CRESCO, Iowa (December 11, 2014) – Chipola College in Marianna, Fla., didn’t just want any mobile classroom—they wanted a mobile classroom where students could learn to weld. The result is a welding trailer with several innovations that make it not only versatile but energy efficient.
The interior of the trailer contains two sections. The front is a state-of-the-art classroom with a flatscreen TV in front and desk space on both walls that have 110v outlets and CAT-5 Internet ports. A slide-out provides more floor space, giving the students more space to help make lectures and group discussion more comfortable.
In the rear of the trailer, though, a welding workshop with four stations stands ready for students to apply what they have learned in the classroom. Three MIG welders and one TIG welders are separated by thick translucent safety curtains. Each workstation comes equipped with vices and clamps to hold students’ projects, and tubing supplies inert gases from a cylinder to each workstation. A grinder helps prepare materials for welding. The workroom also comes equipped with smoke extractors and a ventilation system.
The trailer will also be displayed at career fairs and job fairs where its welding equipment will not be used. In order to power the trailer without having to use an overpowered generator, Featherlite installed a 20kW generator and a 60kW generator. The 20kW generator powers the trailer’s lights. When the welding equipment is used, the 60kW generator is also fired up to provide the trailer enough power.
The response from Chipola College has been positive. “It’s an outstanding trailer,” Darwin Gilmore, Dean of Workforce and Economic Development at Chipola College, said. “It’s very sharp, very well done. We’ve already taken it to a career fair and had some potential students check it out.”
“I’m really proud of the job we did on this trailer,” Justin Queensland, Featherlite National Sales Manager, said. “This mobile classroom really showcases Featherlite’s strengths in both engineering and innovation.”
Featherlite Trailers, headquartered in Cresco, Iowa, built the first all-aluminum trailer in 1973 and throughout its 40-year history has been a leading American brand. The company offers a versatile line of trailers for recreational and business uses, including livestock, cargo, car, horse and flatbed trailers. For more information, call 800-800-1230 or go to the web at www.featherlitespecialty.com.
