COLLEGE OF DUPAGE BUILDS WORLD-CLASS ELECTRONICS TRAINERS
Eight state-of-the-art electronic controls trainers were recently designed by HVACR Program Coordinator Bob Clark and constructed by COD instructors and students. According to Clark, the trainers surpass commercially available trainers and were built for only a fraction of the cost.
“A commercially available trainer of this type comes with a price tag of about $45,000,” Clark said. The college was able to build eight trainers of our own that provide much more flexibility than any offered by technical educational suppliers. The multifunctional trainers are adaptable to a variety of facility electrical systems and feature an array of components that mimic the kinds of equipment students will see in the field.
Currently, the trainers are being used to instruct students in three class offerings and enabled the college to offer a new class: Facility Electrical Systems, for which the trainers provided a necessary lab component covering facility electrical scenarios and components. Clark said designing and building training such systems are a direct result of support from a range of people and resources within the college.