New training centre caters for 600 students

South West training reached an important milestone last week when the $16 million Automotive Centre was officially opened in Bunbury.

According to Training and Workforce Development Minister Terry Redman, the South West Institute of Technology’s new facility is the best in the State.

Catering for 600 students, the new centre is designed for the future of the automotive industry.

It will help to make South West apprentices more competitive, with two big workshops, vehicle testing facilities, diagnostic com port software and interactive teaching technologies at their disposal.

The Minister is confident the new facility will become a drawcard for the region.

“Facilities are a big part of how people measure the quality of training they get and a contemporary facility is a pretty good starting point,” Mr Redman said.

“This is a long-term investment in a contemporary facility to support training in the South West.

“I am really impressed with the centre and the partnership between the industry and the institute.”

South West Institute of Technology managing director Duncan Anderson said the centre was driven by the region’s automotive industry pushing for better training opportunities.

“It is a first class facility and our relationships with the automotive industry means the people getting trained here are getting the best training experience possible,” he said.

Mature-age, second-year heavy duty diesel mechanic apprentice Neil Dowsett said the centre’s impressive new equipment was an improvement on the previous setup and would allow him to be more competitive in the workforce.

“What is here is more than what is in most mechanic workshops, which means I can learn more,” he said.