Burnley College and Themis to expand Centre of Engineering Excellence

Burnley College and Themis are taking progressive action to address the local skills shortages within advanced engineering and manufacturing.

The College is expanding its existing Centre of Engineering Excellence and Construction Learning and Training Centre in a significant growth project which will see a 95 per cent increase in site space.

The build is a significant investment from the College to support advanced manufacturing employers and an opportunity to put Pennine Lancashire at the forefront of industry innovation and development.

The aim of the facility is to address the skills shortages by providing industry specific, advanced training, developed in parallel with the rapid pace of technological development within Advanced Manufacturing.

The Centre is set to include a host of new industry advanced manufacturing equipment, including 3D printing and ‘Faro Arm’ with laser line scanning. The development will also include new workshops and training zones, a state of the art CAD/CAM drawing suite, a composite materials clean-room, aircraft fitting and sheet-metal sections and a viewing gallery.

The College expects the expansion to significantly increase all arms of its training and development division including Apprenticeships, further education, university learning and industry training.

Local employers have been instrumental in the project’s development and continue to consult with the College as the development takes shape.

This partnership has ensured the build is suitably equipped for employer needs in a rapidly developing modern workplace. Local employers have advised the College on sourcing specialist equipment essential to the ongoing relevance and effectiveness of the training provided.

Kris Mercer from Darwen based WEC Group says: “The expansion of the Centre of Engineering Excellence will give our apprentices the opportunity to train with the latest engineering technology. This will stand the College as one of the finest engineering training facilities in the UK.” The multi-million pound investment is due for completion in September 2014.