Adept Technology, Inc., San Jose, Calif., recently announced the donation of factory robotic equipment to Central Missouri State University, a state-assisted, four-year university located in Warrensburg, Mo. No, it's not the stuff of some Star Wars fantasy. The equipment was donated to the university for use in a new automation laboratory being established in the school's Department of Manufacturing and Construction, whose focus is to teach the functional knowledge and the processes useful in today's manufacturing environment.

The donation, made in cooperation with Hawker Energy Products, Inc., a manufacturer of batteries, consisted of an AdeptOne robot, controls and software. Warrensburg-based Hawker Energy Products has been using robotics equipment since 1990. After a recent production-line upgrade, Hawker began searching for an educational program interested in receiving a donation of the equipment it would no longer be using, and ultimately chose its home-town university.

Jeff Inman, advanced engineering project manager for Hawker Energy says he believes that if students are given the opportunity to learn key hands-on skills they can be more productive immediately out of school and on a faster track to a rewarding career.

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