HOME

Del Mar College Campus News      Del Mar College RSS News

:: Growing Aviation Maintenance Program Puts People In Jobs


March 9, 2009


Department of Labor initiative provided $1.9 million for equipment, scholarships over past two years; College’s program anticipates continued growth even during current economy

The Aviation Maintenance Program at Del Mar College (DMC) has blossomed as a result of a $1.9 million grant that the College received in late 2006 as part of President Bush’s administration to train workers for local jobs across the country. DMC was one of 72 colleges that received funding from the $125 million Community-based Job Training Grants Initiative that was distributed by the U.S. Department of Labor.

The opportunities provided by the grant to train workers is precisely the type of action President Barack Obama was hoping to inspire during his Feb. 24 State of the Union Address when he called upon “… every American to commit to at least one year of higher education or career training.”

Joseph Dudek, DMC Assistant Professor of Airframe Technology, says the grant’s ultimate goal was to fund training for technicians who can then replace retiring workers at the Corpus Christi Army Depot (CCAD) at Naval Air Station-Corpus Christi. Dudek, who wrote the grant proposal, says that the grant provided much-needed funds for training equipment and additional staff members for a program that was first launched eight years ago.

“Through the grant, we were able to buy about $1.1 million in training equipment, which has given us the capacity to expand,” he says.

Additionally, the grant supported the formation of the South Texas Aviation Project (STAP), which is a partnership between the College and strategic partners in the local aviation industry around Corpus Christi. While CCAD remains the largest employer for DMC’s Aviation Maintenance students, other partners include All Tech Inspections, Sikorsky Support Services, Signature Flight Support and C.C. Helicopter, to name a few.

STAP’s primary goals are two-fold––first, to increase the capacity for training aviation maintenance, avionics and nondestructive testing technicians and, second, to increase the number of graduates with the skills to supply industry demand.

Among the big-ticket purchases are a Beechcraft B-90 fixed-wing turbo prop aircraft and a Bell OH-58 rotor-wing helicopter, both valued at $200,000 each. Additional equipment expenditures include a $150,000 aircraft turbine engine, two avionics training systems, which cost $75,000 each, and one set of Nondestructing Testing Ultrasonic Testing training tools worth $75,000.

When added together, these purchases have helped to exponentially increase the Collge’s Aviation Maintenance Program’s ability to provide the type of training that CCAD and other employers require for their operations.

New equipment purchased for the Nondestructive Testing Program has allowed the College to add radiography to its degree plan, a skill that is specifically sought out by the Canadian nondestructive testing firm International Radiography and Inspection Services (IRISNDT). The Edmonton, Alberta-based firm provides services to industrial firms such as fabricators, manufacturers and petroleum and petrochemical plants. Recently, IRISNDT opened an office in Corpus Christi.

“They’re looking for people with these skills,” says Terrell Wyatt, Nondestructive Testing Program coordinator at the College. Currently, IRISNDT employs one of Wyatt’s graduates, and eight more are employed through CCAD.

The Nondestructive Testing Program, which trains workers to evaluate parts for weaknesses without the use of invasive approaches and is utilized to identify equipment failures, began in fall 2007 with 14 students. The program’s enrollment grew to 37 students taking courses during spring 2008 but now has 123 students enrolled currently.

Wyatt says the discipline serves a variety of industries in addition to aviation, including electronics, maritime transportation and the petrochemical industry, where it first began 70 years ago. Being a port city, Corpus Christi supports both maritime and petrochemical companies in the area.

“Most nondestructive testing applications started in the oil fields,” Wyatt notes. “As the aviation industry grew, so did the need for these types of inspections. And, it continues to grow. The petrochemical demand for this service continues to grow as well because of failures within the industry.”

Wyatt says the Department of Labor grant proved instrumental in creating awareness. He notes that while other institutions in Texas offer a nondestructing testing program or short courses, Del Mar College is the only school in South Texas and one of only six community colleges in the entire state that offers this type of specialized training.

“The grant has helped to promote the Aviation Maintenance program and reach people who might not have otherwise come,” Wyatt says. “By working with employers, we’re able to pinpoint what their needs are and deliver the type of training that will put our students into those types of jobs.”

DMC students pursuing Associate in Applied Science degrees in Airframe Applied Technology and Power Plant Applied Technology in recent years have benefited immensely from the Beech B-90 aircraft and the OH-58 helicopter that grant funds secured. And, the program’s smaller training aids, such as a $16,000 composite hot bonding repair system, an air conditioning trainer–valued at nearly $40,000–and a $12,700 thrust reverser trainer, have had a noticeable impact on recruitment.

Dudek says that the Aviation Maintenance Program has provided training to about 200 students since it began in fall 2001. He adds that while nearly all of the program’s graduates have gone on to work for CCAD, one works for Piedmont Airlines and another for C.C. Helicopter.

Leon Daley, the site supervisor for C.C. Helicopter, says the company was very pleased with the training that its DMC graduate received at the College. “In addition to that student, we also have four students who are working on their practicums here,” Daley notes. “We’ve got them doing paint-stripping, disassembly and complete overhauls. Basically, they’re repairing damaged aircraft.”

The grant also provided equipment for the College’s recently launched Avionics Program, including a pair of glass cockpits worth $75,000 each. Hugh Tomlinson, the program coordinator for Avionics Technology, says these training systems boast multi-function displays that mirror what a graduate would see on the job.

Tomlinson adds that while avionics graduates will most likely find work in the aviation field, some will find opportunities elsewhere.

“The term avionics applies to navigation, communication, in-flight entertainment and that sort of thing,” he says. “However, the program is broad enough to encompass two-way communication opportunities, such as law enforcement radios and maritime vessels.”

Beyond equipment and staffing, the grant has paid for scholarships that have proved invaluable for many recipients.

Rebecca Simnacher is a co-op Nondestructive Testing (NDT) student who spends 32 hours a week in the NDT department at CCAD working on liquid penetrant and magnetic particle testing. Simnacher says the program’s partnership with CCAD is its most appealing feature.

“In our program, you get to learn the basics of why the theory works, and you get hands-on training here. The nice thing about the co-op program with CCAD is that you get to reinforce classroom work with on-the-job training,” she says.

Fellow NDT student Dan Walker says the scholarship made it possible for him to enroll in the program. “I’m taking 20 hours this semester, and there’s no way I could afford to do that on my own,” he says, adding: “I’ve never had a scholarship in my life, so this has been really helpful.”

Dudek says despite a tough economic climate, he expects his program to continue growing. “The great thing about this line of highly-specialized work is that even in an economy that is contracting, our students can still find work in their chosen field.”


PHOTO IN RIGHT COLUMN (Photographer: Esmeralda Salazar/DMC): Del Mar College STAP scholarship recipient Daniel Walker is taking 20 hours of courses in the Nondestructive Testing Program this semester. The scholarship, which paid for tuition and fees for program courses for qualified candidates, was provided as part of the $1.9 million grant that was awarded by the Department of Labor in 2006.

-DMC-rg


For more information, media can contact Joseph Dudek, Assistant Professor of Airframe Applied Technology, at 361/698-2719; Hugh Tomlinson, Avionics Technology Program Coordinator, at 361/698-1732; Terrell Wyatt, Nondestructive Testing Program Coordinator, at 361/698-1873; and Dan Walker, DMC student in the Nondestructive Testing Program, at 361/446-0134.




Date of this item added : 2009-03-09