UMaine Dean says: We need more Engineers in Maine
Dana Humphrey, Dean of the University of Maine College of Engineering, described the current state of the engineering work force in Maine. He discussed the role of engineers in our economy, our aging workforce, demand in the STEM fields, the current production rate of engineers, and the role of research and development.
Role of Engineers: Engineers are critical to our economy. The total economic impact of engineers in Maine is $3.7B or 8% of Maine GDP.
Aging workforce: Just as in the overall workforce, the engineering workforce is aging too. 50% of engineers are 45-64 across the US. Within 10 years, 40% of Maine’s papermaking workforce will be over 60.
Demand for Engineers: Engineering employment has grown 15% since 2004 in Maine. All employment is down 15% in the same time frame. There is a huge demand for computer, IT and engineers. Looking at the class of 2012, 91% are employed full time compared to only 68.4% of all degrees. 8.9% of engineering grads are in graduate school, so 99.9% of 2012 engineering grads are employed or still in school. Understanding that 20% of UMaine engineering grads are from out of state in the first place, it is significant that 60% of UMaine engineering grads find jobs in Maine.
Production of Engineers: Maine is under producing engineers, ranking 47th in the nation. Maine would need to increase engineering BS degrees by 60% to reach the national average. At the Masters and PhD levels, Main ranks 50th. Right now, Maine is struggling to graduate enough engineers just to replace our own workforce, let alone grow. The good news is that the UMaine College of Engineering enrollment has been growing and is now growing at a faster rate than the national average.
Research and Development: The University has many development projects underway. Dean Humphrey spoke to three of them:
Biofuels from wood – There is a $70M full scale trial in development at Old Town Fuel and Fiber. They are finding ways to extra fuel from current paper mill waste products – a new business model for paper mills.
Bridge in a Backpack – This mature technology is approved for use in all 50 states. It was developed at the University and licensed to Advance Infrastructure Technologies and is in commercial production.
Off shore wind – Volturn US is a 1:8 scale unit built by Cianbro and launched in Brewer on June 2, 2013. It was designed for mass production and a 100-year life cycle utilizing commonly available materials and processes, existing port infrastructure and deployment vessels. It has an ultralight composite tower and a heavy base that includes concrete. While a full scale deployment has not been funded, $3M has been provided to develop a full scale design. The goal is to general 2-3 gigawatts, the equivalent of 2-3 nuclear power plants.