New thinking makes students far more attractive to potential employers

Citation

(2005), "New thinking makes students far more attractive to potential employers", Assembly Automation, Vol. 25 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/aa.2005.03325cab.004

New thinking makes students far more attractive to potential employers

New thinking makes students far more attractive to potential employers

Keywords: Automation, Education

Programming and running a multi- function manufacturing cell should be no problem for students from West Midland Colleges when they move into full time employment, thanks to a revolutionary new training aid developed by Mechatronics International in Litchfield (Plate 2).

The cell is based on five mobile trolleys, each one simulating a particular manufacturing function and interconnected to represent different processes in the manufacture of a component. Each trolley has its own on-board Mitsubishi Electric PLC (programmable logic controller), so can be used independently from the others.

Plate 2 The revolutionary new training aid developed by Mechatronics International

The first trolley demonstrates loading and handling and is based on pneumatics. The second is an indexing table with simulated loading, drilling, tapping and unloading stations, controlled by a Mitsubishi stepper motor drive. Next comes a hydraulic stamping press, followed by every student's favourite – the robot stage. Centrepiece of this is a Mitsubishi RB 2AJ mini robot which carries out a thorough inspection of the component. The final stage mixes several of the earlier technologies to clean the component before “dispatch to packaging”.

Mechatronic worked in conjunction with a consortium of Midland colleges to develop the unit, with funding coming from the European COVE (Centres for Vocational Excellence) programme.

“The design brief called for uncompromising mobility so that it could be moved from college to college easily,” says Roy Needham of Mechatronics International, hence the trolley-based design. Each trolley is 700 mm by 500 mm by 700 mm high and is mounted on casters, so can be wheeled out to the car park, lifted into a standard car and taken to the next college.

“We also wanted to encourage a high rate of usage. We get very disheartened because we so often see educational organisations having to invest a huge part of their meagre budgets into capital equipment that ends up only being used for a few weeks each academic year.”

“With the lecturers we have developed an outline syllabus. First week the students will work on the first stage, pneumatics. Second week it's the stepper/indexer. Third week it's integrating these two together. Then its familiarisation and integration of each subsequent stage.”

“Alternatively you can wheel each trolley off to a separate location for independent study.”

Mechantronics is also busy showing its new product off to other colleges, in the UK, Europe and further a field, helping them set up local area consortiums and assisting with applications for COVE support.

“Industry has been complaining for many years that recruits from colleges have been taught the wrong things on the wrong equipment,” says Needham. “We went for Mitsubishi equipment throughout because it is ubiquitously used around the world”. It's also robust enough to stand up to constant travel – plus anything the average teenager can think to do to it!

For further information, please contact: Caroline Stanton, Mitsubishi Electric, Travellers Lane, Hatfield AL10 8XB. Tel: 01707 276100; Fax: 01707 278695; web site: www.industrial.meuk.com