Ground was broken March 8 for a $5 million, 35,000-square-foot millwright and carpenter training center in Russellville, Arkansas.
The Southern States Millwright Regional Council stays ahead of rapidly changing technological advancements by investing in training facilities such as the new Arkansas center.
The center will replace a 10,000-square-foot facility. Additional space the new facility will provide is needed to accommodate a growing number of millwright trainees.
The center will be the hub for the wind-turbine-maintenance initiative in the Southern District. By the end of this year, we anticipate having a significant number of millwrights working full time in the wind-turbine-maintenance industry.
The 4-acre site for the center is in a highly visible location close to Interstate 40. The SSMRC provided a $300,000 grant to help purchase this property, is donating approximately $300,000 worth of new, state-of-the-art training equipment, and is providing $2 million for construction.