BATHURST (CNB) – The multipurpose workshop for trades training at the Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick (CCNB) Bathurst campus was officially opened today.

"This new infrastructure puts the CCNB, Bathurst campus in a better position to satisfy the training needs of its student clientele," said Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour Minister Martine Coulombe. "Our challenge is to support co-operation among the colleges, industry, and the various stakeholders to ensure that the new seats generated by this ultramodern workshop meet the needs of the Chaleur region and of the province."

The official opening of the workshop supports one of the college's strategies, which is to focus on innovation. The workshop runs on renewable energy and has 21 geothermic wells, one of which is dedicated to teaching.

"Our government has invested in knowledge infrastructure and innovation in order to lay the foundation for economic prosperity," said Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe MP Robert Goguen, who is also parliamentary secretary to the federal minister of Justice. "In addition to creating jobs for the people in our community, this project has provided infrastructure that the CCNB Bathurst campus can use for many years to come."

Goguen spoke on behalf of Gary Goodyear, minister of state for science and technology.

The new 2,052-sq.-metre (22,800-sq.-foot) facility is located at the CCNB training centre on Youghall Drive in Bathurst. There are three workshops and five classrooms for the electricity, plumbing, and pipefitting programs. The facility also has 16 solar panels to heat water and produce electricity, as well as two small wind turbines.

"This workshop will help us to better meet labour market needs by accepting an increasing number of students, and will enable us to offer more flexible and higher quality programming," said Norbert Roy, corporate secretary and vice-president of strategic initiatives of the CCNB. "The new space will also be used for educational workshops for students in the Systèmes d'énergie renouvelable (renewable energy systems) and Technologie de l'ingénierie du bâtiment (building engineering technology) programs."

Roy spoke on behalf of the CCNB president and chief executive officer Liane Roy.

The $4.7-million project received $3.2 million from the provincial government and $1.5 million from the federal government under the Economic Action Plan.

The new facilities will strengthen the designated Red Seal trades (Interprovincial Standards Red Seal Program in 54 trades, enabling graduates to work in any province or territory) and will make it possible to consider expanding the range of programs offered at the CCNB.

The Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick is a college corporation that is focused on its student population but with an open worldview. The college contributes to the development of individuals, and Acadian and francophone society, by offering more than 90 technical and vocational training programs on its five campuses to meet labour market needs. The college values innovation and entrepreneurship, is committed to adapting to socio-economic conditions, supports applied research activities, encourages innovation, and strives to be an employer of choice in the province.


20-02-12