Iowa Western Community College (www.iwcc.edu) recently unveiled its new engineering building during a ceremony held July 6th on the campus in Council Bluffs. The new facility, named Kinney Hall after current Iowa Western president Dr. Dan Kinney, will be home to the new Robotics Automated Systems Program this fall.
The new engineering facility will bring an array of opportunities for students. The $13.5 million, 86,500-square foot facility features 51,000 square feet on the ground floor and 35,050 feet on the second floor. The facility will house specialized programs in applied robotics, robot and controller maintenance, electronics, circuits, fluid power, CAD and programming.
Through a partnership with Acieta, LLC, of Council Bluffs, Iowa Western introduced the robotics program in 2011, utilizing the Acieta manufacturing facility as its lab space. Graduates of this two-year degree program can pursue a variety of careers and in many industries, including manufacturing, bio-medical, food service, telecommunications, and government as technicians who assemble, program, install, maintain, and troubleshoot robotics and automated systems equipment.
Kinney Hall will house state-of-the-art lab spaces for CNC (Computer Numerical Control), robotics, welding, electronics, sustainable energy and physics. The new facility is also home to 15 general purpose classrooms, two math labs, two computer labs, one student computer lab, two conference rooms and 34 offices. Eight classrooms also will make up the new space for the college’s Adult Basic Education HiSet Program.