What's New in the CAAT Resource Library?
In October/November, three resources were added to our Resource Library. Two of these resources contain materials from
webinars the CAAT conducted. Listed below are the resources added in October and November:
Browse the CAAT Resource Library
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What's New on the CAAT Website
In October, we added the Quick Links page to the Resources section of our site. It contains over 50 links to pages outside our site that we thought might be of interest. Click the image below or the link above to check out these great links today!
In November, two great videos were added to our Technologies section. We added a video to our Batteries page of CNN's Peter Valdes-Dapena touring the General Motors Global Systems Battery Lab, which is right down the street from the CAAT in Warren, MI, and a video to our HEV Types page unveiling the powertrain components being used in the next generation Chevy Volt. Click the links above to go to our pages and view the videos.
In November, we moved our Ride & Drive content to our new CAAT Public Events page. This page currently includes our past two public events and will feature all future public events as well. We've also added two videos from our Ride & Drive event held back in May. Be sure to check out the videos to see if you're in them or what you missed!
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Did you know Douglas L. Jamerson Elementary in Florida integrates engineering into all grades? This Magnet school has a specialized curriculum focused on engineering and mathematics, which consists of the highest-quality research based programs delivered by a specially selected and trained teaching force. To learn more about this unique school, click the link above.
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Did you know Utah State University received a four-year National Science Foundation grant to address potential security threats that are inherent in automated and connected vehicles? Professor Ryan Gerdes, who has previously worked on grants related to transportation security, will lead the project of 10 students as principal investigator. The team plans to investigate security threats using automated and connected robots in various platooning scenarios. Click here to learn more about this project.
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Did you know that
EV sales have skyrocketed in Georgia the past year increasing by 614% from March 2013 to March 2014? It's speculated this is due to the state's $5000 tax credit for new purchases as well as the right to avoid tolls and use HOV lanes to avoid congested traffic in areas such as Atlanta.
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Did you know the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) will begin testing for their new Light Duty Hybrid/Electric Vehicle Specialist (L3) certification starting in January 2015? By adding this incentive, ASE has finally recognized the importance of EV/HEV knowledge and created a standard for testing in these important vehicle service areas. Click the link above to learn more about this certificate. |
Did you know that in 2015 Toyota will be releasing a fuel cell vehicle in Japan that can travel 300 miles on a full tank of hydrogen (SOURCE) and can be refueled in less than 5 minutes? This zero emission vehicle, known as Mirai (future in Japanese), is expected to be sold for seven million yen (approximately $60,294) rather than leased like most previously released fuel cell vehicles. It also is expected to be released in the U.S. in the summer of 2016.
To combat the current lack of hydrogen fueling infrastructure in the U.S., Toyota is collaborating with five northeastern states to build 12 strategically placed hydrogen stations. This builds on Toyota's previous support in California, where they loaned a company $7.3 million to operate and maintain 19 hydrogen stations. To learn more about fuel cell technologies and the Mirai, visit the links in this section. Please note that the source link above contains Toyota's introduction video of the Mirai.
Visit the CAAT Technologies Page
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2015 CAAT Conference Update!
The CAAT will hold its annual conference on Friday, May 1, 2015, at Macomb Community College's South Campus in Warren, MI. Be sure to mark your calendar to attend this increasingly popular annual automotive event that saw a 50% increase in attendance last year! Based on positive feedback received from last year's attendees, we will repeat our popular half-day format!
We are also excited to announce two keynote speakers who have recently confirmed their participation: |
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Keynote Speakers
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 Kirk T. Steudle, director, Michigan Department of Transportation
 Kristen Dziczek, d irector of the Industry and Labor Group at the Center for Automotive Research, will provide the latest analysis on workforce development for the automotive industry.
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Stay tuned. We'll be announcing our media and technical speakers in the near future!
If you missed our conference last year, click here to
read more about it or download the conference presentations. Also included in this issue is a link to a video created at our extremely popular Electric Vehicle Ride & Drive event, which was held in conjunction with last year's CAAT conference.
  
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Is Your Automotive Curriculum Up To Date? Need Funding to Make it Happen?
Do you need funding to update your automotive curriculum? In our last issue, the CAAT expressed their interest in receiving seed funding proposals to assist educational institutions in developing or adapting courses, modules, or other educational artifacts that advance the preparation of skilled automotive technicians, engineering technologists, and designers for jobs in the automotive industry. We still want to hear from you, so please visit the seed funding area of our website today, or contact Doug Fertuck for more information!
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CAAT to Participate in the 2015 North American International Auto Show Education Day
For the past decade, the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) has offered Education Day as part of a greater auto show experience. The NAIAS Education Day event has given educators from around the Midwest an opportunity to enhance their lesson plans with the help of leading automotive executives. Through this annual event, tens of thousands of students have gained insight into the latest technology, engineering, automotive design, and environmental concerns. These students have also been able to meet with industry specialists and representatives from various colleges to learn about career paths in automotive fields. The event is open to school groups of all ages, including college level.
Macomb Community College and the CAAT are planning to participate in the 2015 NAIAS Education Day, to be held January 21, 2015, in Detroit, MI. We will offer an electric vehicle development technology workshop to participating students. Watch for more information on this exciting educational event in our next issue.
In addition to Education Day, for the second year in a row, ten female students from the CAAT's Electric Vehicle Development Certificate program and other Macomb Community College students are being invited to attend the 13th Annual Inforum NAIAS breakfast, featuring Werner Struth, member of the Board of Management of Robert Bosch GmbH. The event is sponsored by Inforum, a professional women's alliance. Immediately following the breakfast, these lucky students will participate in Inforum's AutomotiveNEXT industry group's AutomotiveNEXT 1:1, an event that brings together female students, young professionals, and top executives to explore a range of careers in the automotive industry.
Watch for our next issue to hear more about these exciting events!
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CAAT National Visiting Committee Annual Meeting Scheduled for January 29, 2015
The 4th annual CAAT National Visiting Committee meeting is scheduled to take place on January 29 at Macomb Community College's South Campus in Warren, MI. The committee is an outside group of advisors who serve voluntarily and are leaders in the fields of science, mathematics, engineering, technology, business, industry, and education. Their role is to assist the CAAT in meeting its goals and objectives, assessing plans and progress, and to be an advocate for the Center. We'll fill you in on the results of the meeting in a future issue.
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CAAT Sponsors 2014 Robotics Engineering and Technology (RET) Days Event and Participates in RET Evening Event to "Explore Careers in Manufacturing and Technology"
The annual Macomb Community College (MCC) RET Days 2014 event was held on December 2-3 at MCC's South Campus in Warren, MI. This educational event for middle and high school students was cosponsored by the CAAT, the National Science Foundation, and the Macomb Intermediate School District. The event was attended by approximately 2,700 students registered from 5 counties, 48 schools, and 20 school districts.
This popular annual school group event introduces students to high-tech careers requiring strong skills in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Event participants visited up to 5 of the following industry and education supported "hands-on" exhibits, and spoke to professionals currently working in high-tech STEM careers:
The CAAT sends special thanks to the companies that sponsored the exhibits shown above, and to Kuka and Oakland University for providing financial support as "Age of Invention" sponsors.
A special evening session called "Exploring Careers in Manufacturing and Technology" complemented the RET Days event and invited middle and high school students, along with their parents, to explore the great potential of today's manufacturing and technology careers. This free event was held on December 2.
The "Explore Careers in Manufacturing and Technology" evening event featured student success stories from two recent Macomb graduates working in STEM fields:
- Justin Thompson, Special Tool Services
- Jessica Gibson, Vancho Tools
The event also featured a panel discussion with local leading employers:
- Tara DiLaura, program coordinator, Prototype, General Dynamics Land Systems
- Larry Drake III, CEO and president, KUKA Systems North America, a worldwide supplier of assembly systems and other related machinery for the automotive, aerospace, alternative energy and manufacturing industries
- Tom Ruczynski, senior vice president, Proper Group International, a group which offers rapid prototype development for the world's most sophisticated injection molds, along with production injection molding and precision machining capabilities for today's transportation industry
More than 400 attendees of the evening event were able to participate in many of the RET Days hands-on activities and were given an opportunity to meet with representatives from approximately 20 local manufacturing and technology-related businesses who discussed the nature of their business, the types of jobs available, and what they look for in job candidates.
With more than 3,000 total attendees, RET Days and the related evening event were a huge success!
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CAAT Principal Investigator (PI) Attends National STEM Consortium Executive Leadership Retreat
Joe Petrosky, CAAT PI and dean of engineering and advanced technology at Macomb Community College (MCC), recently attended the National STEM Consortium (NSC) Executive Leadership Retreat, along with Joanne Burns, program manager, STEM Consortium/EV Certificate, MCC. The event was held November 18-19, 2014, in Baltimore, Maryland. The purpose of the retreat was to bring together executive NSC college leadership with national thought leaders and funders in higher education to determine collectively how to scale and sustain the NSC products and to ensure that the consortium's nationally-recognized work will continue to grow through wider implementation: locally, nationally, and internationally.
NSC accomplishments include the creation of five new 30-credit technical certificate programs and overarching STEM bridge courses, implementation of these programs at the NSC colleges including enrollment and tracking of students, and the arduous task of converting all course materials to open educational resources, a work still in progress.
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CAAT Co-PI Presents at the Design and Manufacturing Alliance Fall Conference
CAAT Co-PI, Scott Palmer, made a major presentation at the Design and Manufacturing Alliance (DMA) Fall Conference themed, The Changing Landscape of Business, Community and Education. Palmer co-presented with Claire Brisson, director of Career Technical Education (CTE) programs at Chippewa Valley Schools in Macomb County, MI. The event was held at Mott Community College in Flint, Michigan, on November 7, 2014. The conference was attended by approximately 75 people, including Bob Feldmaier, CAAT director, and Doug Fertuck, CAAT assistant director.
The presentation focused on state law revisions that encourage high school students to enroll in CTE. In June of this year, a new Michigan law went into effect which revised the Michigan Merit Curriculum (MMC). The MMC had been inaugurated in 2006 to "to ensure that Michigan's high school graduates have the necessary skills to succeed either in postsecondary education or in the workplace, "by requiring all high school graduates to complete 16 credits across several core disciplines. The revisions will allow students to meet algebra II requirements by finishing CTE programs that are embedded with that course material. This added flexibility will free the time available for students to take such programs while still meeting math requirements. During the discussion after Scott's presentation, many attendees made the point that informing parents of these changes is critical to engaging more students in CTE. The presentation was very well received by conference attendees. In fact, ninety-four percent of the conference attendees who completed an evaluation rated the Palmer/Brisson presentation as above average. Nice job, Scott and Claire!
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EV Myth Busters
Myth:
Electric Cars Are Unproven Technology
Fact:
Electric cars have been around just as long as gasoline-powered cars (SOURCE). In fact, in the early days of the automobile, electric cars were far more plentiful than gasoline-powered cars. An electric car even held the land speed record until approximately 1900. While it is true the internal combustion engine has had the benefit of more than 125 years of continuous development, electric cars have been seriously worked on for over twenty years now. Many may recall General Motors actually offered an electric car back in 1996 with a range of some 160 miles on a single charge. In the interim, modern society has become more and more dependent upon battery-operated devices. If any technology is truly proven these days it's portable electronics. And frankly, that's all an electric car really is, a truly portable electronic device.
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Above: GM's EV1 car released in 1996 |
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