Wheeling High to host Chicagoland Manufacturing Renaissance Council

Wheeling High School will host the Chicagoland Manufacturing Renaissance Council in an open house Feb. 11, where local manufacturers will have an opportunity to tour the school's new state-of-the-art prototyping fabrication lab.

Peter Vadopalas, the director of economic development for the Village of Wheeling, is working with Dan Swinney, the executive director of CMRC, to create a new local chapter in Wheeling.

Both Vadopalas and Swinney will be presenters at the open house. Jim Warren, president of the Fabricators and Manufacturers Association, will present an overview of the FMA's programs to support local manufacturers and to inspire the next generation of inventors and manufacturers.

Brian McGuire, president of the Tooling and Manufacturing Association, will present an overview of his organization and his work with Wheeling High School.

Local businesses attending the open house include Hidden Valley, Angiotech, Kolbi Pipe Marker Co., Numerical Precision Inc. and Waltz Brothers.

Some of the planned attendees helped design and fund Wheeling's new prototyping lab. The new facility - complete with a 3-D printer, Computer Numerical Control lathes and mills, robotics workstation and more - is part of the new Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics curriculum initiative at WHS.

Students in Project Lead the Way classes use the lab on a daily basis.

"Community partnerships are integral to the success of our programs and providing opportunities for our students," said Mike Geist, Wheeling High School engineering teacher.

"We are so grateful for our local manufacturers taking an active role in the educational process."