Purdue Polytechnic students in Indianapolis visited the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) in Chicago this month to learn about new technologies, meet manufacturing representatives and explore career possibilities.
For seven days in September, the exhibition featured the world’s top manufacturers and demonstrations of their latest developments in various industries, including innovations in CNC machining, automation, robotics, additive, software, inspection and transformative digital technologies.
IMTS exhibitors came from more than 110 countries, and the show had a record number of registrants for the 2024 event. Major exhibitors included Google Cloud, Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence, Microsoft, Siemens USA, BlueForge Alliance, and Strategic Submarines.
“It is important that visiting such specialized exhibitions gives students a unique opportunity to get acquainted with the best developments for all industries in one place,” said Val Yasinskiy, a Purdue assistant professor of practice in engineering technology in Indianapolis. “It is especially important that students have a more realistic understanding of the level of engineering training required in modern industry.”
The trip gave students time to interact with representatives of major players in manufacturing. They learned more about specific industries, asked questions and collected information to help define their future career paths.
Purdue was also present at IMTS’ Smartforce Student Summit, which provided “educators and students with fun and engaging learning experiences centered around our industry's vision of the manufacturing technology classroom of the future.”
Sascha Harrell, the director of education and workforce at Purdue Polytechnic’s Indiana Manufacturing Competitiveness Center (IN-MaC), participated on a panel and presented on transformational teaching with Industry 4.0 technology. Her session focused on Design and Innovation Studio (DIS) access and helped attendees develop a clear vision of why and how to use technology in the DIS classroom.
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