A high-tech manufacturing school in eastern Kentucky was recently awarded a $100,000 grant by Kentucky Power. This grant, funded through the Kentucky Power Economic Growth Grant (K-PEGG), enables eKentucky Advanced Manufacturing Institute (eKAMI) to purchase state-of-the-art computers for students in Paintsville.
Officials said the school provides immersive programming to train students in both Haas computer numerical control (CNC) machines as well as robotics in just a few months.
Kathy Walker, eKAMI’s founder and CEO, said these computer upgrades were long overdue.
“Some of them were four years old, some of them were five years old. So, with the advancements in technology, and certainly the software advancements that we use in advanced manufacturing, we were really in need of upgraded hardware,” said Walker.
Walker said the students who graduate from the program go into the automation industry.
“Some of them will be CNC machining, others will be going into the robotics division, and those jobs span across the industry. So, some of them will be technicians, some of them will be programmers, designers, quality control technicians,” said Walker.
Walker said in addition to the new computers, eKAMI is looking forward to a new facility. The engineering school is building a location in West Liberty at the Eastern Kentucky Correctional Complex. Walker said the school will give incarcerated people a chance to earn certification and help them find jobs upon release.