New Cloud Academy, a non-profit company, was established to provide education of the “internet of everything” with emphasis on the exciting field of mechatronics.
With the motto “Building for the Future”, the academy’s aim is to teach people to enter the world of automation and allow “things” to interact with people, thereby extending and enhancing human interaction with machinery and automated processes.
Of great concern is the state of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education in South Africa which has been under the spotlight for a number of years. In the midst of what some are calling a crisis, New Cloud Academy is addressing this need and readying students for the world of work in the exciting field of mechatronics.
Mechatronics covers the field of electricity, electronics, mechanics, physics, automation and simulation, and the connectivity of industries via computer networks and the internet, thus aligning mechatronic engineers to the new Industry 4.0 industrial revolution.
The academy is continuously developing new courses integrating people, things, processes and data to make life fun. Dr Karin Wolff, academic advisor and researcher, emphasises: “We aim to create an environment that educates, informs and inspires.”
New Cloud Academy’s discover-Engineering courses were launched in January 2016 in collaboration with CTSE, embracing two full years of academic education. These support school leavers wishing to get a practical start in technology and are project-based courses using hardware and software, such as the Arduino, RaspberryPi, PLCs, SolidWorks modelling and MatLab – used for the mathematical integration of projects, including a Mars rover car.
The academy delivers web-based content, online assessment, student performance tracking, hands-on labs, instructor-led learning experiences, support, and preparation for industry certifications.
The Academy in collaboration with CTSE is an accredited CISCO networking academy providing the international networking and “internet of things” courses.
