Fluid Power Industrial Consortium
On Friday, June 2nd, Precision Plus hosted the second ever meeting of the Fluid Power Industrial Consortium (FPIC), part of the National Fluid Power Association (NFPA) and in association with the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) University. The consortium was formed to advance the networking opportunities amongst members and drive innovation through collaboration.
Meeting attendees included industry-leading members of the NFPA and the newly formed FPIC, including industry frontrunners such as Parker Hannifin, Oshkosh Truck, Caterpillar, Sun Hydraulics and HydraForce. The group heard from representatives of two 3D printing companies: Terry Senish, Director of Technology Applications at ExOne Americas, and Dr. Ankit Saharan, Senior Applications Developer at EOS North America. Both discussed the latest developments in printing, such as the use of sand in the foundry industry and transitioning from prototype to production.
Precision Plus President Michael Reader shared strategies on workforce development as well as discussing collaboration with suppliers for the most cost effective solutions. Afterward, several Precision Plus team members provided tours of our facility for the attendees.
After the presentations, the group enjoyed lunch at the nearby Elkhorn campus of Gateway Technical College (GTC). Next came the opportunity for a guided tour of the RPM Manufacturing Center by GTC’s Ben McFarland, Division Chair-IMT, EMT, HVAC, Refrigeration, Welding, Small Engine Repair, Mobile Lift and Richard Shouse, CNC Chair. The attendees witnessed firsthand the power of business/industry partnerships.
In the end it was viewed a successful program with high marks from all in attendance and a step forward in building yet another strong consortium at MSOE. Should you have interest in learning more about the consortium or MSOE, please contact Eric Lanke, President/CEO with NFPA at (414) 778-3351 elanke@nfpa.com or Tom Wanke, FPIC Director and Industry Relations with MSOE at (414) 277-7191 wanke@msoe.edu.
