Coastal Pines Technical College has recently purchased a 52-foot mobile welding lab. This self-contained trailer is outfitted with state-of-the-art welding tool sets and equipment to make up 8 working welding booths. The trailer also has its own ventilation and air conditioning systems to allow for a safe working environment. The equipment is set up to train 16 welding operations 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, and 6G Welding positions and Gas Metal Arc, Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GMAW/MIG), Shielded Metal Arc Welding (TIG), and Flux Cored Arc Welding (FCAW).
The design of the mobile welding lab will allow Coastal Pines the flexibility to travel and provide short-term, non-credit training to industry partners throughout the thirteen-county service area. Training is available for companies to upskill their current workforce, to prepare new employees for entry-level work in an industry setting, or to simply allow users to brush up on their current skillset while employed with a company.
“This mobile welding lab is an awesome and exciting tool that will allow us to extend education outside the traditional classroom walls. It will open the doors of hands-on learning for students in locations where a typical lab is not available. By taking welding education on the move, we can empower and prepare more students for today’s workforce. It’s a great way for us to demonstrate the value of education by using the power of mobility.” stated Lonnie Roberts, President.
In addition to using the trailer for workforce development and customized training, the welding lab is a tool that can be used to educate and introduce the welding field to student within the K-12 system who may not know about the career opportunities available to future welders. The mobile unit can also be delivered to provide training for offenders within the prison system to prepare them for reentry into the workforce. The possibilities of the mobile welding lab are endless.
The addition of the mobile welding lab speaks to the true mission of the technical college system and Coastal Pines, which is to support the local workforce development