NETL, Pierpont Community & Technical College, and West Virginia University Sign MOU to Collaborate on Workforce Training for Power Plant Operations

NETL’s AVESTAR Center signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Pierpont Community and Technical College (Pierpont) and the West Virginia University Research Corporation acting on behalf of West Virginia University (WVU) National Research Center for Coal and Energy (NRCCE) to establish a cooperative working arrangement for providing hands-on, simulator-based, workforce training and education on the safe, efficient, and reliable operation of clean energy plants.

The MOU will enable Pierpont, located in Fairmont, WV, to leverage the AVESTAR facility at WVU-NRCCE in Morgantown, WV. AVESTAR's high-fidelity, real-time dynamic simulators and 3D virtual immersive training systems will be used in Pierpont’s Power Plant Technology Program. Operated in partnership with FirstEnergy, Pierpont’s one-year curriculum is aimed at developing a well-qualified supply of control room and field operators for power generation stations in the region, including pulverized coal power plants and NGCC systems.

NETL, Pierpont, and WVU-NRCCE will consult with FirstEnergy and other regional utilities to gather requirements for power plant training. Collaborative efforts will also include development of a simulator-based training curriculum, hand-out materials, procedures, and exercises, as well as trainee performance evaluation criteria. Pierpont and/or utility simulator instructors will obtain “train-the-trainer” training from AVESTAR training partner, Fossil Consulting Services. Pierpont will utilize the AVESTAR facility at WVU-NRCCE for training, while also exploring the potential for establishing an AVESTAR Center at their new Advanced Technology Center, which will be located in Fairmont, WV at their Energy Center of Excellence.

Fossil Energy Techline: New Agreement Makes Innovative NETL Simulator Training Available to Pierpont Students (January 17, 2013)