Humber College joins SEW-EURODRIVE for new technology and applied research opportunities

Jul 18, 2018 | Biz/Tech

Humber College and SEW-EURODRIVE collaborated to help the students learn industry skills. (Harmanjeet Singh Gurm/Humber News)

Harmanjeet Singh Gurm

Humber College has signed five-year partnership agreement with SEW-EURODRIVE to develop skills and bring more practical experience to applied sciences students.

“SEW-EURODRIVE is partnering up with Humber to bring Industry 4.0 technologies, which assists in advanced manufacturing to the educational world and industrial sectors,” said Lyall Watson, the Central Canada sales manager for SEW-EURPDRIVE Canada.

Industry 4.0 focuses on clean technology, renewable energy, robotics and transforming traditional factories into smart ones by using the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing.

“We are building a ‘live lab’ encompassing Industry 4.0, mobile and drive systems from SEW-EURODRIVE to showcase how advanced manufacturing can be used together with employees,” he said.

The 4.0 laboratory will be SEW-EURODRIVE’s first laboratory showcase in North America, which will be located at Humber’s Barrett Centre for Technology Innovation, which is currently under construction at the North campus, according a Humber press release.

“We will also be working together on real world applied Research & Development projects,“ Watson said.

Anthony Peluso, the chief operating officer at SEW-EURODRIVE Canada, stated in a press release the firm sees “great value in investing in Humber students” while offering students tools to develop the skills and gain the practical experience that today’s employers demand.

“We look forward to working with other industry partners to lead and build a world-class automation and learning systems centre at Humber,” he said.

Watson told Humber News the college will gain an early foothold into real world advanced manufacturing technologies before many in industry have been exposed to it.

He said the practical aspects will be invaluable for future graduate students.

Chris Whitaker, president of Humber College, stated in a press release the collaboration with SEW-EURODRIVE is a new way to invest in students and strengthen the college’s expertise in advanced manufacturing education and training.

“This partnership reflects how in our polytechnic approach to education we are working closely with industry to engage students and faculty through emerging technologies,” he said.