Georgian College unveiled plans last month to expand its Centre for Skilled Trades at the Barrie Campus.

Through the project, the college aims to modernize the existing skilled trades building and add approximately 20,000 square feet of additional space. Once complete, the updated facility will support the development of a future-ready skilled trades workforce that is capable in robotics, artificial intelligence, and advanced digital technologies.

Funding is being provided in part by the County of Simcoe, which committed $1.5 million to the work. The announcement brings the county’s total investment in Georgian College to more than $10 million over the past decade.

The college says the timing of this investment is critical as the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development estimates one in six job openings will be in the skilled trades by 2026.

Also, according to Lightcast – a global labour market analytics firm – the growth rate for skilled trades in Georgian’s catchment area is outpacing the provincial rate. The Georgian catchment rate is 27 percent, compared to the provincial rate of 12 percent.

The expanded Centre for Skilled Trades will include a new lab for heating, refrigeration, and air conditioning, major renovations to the lab for carpentry and machining programs, a second and third-floor addition with collaborative spaces, energy-efficient designs, and more.

“For almost 60 years, Georgian has been an experienced and trusted workforce development partner, and we know how important the skilled trades are to a variety of sectors in our region,” said college President and CEO Kevin Weaver. “The skilled trades are one of our areas of strength and to continue being responsive to industry needs and to offer our students an unrivaled skilled trades learning environment, we need to modernize our centre to meet the challenges of Industry 4.0.”

Georgian currently offers 40 skilled trades programs across its Barrie, Midland, Muskoka and Owen Sound campuses, including a mix of diplomas, certificates and apprenticeship training. The facility in Barrie alone will support approximately 1,000 students each academic year, with capacity to welcome more.

Programming decisions are made in close consultation with industry representatives who sit on Georgian’s program advisory committees to help ensure programs are designed to support the evolving workforce.