With machines taking on more manufacturing work, humans need to step up their technical skills to stay relevant as managers. That’s the impetus for a free boot camp being offered to machinists this summer by the University of St. Thomas School of Engineering.

In partnership with the Air Force Research Laboratory and Third Wave Systems, the two-day Machining Modeling and CNC Optimization Training introduces participants who already have some CNC (Computer Numerical Control) experience to new technology. The computers provided for use during the camp are pre-programmed with software and codes to tell the machine the tasks and movements to cut a piece of material, like metal or plastic, without a manual machine operator.

Tiffany Ling, a clinical faculty member in mechanical engineering and operations director for manufacturing workforce development at St. Thomas, said a lot of machinists are leaving the industry due to career changes and retirement. Industry numbers show limited growth in the field. This camp will help younger workers fill those roles and to help expand both throughout and beyond Minnesota.

“We want to bring cutting edge simulation tools into the workforce in Minnesota, so that we can continue to meet manufacturing demands and to help with U.S. manufacturing, reskilling and upskilling of workers,” Ling said. “There’s a big push for that and we want to be a part of getting the skills needed to be able to do that in Minnesota and nationally.”

St. Thomas started a beginner’s boot camp, called America’s Cutting Edge, last year to help introduce manufacturing careers and tools to those initially interested. The new, separate camp is designed for those with previous manufacturing experience, building on advanced equipment and software skills.

Ling said an example of the simulation software used at the camp would be making a car part from a solid piece of metal. The simulation calculates the force to see how much the machine can be pushed without breaking the metal.

The camp runs Aug. 25 and 26, and Aug. 27 and 28, with an optional eight-hour online training. Registration is available through the University of St. Thomas.