and Connecticut Business & Industry Association as a part of their week-long 2024 Manufacturing Tour.
The group toured CETA’s Center for Manufacturing and Metrology (CMM) where they heard from Dean Hisham Alnajjar about the efforts to prepare graduates for the demands in manufacturing, Director Chittaranjan Sahay about the various workshop offered by the center, and Department Chair Paul Slaboch about the newly accredited program in Aerospace Engineering, the only one in Connecticut. The CMM, built with the support of Pratt & Whitney (P&W), is a strategically designed lab space home to advanced machinery and technology that aims to give professional and students hands-on experience in measurement science that will help them in their careers. Representatives from P&W and industry professionals were on hand in support of the center.
The group of Connecticut leaders also heard about the Barney School of Business’s newest program, Supply Chain and Logistics Management. Dean Aarti Ivanic and program director David Stec talked about how students can take advantage of collaborations across UHart’s colleges as they prepare to enter this high-demand field.
Paul Lavoie, Chief Manufacturing Officer for the state, emphasized the importance of emerging manufacturing technology. He said that by mastering these technologies, UHart students can be a part of the next generation of leaders in the industry.