Learning Factory

The Virginia Tech Learning Factory is an educational platform that includes traditional machining and assembly operations found in most manufacturing environments. Additionally, the factory is a showcase and testbed for the systems and technologies of Industry 4.0.

The mission of the Learning Factory is "to provide a safe and effective learning environment where hands-on undergraduate education of Industry 4.0 concepts and technologies can be experienced".

In approximately 1,800 square feet on two floors of Durham Hall, the Learning Factory:

• Provides the infrastructure to produce practice-oriented learning that will reduce the gap in technology competencies and access for students. 
• Can be used for industry training programs and ISE undergraduate education in the intelligent factory. In addition, senior design teams and undergraduate research teams will use it as a platform to test new concepts. 
• Is the ideal environment to design, test, and implement new technologies of to  the factory of the future before they are ready for full deployment in a sponsor's factory. It will be a key component for manufacturing floor innovation.

Team-based Experiential Learning:

Recent projects in the factory include:

• Renewable Energy
• Virtual Factory 
• Mobile Robotic Solution
• Factory Support and Digital Thread 
• Finding Missing Assets in the Intelligent Factory Operators Movement Tracking 
• Tool Wear Monitoring in a CNC Environment Dashboard Design and Connectivity