November 2025 Volume 7

FORGING RESEARCH

Overcoming Real-World Challenges Like any major industrial project, the MAC initiative faced its share of hurdles. In 2023, BTC’s manufacturing division was relocated from its Milton campus while a new facility—the Innovative Manufacturing Education Center (IMEC) was under construction. Sharing space with the building’s new owners delayed equipment setup, and construction setbacks meant the IMEC wasn’t ready until just two days before the fall 2024 semester began. Despite these disruptions, the team pressed forward. Conveyors and control cabinets were assembled, disassembled, and relocated as needed. By January 2025, thermoforming equipment was operational, producing flying discs from student-designed molds. A robotic trim cell soon followed, fully programmed by April to trim excess plastic from the flying discs. For students, these setbacks turned into lessons. They experienced the realities of project delays, space constraints, and adapting to shifting timelines, challenges they’ll inevitably face in their professional careers.

For the forging sector, this collaboration was no small thing. The MAC Project speaks directly to the Forging Industry Technology Roadmap, which highlights workforce shortages, automation, and Industry 4.0 as critical priorities. By training students on these technologies in partnership with employers, BTC is producing graduates ready to contribute from day one. Curriculum Innovation The MAC Project didn’t just add machines to a lab, it redefined how courses are taught. Faculty created four new one-credit internship-style courses built around the automation cell, plus a mini-capstone project that pushes students to design and implement real manufacturing solutions. Course materials live in two systems: Blackboard Ultra for day-to-day student access and WIDS (Worldwide Instructional Design System) for competencies, lesson plans, and syllabi. This structure ensures rigor, accountability, and accessibility. The mini capstone is a standout feature. Students use schematics tied directly to the MAC equipment to solve engineering and production challenges. An experience that mirrors the kind of problem-solving culture they’ll encounter in forging plants. Instead of simply learning about automation, they live it. Recruiting the Next Generation Perhaps the most dramatic impact of the MAC Project can be seen in enrollment numbers. BTC faculty and staff visited 89% of high schools in their district during spring 2025, bringing the story of modern manufacturing directly to students. With support from the college’s Student Services and Marketing divisions, they distributed materials, spoke to classrooms, and highlighted the career opportunities tied to the new automation cell. The results were eye-opening. Enrollment in BTC’s mechatronics-related programs nearly doubled in just one year: • New student headcount jumped 93%, from 15 in 2024 to 29 in 2025. • New student credit hours rose 103%, from 144 to 293. For forging companies, these aren’t just numbers, they represent a stronger pipeline of future technicians equipped with relevant, hands-on skills.

Figure 2: Student worker with a frisbee produced on the MAC

Looking Ahead BTC’s work isn’t finished. Over the next four semesters, the new work-based learning courses will be rolled out, giving students opportunities to substitute select program requirements with these internship and capstone experiences. Faculty will track outcomes and refine courses to maximize student success. The MAC will continue to evolve as well, with new projects, programs, and industry collaborations keeping it at the cutting edge. Each new student cohort will inherit a richer, more sophisticated system than the last. Why It Matters to Forging For forging companies, the impact of BTC’s MAC Project is clear: • Automation exposure ensures graduates understand the systems reshaping modern forging plants. • Workforce development is happening at scale, with enrollment nearly doubling in just one year. • Industry 4.0 integration prepares students to work in data-driven, connected environments. When a forging plant hires a BTC graduate trained through the MAC, it gains a technician who has not only studied automation but also experienced it, designing, assembling, and troubleshooting real systems. That level of preparation shortens onboarding times, boosts productivity, and supports the industry’s drive toward modernization.

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