Doneique Smith

On Sunday, March 18, the Caribbean Maritime University (CMU) was declared the home of rowing in Jamaica, in a dedication ceremony to officially open the Jamaica Rowing Federation (JRF) Boathouse.

This is aligned to the university’s commitment to support non-traditional sports in Jamaica and is timely as the JRF has confirmed its intention to ‘row to the 2020 Olympics’ in Tokyo Japan. To do so it needed equipment, coaches and training facilities. These resources were acquired through the support of local and international partners and dedication of the Federation to make participation in the summer games a reality. The Boathouse will house equipment, store valuable training machinery and be the JRF headquarters in Jamaica.

Members from the CMU rowing club try out the new erg machines which were provided through funding from the Jamaica Olympic Association.

Partnership at work

CMU provided the physical space, equipped with security features and showers, the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) donated six erg machines which facilitates training, and certification for fifteen coaches was endorsed by World Rowing (FISA) – the organization that regulates rowing internationally. Certification followed a week-long development camp for rowers and coaches, designed to build the capacity of the rowers, increase the number of rowers that will become certified coaches, and grow Jamaica’s rowing programme, thereby strengthening its campaign to ‘Row to the Olympics’, for 2020 in Tokyo. Training was facilitated by John Parker, Trainer, High Performance Rowing Coach and Programme Innovator. Parker served as a member of the coaching team for the United States at the RIO Olympics and who also coached the first Nigerian rower to ever race at the Olympics.

In his remarks, Secretary-General for the JRF, Robert Scott, noted that this coaches’ development camp is of critical importance because the lack of coaches is the single largest obstacle in building an elite rowing team and that through this training, the number of coaches increased from just three to eighteen. He also thanked the JOA for its partnership, generous donation and continued support. Samuda, who offered greetings on behalf of the JOA, commended the JRF for its valiant efforts to diversify Jamaica’s sporting excellence in non-traditional sports and the CMU for its vision, and unwavering support of the Federation, citing that institutional support plays a vital role in the development of sports worldwide. In his address, Coach Parker cited the talent, passion and discipline of the rowers as fantastic features of an Olympic campaigning team and encouraged other organizations to support the Jamaican rowing programme.

Imagine a world in which people talk to machines – self-driving cars, drones, and robots completing human tasks.  This is the Fourth Industrial Evolution, and the Caribbean Maritime University, CMU, through its partnership with the German-based, FESTO, is at the forefront of preparing those students – for the future.

It’s a fantastic partnership between FESTO and the CMU to establish what’s called a FACT Centre to give students state of the art cutting-edge engineering training. FESTO, a global market leader in industrial education, is an engineering-driven company, specializing in pneumatics; the branch of engineering that specializes in gas or pressurized air, and electric automation technology. The  CMU is the leader for maritime education and training in the region.

Both entities will offer students and employees of manufacturing companies’ hands-on training to learn industry skills necessary to succeed in an evolving economy.

“By 2020, the fourth industrial revolution would have brought us advanced robotics and autonomous transport, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and biotechnology,” according to the World Economic Forum (WEF). This period – the fourth industrial revolution – is characterized by a range of new technologies that are fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds.

Elaine Hayden, Director of Special Projects and Strategic Initiatives at the Caribbean Maritime University, believes there will be a dramatic shift in the skills demand set over the next few years. “Modern, state of the art manufacturing starts with qualified people,” she said. “And with the introduction of advanced technologies in large to small innovative companies, the FACT Centre will supply skilled technicians to the manufacturing sector and beyond.”

The PwC 2016 Global Industry 4.0 Survey agrees: “The biggest challenge for industrial leaders isn’t technology – it’s the people.”

Training – or retraining the workforce will be “a challenging task” for companies as we approach the fourth industrial revolution, Hayden said.  However, she was quick to point out that the FACT Centre is equipped with the resources and the technical know-how to solve this skills-gap. “We have four state-of-the-art laboratories and internationally trained FESTO certified lecturers that will be delivering the courses to our first cohort in September.”

The FACT Centre will offer undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Mechatronics and Automation – areas that will see a rapid increase in job prospects over the next few years as well as specialized courses in industrial pneumatics, electromechanical systems, and hydraulics.

In addition to offering undergraduate degrees, professional development and certificate initiatives, the Centre will focus on fostering an education through a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) approach and strengthening CMU’s track record of aligning academic programmes with industry demands.

For additional information, contact the Office of Marketing and Communications at pr@cmu.edu.jm