Behrend

Penn State Erie offers RJG master molder certification series

This spring and summer, Penn State Erie will partner with plastics industry leader RJG Inc. of Traverse City, Mich., to become the first location outside of RJG to offer part of the company's exclusive Master Molder Certification series. This certification is considered the standard of the injection molding industry.

“We are pleased to be able to partner with RJG Inc. to offer Master Molder at Penn State Erie,” said Peggy McCarthy, director of the Center for Corporate and Continuing Education (CCCE) at the college. “This certification is extremely desirable within the industry. This is a great boon for plastics companies in Erie, as well as for Behrend.”

RJG was founded in 1985 to provide the plastics industry with the ability to deliver quality parts to its customers by offering the industry comprehensive systems, a processing strategy and in-depth training. RJG has been has been consigning equipment to Penn State Erie's plastics processing lab for several years. In addition to Master Molder, RJG has been responsible for many innovations in the plastics industry. Among these are the first scientific molding seminar, the first commercial strain gauge cavity pressure sensors, decoupled molding techniques and the plastics industry’s first digital data acquisition platform.

“Penn State Erie’s relationship with RJG helps keep us on the leading edge of new technology and techniques used for precision molding,” said Brad Johnson, lecturer in the Plastics Engineering Technology program and coordinator of CCCE’s plastics programs.

“Penn State Erie’s bachelor’s degree in plastics engineering technology, accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, is widely acknowledged as the premier degree in this field, and the Plastics Training Seminar program at Penn State Erie has been providing quality training to plastics practitioners for more than 10 years,” said Robert Simoneau, director of the School of Engineering and Engineering Technology. “The association with RJG is a very welcome opportunity to further enrich the programs at Penn State Erie and the people we serve.”

According to Johnson, “RJG's certificate program is unmatched in its comprehensive and integrated approach, with no other program in the industry coming close to RJG's Master Molder. Offering this program fits in perfectly with Penn State Erie’s objective of providing world-class plastics education and training.”

RJG started offering the Master Molder Certification Series in 1998 and it quickly has become a standard for the injection molding industry. The Master Molder Certification Series is designed for the process technician, engineer or manager who needs to understand and demonstrate injection molding skills at the machine.

The training consists of three modules taken in a series. The first two modules will be available at Erie, with the third offered at RJG’s location. Upon successful completion of each module, students receive a technical certification from RJG, enhancing their industrial knowledge and marketability.

“Completion of all three modules of the Master Molder Series ensures students have the knowledge required to instruct others in their organization on the strategies and techniques they have learned and applied in the series,” according to RJG’s Web site.

For more information on the RJG certification or other plastics training programs, visit http://pennstatebehrend.psu.edu/cde/ or call (814) 898-6103.

Last Updated March 19, 2009

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