FALL RIVER – Bristol Community College announced Wednesday that it received $861,097 from the Baker-Polito administration to launch the college’s National Offshore Wind Institute training program.
The college said the institute will offer basic safety and technical training programs, certified by the Global Wind Organization, to help prepare workers for employment in “construction, deployment, operations and maintenance” of offshore wind farms. With the grant, Bristol Community College said the institute will be supplied with training equipment in order to offer “specialized certifications” and achieve Global Wind Organization accreditation.
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Among the safety training modules offered by the institute are first aid, fire awareness, manual handling, working at heights and sea survival, the college said. Offshore wind technical training courses focus on hydraulics, mechanical and electrical concepts.
Additionally, Alan Lowdon, who has more than two decades of experience working in the offshore wind industry, has been named the institute’s director of strategic development, the college said.
The college also said that the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center recently published a study assessing economic impacts of developing 1,600 megawatts in Massachusetts, and that study estimates offshore wind farms will create close to 3,000 jobs over the next decade, generating economic impacts between $1.2 billion and $2.1 billion in the region.
Bristol Community College President Laura L. Douglas said in a statement that the college is “proud” to provide “in-demand technical skills and safety training” that’s required for jobs in this “emerging” industry.
The grant was part of the Baker-Polito administration’s $14.6 million in funding of Massachusetts Skills Capital Grants that was issued to 54 institutions to purchase new technologies and update equipment to help better educate students and expand career opportunities, the college said.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
