College shows off $3 million facility upgrades

Past, present and future melded together as one on Thursday, as Confederation College unveiled a $3-million facelift to the 1960s-era McIntyre building.

The renewal project is part of a $10.8 million trades and technology facelift at the school, which will have seen enhanced technology and new equipment installed not only in the McIntyre buildings, but also the Dorion and Aviation Centre of Excellence.

"Trades and technology renewal has been a long time coming and it’s something that will benefit our students," said Student Union of Confederation College Inc. president Ryan West, a speaker at the unveiling, conducted in a McIntyre building machine shop.

Outgoing college president Pat Lang said the project struck a chord for her for a number of reasons, the most important being the growing demand for the skill sets produced by the trades and technology faculty.

"With the demographic shifts that we’re watching in society and everything we’re reading about in terms of the shortage of employees of these fields, I think it’s an exciting time for us," Lang said.
It’s also recognition of the school’s commitment to its past.

The McIntyre building, which was the college when it first opened in 1967, is a historic part of the school’s history, a connection they didn’t want to lose when they weighed the options of how best to spend the money.

Lang said school officials weighed the option of starting from scratch, but after looking at the cost involved and the impact to the environment, they decided a refurbishment was best choice. The newly renovated state-of-the-art facility, which includes a SUCCI Student Commons area for students to relax, study or grab a snack, is just what the modern student needs, Lang said.

"I think it’s a perfect day at Confederation College when we take something that’s part of our history and bring it into the next generation," Lang said.

First-year aerospace manufacturing and engineering technology student Chris Grenke said the school-wide improvements have made his transition to post-secondary education a seamless one.

"The equipment in this lab is state-of-the-art. The machines here are well-maintained, some of the best maintained that I’ve ever seen," Grenke said. "There are lots of them, there’s tons of tooling and the teachers are fantastic."

Accompanying Thursday’s unveiling was an announcement detailing a $150,000 donation from the J. Armand Bombardier Foundation, which will help cover the costs of new machinery and enhanced technology.

When totaled together, it makes for a great experience for the students, said Joe Vieira, dean of the school of engineering, technology and trades.

"When the students came back this year they were just amazed. They’re used to basic halls, basic classrooms. We have spruced up the halls, we have rejuvenated all sorts of classrooms and we have put in a mini-lecture theatre," Vieira said.

"In my phrase it’s gone from a building that teaches to a building that encourages learning."