GREEN BAY (NBC 26) -- UW-Green Bay celebrated $1.5 million in new equipment at the Brown County STEM Innovation Center with a demonstration Thursday afternoon.
"The process started two-and-a-half years ago," explains Assistant Professor Jagadeep Thota of Mechanical Engineering. "When trying to get the Mechanical Engineering program approved, we needed to first show a plan and budget for the equipment."
With almost all equipment now installed, they showed off more than 100 pieces of lab equipment to fill their four labs and machine shop in the STEM center. New equipment for the center includes turbines, a fluid flow channel, a tension and hardness testing machine, and a 3D printer.
The equipment has real-world applications for the students using them, Thota says. For example, the turbines are often found in hydroelectric plants and students can get hands-on experience with machines before entering the job market.
Thota is especially excited to share the new equipment with the community.
"This would not be possible without the community's help," he states. "They have been excited and very supportive of the process; they should see what we invested in."
