Addressing the Skills Gap With Help From Purdue University

Partnership with Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division provides employable metrology skills

Published: Wednesday, March 22, 2023 - 12:02

The skills gap in science and technology is an issue affecting the industry on a global scale. Now, a new partnership between Purdue University and Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division is making a difference.

If you’ve ever looked at a timeline of significant scientific discoveries, you’ll notice certain trends. The earliest discoveries are thousands, even tens of thousands of years apart. The first stone tools are thought to date from around 3 million years ago. When we talk about the Stone Age, we usually mean about 10,000 years B.C. Then there’s the Bronze Age (2,500 B.C.) and the Iron Age (700 B.C.).

After that, important advances come at an ever-increasing rate. One discovery paves the way for many others. We’ve had more scientific discoveries that have radically changed the world during the past 100 years than in the past 10,000.

At that rate of change, it’s no wonder we’re experiencing a global skills gap in science and technology.

Purdue University, in West Lafayette, Indiana, has been addressing skills gaps since its foundation in 1869. A look at alumni shows that the university has been doing a good job at staying current, with astronauts, top scientists, researchers, and world leaders to its credit.

Purdue understands that addressing the skills gap means forging relationships between educational institutions and industry. That way, students are learning the skills that employers need. That’s also the thinking behind the new partnership between Purdue University and Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division.

The university has integrated machines into its senior-level Quality for Manufacturing course and developed a new course that offers students a Level 1 certification in PC-DMIS for CMMs and PC-DMIS for portable metrology devices, such as Hexagon’s Absolute Arms.

Eric Kozikowsk, a 2021 Purdue graduate, was taken on by MxD, the digital manufacturing and cybersecurity institute, as a systems integration engineer.

“Taking the class has helped to solidify my understanding of GD&T and apply my theoretical knowledge of metrology and quality inspections to my career,” he says. “Hexagon’s certifications have added credibility to my resume and enabled me to work as a metrology SME in my organization.”

You can find more information about the School of Engineering Technology at Purdue, including its academic programs and research areas, here.

First published Jan. 11, 2023, on the Hexagon blog.

About The Author

Ashley Hixson

Ashley Hixson is a manager in marketing at Hexagon with years of experience working on the company’s important campaigns.