HEART NSTA/Trust Opens Six Centres of Excellence, Steam Labs

The HEART/NSTA Trust has strengthened its capacity to meet the current and future needs of industry through the opening of six Centres of Excellence (COE) along with supporting Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) laboratories in 2023/2024.

The development of the facilities is in keeping with the agency’s strategic thrust to revolutionise skills training and “strengthen the Jamaican environment, making it favourable for investment and productivity”, Director for Training Infrastructure Development, Dwayne Bent, tells JIS News.

Providing details, he says that a COE focused on manufacturing, engineering and technology has been established at the Derrick Rochester campus in St. Elizabeth, and six labs instituted within that facility – autonomous aerial robotics, geomatics and geospatial services, optoelectronics, mechatronics, 3-D printing and aerial robotics.

At the HEART College of Innovation and Technology (HCIT) in Montego Bay, a COE has also been established along with STEAM labs in digital animation, cybersecurity, autonomous mobile robotics, aerial robotics, 3-D printing and mobile application development.

The National Tools and Engineering Institute (NTEI) in Kingston was also strengthened through a Centre of Excellence.

“Last month (March), we launched a number of labs at [NTEI] focused heavily on mechanical engineering computer-aided design (CAD). This, of course, is a well-needed skill by industries to facilitate designs, drawings and the reverse engineering technology that is now permeating the industry for efficiency and productivity,” Mr. Bent explains.

Autonomous robotics and optoelectronics labs were also introduced at that location.

Mr. Bent says that the mechanical engineering lab at the facility was strengthened by introducing computer numerical control (CNC) turning and milling, which he notes “is in high demand, especially for our port operators and manufacturing industries that depend heavily on industrial automation to enhance productivity and efficiency in their operations”.

The Director further informs that STEAM labs focused on culinology and gastronomy, industrial automation and digital construction, and agricultural technology, have also been established at the HEART College of Hospitality Services in Runaway Bay, St. Ann; HEART College of Construction Services in Portmore, St. Catherine. and the Ebony Park Academy in Clarendon, respectively, to support Centres of Excellence at those facilities.

He says that the STEAM lab at Ebony Park is the first established to focus on tissue culture.

“It will strengthen research and development in agriculture and most importantly, precision agriculture, to facilitate all those climate-resilient applications that the country and the world is now embarking on. It will also facilitate our sustainability in food and agriculture,” he notes.

Looking ahead, the Director for Training Infrastructure Development tells JIS News that plans are in place to build other labs across the island.

“Every activity, every duty, every task that can be repeated, can be automated, and that will strengthen the capability for productivity and output and increase efficiency and yields,” he says.

Consequently, he shared that over the next three years, “we will be focusing heavily on upgrading our motor-vehicle labs to deal with hybrid and non-hybrid technology. We understand that the technology in the automotive world is changing fast and to keep apace, we must strengthen investment in our labs across the country”.

Efforts will also be made to strengthen the six existing hospitality department kitchens, thereby transforming them into smart cooking labs.

This will be achieved through the introduction of flameless cooking and the integration of renewable energy.

By introducing smart cooking labs, Mr. Bent says, “we… are able to create a safer environment for students to apply concepts and skill sets more efficiently and safely”.

He further explains, “As it relates to the technology that is happening in the industry, hotels now are moving, largely supported by renewable energy, to this type of technology and so we want to ensure that we are apace with what is happening out there in the industry, both locally and internationally.”

He says the Trust is also looking to set up a stream water technology/water management lab at the Ebony Park Academy.

“This is so needed in Jamaica and across the world, as there are so many cries for water. We want to be able to teach our people how to harness desalination and reverse osmosis to [recycle] water for production utilisation, among other things,” he says.

Additionally, hydraulics and pneumatics, wind power, industrial 4.0 and trichology labs, among others, will be developed.