The Berks Learning Factory brings the real world into the classroom. Client companies provide industrial design projects for engineering students to work on. Industry sponsors collaborate with Penn State Berks to educate the next generation of engineers in design, prototyping and fabrication.
The goal for the students is to apply their training to real design problems. The goal for the companies is to support engineering education and to have early interaction with interns and graduate employees.
The Learning Factory supports projects in:
- First-year design
- Second-year manufacturing
- Senior capstone (ME & EMET)
- Independent study
Since its inception in 2010, over 800 engineering students at Penn State Berks have completed 45 projects for 40 different sponsors.
The Berks Machine Shop, Electrical Shop and Learning Factory provide modern design, prototyping, and manufacturing facilities, including machining (CNC and manual), 3D printing, welding, metrology, PLC controls and CAD/CAM.