Two major additions to Gaston College’s Textile Technology Center are intended to service the textile industry’s needs.
By Jim Kaufmann, Contributing Editor
recently, Gaston College’s Kimbrell Campus, Belmont, N.C., hosted a doubleheader event as it introduced two new significant additions to compliment and strengthen the college’s Textile Technology Center (TTC). The doubleheader first featured an introduction to the newly formed Textile Academy, which was established to address textile industry educational needs; followed by a formal groundbreaking ceremony for the new Fiber Innovation Center (FIC) — a stand-alone building devoted to fiber and yarn development opportunities adjacent to the TTC.
加斯顿学院的纺织学院
The newly established Textile Academy’s mission is to “cultivate highly skilled workers for local industry employers.”
“It introduces students to the basic concepts of textile technology and careers within the textile industry and is focused directly on addressing the workforce skills gap currently found there,” said Jasmine Cox, director of Textile Technology programs. The Textile Academy is modeled after Catawba Valley Community College’s Furniture Academy, but its offerings will be customized and tailored around meeting the specific needs of the textile industry. “This industry continues to change at a rapid rate,” noted Karen Menting, vice president of Human Resources for Parkdale Mills, Gastonia, N.C. “The challenges today as a textile manufacturer are even greater than in years past, and Parkdale Mills is committed to help build this worker training and education resource and future talent development because we need to be able to meet the demands of the business we want going forward, not just the business we already have.”
纺织学院的目的是行业驱动，强烈着重于利用TTC的纤维，纱线和面料加工实验室进行动手培训，并依靠其技术人员和运营商的经验。初始产品将包括学徒制和各种纺织品相关学科的入门级培训，以解决当地纺织公司的当前就业空缺。考克斯说：“这些计划旨在具有成本效益，并包括使用一个可以定制的单个公司和/或特定职位的共同框架进行有针对性的培训。”“预计潜在的成本将低至每名学生200美元，而且州，地方和其他机构也有可能抵消培训成本的潜力。”目前，该学徒领域正在为多个公司赞助计划提供新的运行，而TTC正在建立包括行业专业人士和TTC员工在内的教练库，以满足更多的培训需求。
New course offerings between six and eight weeks in length are in development, along with degree track programs with a tentative program catalog expected to include courses in textile fundamentals, quality and testing, and yarn and fabric formation. According to Cox: “We’re in the process of building out what the complete program will look like, but it will initially focus on machine operator through shift supervisor tracks. We’ll first target current textile industry employers with training needs, and then begin filtering down to tech schools and high schools to raise interest in textiles as a career where students can grow with the industry.”
该课程的产品旨在产生完成证书和可堆叠的证书，可用于将其转移到北卡罗来纳州北卡罗来纳州立大学等机构中的荣誉计划中。
TTC副总裁兼总经理Sam Buff解释说：“ TTC是当地纺织行业的强大资源。”“我们与行业一起运作。我们致力于实现这一目标。我们将听取行业的评论并进行相应的调整，并可以灵活地满足他们的需求和需求，但是纺织行业确实需要推动它才能成功。”
纤维创新中心开创性仪式
引入纺织学院后，加斯顿学院与大学领导和各种名人进行了正式仪式，以开创新的FIC大楼。FIC是加斯顿学院的金布雷尔校园的扩展，将是一个最先进的设施，致力于将纤维和纱技术推向新的和创新的应用。
“Roughly 12 months ago, CVCC [Catawba Valley Community College] and Gaston College joined together to create the Manufacturing and Textile Innovation Network (MTIN), a partnership formed to improve both and benefit from the power of one,” said John Hauser, president of Gaston College. “This, along with the events related to the COVID pandemic and resulting immediate need for the development, testing and evaluation of personal protective equipment, created a push for new facilities at both locations in order to more closely support the U.S. textile industry.”
建造1650万美元的FIC设施计划将于今年晚些时候或2022年初开始。完成后，FIC将是唯一通过面料开发能力开放的北美设施，可通往整个高级纤维。正如Parkdale Mills执行副总裁戴维斯·沃利克（Davis Warlick）所解释的那样：“当与纺织技术中心和制造业解决方案中心中已经可用的资源结合使用时，这实际上将是一站式商店。它将是美国唯一能够通过所有相关或随后的流程进行纤维想法并将其转换为实际纺织品产品的设施。”
加斯顿学院基金会董事会董事长约翰·洛里（John Lowery）指出：“这将是世界上第一个专注于纺织品的同类产品。”“这将是促进纺织业重要性的理想设施，不仅在当地，而且在世界范围内，为可持续性，创新产品和应用提供更好的纺织解决方案。”
膜集成电路的成本在很大程度上是由私人捐助者from industry and institutions, the state of North Carolina, and through assorted grants. “This project has so much support from state, county, city, academia, industry and philanthropy,” said Anderson D. “Andy” Warlick, chairman and CEO of Parkdale. “Fiber innovation is key! It represents the future of the textile industry in the United States. New fibers that can be used in a wide variety of applications across the textile spectrum, including sustainable, recyclable, biodegradable, antimicrobial and other possibilities are key to the growth or re-growth of the U.S. textile industry.”
随着FIC和纺织学院的增加，TTC无疑将自己定位为在本地和全球范围内的纺织工业的可行长期资源。Buff指出：“自从我们周围的一切都开始，TTC的使命并没有真正改变。”（看 ”人才驱动的纺织行业资源的发展，”TW，2020年3月/4月）。“我们将纺织学院和FIC视为纺织行业的游戏改变者。其他任何地方都不会有类似的东西！”
2021年11月/12月
