Flexible and Adaptable Learning Factories for the Rail Car Manufacturing industry

Abstract

As the need for a skilled labor force in the manufacturing domain increases in South Africa, particularly the rail car manufacturing industry it is upon academia to provide engineers who will quickly adapt and function upon employment for this industry to become a success. The challenge faced in education to produce relevant future employees has been struck by filling in the gap that causes misalignment between academia and industry. Learning factories however play a critical role in ensuring the production of future engineers from academia to the workplace. The main challenge is the mismatch between industry and academia and there is a need to bridge that gap. The aim of the research therefore is to develop a flexible learning factory that can be used in bridging the gap between institutions of higher learning and railcar manufacturing activities. A critical review on learning factories and reconfigurable systems was made to identify the gap and develop the learning factory that addresses the gap. Also a visit to industry complemented the research through one on one contact with railcar manufactures. The results show a developed learning factory that can be used in equipping graduates with the knowledge required in industry, particularly the railcar manufacturing industry. A specific area in the railcar (bogie) was identified as the key area that was considered in the development