The CNC machine tool manufacturer Haas Automation Europe N.V. has opened the most westerly of its 46 European Haas Technical Education Centres (HTECs) on the Atlantic island of Madeira, an autonomous region of Portugal. The facility, located in Madeira’s capital of Funchal, had its grand opening on March 7.
The new HTEC forms part of Funchal’s Professional Skills Qualification Centre (Direção Regional de Qualificação Profissional—DRQP). It collaborates with the Portugal Haas Factory Outlet (HFO), a division of After Sales S. A. The director and owner of After Sales, Carlos Vilas-Boas, was instrumental in setting up the new facility, as well as the other four HTECs on the Portuguese mainland.
“As with all HTECs,” Vilas-Boas explains, “this new laboratory and workshop houses the latest CNC metal-cutting and precision engineering technology. We see that having access to these facilities inspires and engages the students and their teachers, which makes us very proud and committed to continue working with the DRQP.”
The HTEC grand opening event was attended by Francisco Fernandes, the regional secretary of education and culture, and DRQP directors Sara Relvas and Elda Pedro, and was covered by state television. “The DRQP now belongs to a network of engineering excellence,” said Fernandes on the occasion, “giving students on the island access to strong international resources.” Relvas added to his comments this: “Because Haas Automation CNC machine tools are present at so many of the best international manufacturing companies, this HTEC will help our youth prepare themselves for opportunities in the rest of the European and international labour markets.”
The HTEC initiative is a partnership between European educational establishments, Haas Automation Europe, its distributor-owned Haas Factory Outlets, and an alliance of industry-leading CNC technology partners. Haas Automation Europe launched the HTEC programme in 2007 to counter a threat to the Europe’s sustainable economic development: a shortage of talented and motivated young people entering the precision engineering industry with CNC machining skills.
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