From the materials used to make this magazine’s pages to the chemical composition of its ink, an engineer was involved in the development of this item and many other everyday objects in one form or another. The NC State Engineering Foundation puts on the Industry Partners Event Series to showcase engineering’s significant influence in manufacturing pieces of our everyday lives — and the College of Engineering’s (COE) role in preparing the next generation of engineers.
Held annually since 2016, the Industry Partners Event Series invites North Carolina business and government leaders to speak with COE students, faculty and staff members and alumni to learn about industry research and economic development from a local to global scale.
Pamela Townsend, a senior vice president and consultant for WSP, USA, and the chair of the Engineering Foundation’s advocacy committee, sees the event series as a way of making the public aware of the College’s value to different industries while advocating for resources to support continued growth.
Industries such as mine are growing exponentially and we’re seeing North Carolina becoming the next Silicon Valley.”
Chad Henry
“It’s important to understand the impact of the College and the resources needed to continue the College’s mission and to keep making that impact,” Townsend said. “The needs of the industry are driving a need for the College to expand.”
The series’ focus on North Carolina is not only linked to NC State, but the local economic growth in Research Triangle Park as global industries decide to invest in and move into the area.
Previous advocacy themes include the College’s economic impact on the state’s rural areas, the College’s COVID-19 response and NC State’s Biomanufacturing Training and Education Center (BTEC)’s need to grow to increase workforce training and research.
Chad Henry, a corporate VP and general manager at Novo Nordisk and a 2021 panelist on BTEC, recognized how these topics tie directly into some of the biggest challenges that the industry is facing: talent resources and growing leadership.
“Industries such as mine are growing exponentially and we’re seeing North Carolina becoming the next Silicon Valley with the amount of companies moving in and competing,” Henry said. “We’re looking to grow our talent and the NC educational system has a responsibility to assist in increasing that talent pool.”
Gary Gilleskie, executive director of BTEC and a 2021 panelist, sees the series as a way to highlight the unique features of the College and what it has to offer students and the industries they become involved in.
“No matter how you look at it, there is a demand for a more skilled workforce and as industries are growing, so are the opportunities locally and worldwide,” Gilleskie said.
The Engineering Foundation will host its sixth Industry Partners Event Series panel this fall, with a date, time and theme to be announced soon.
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