Prairie View Students to Benefit From $60 Million Computer Systems Donation
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas
General Motors Corp., Sun Microsystems and EDS have donated more than $60 million in computer-aided design, manufacturing and engineering (CAD/CAM/CAE) software, hardware, and training expertise to Prairie View A&M University.
This corporate alliance initiative, known as the Partners for the Advancement of CAD/CAM/CAE Education (PACE), was launched in 1999 to help provide future engineers from key institutions with the education and experience desired by each of the partnering corporations.
“The technology that PACE has donated represents the future of engineering and design. Our industry demands that we move quickly and deliver unsurpassed quality, reliability and durability in every product that rolls off the line,” says Jerry Gibbs, GM executive director of North America Product Development Quality.
PACE creates networks for research, curriculum development, textbook development and other forms of collaboration between GM, Sun Microsystems, EDS and academia. In addition to the hardware, software and training donated by the three core partners, PACE institutions receive a substantial contribution of ADAMS (Automatic Dynamic Analysis of Mechanical Systems) software from Mechanical Dynamics Inc., of Ann Arbor, Mich. Students at Prairie View now will be using the same advanced math-based engineering and design tools in the classroom that GM engineers used in the lab to design the award-winning 2002 Chevy Avalanche and GMC Envoy. Students will learn to design, engineer and validate products in a virtual world to prepare them to address real-world challenges such as accelerated product development cycles and increased productivity demands.
“We’re very pleased to be a part of this program and grateful for the mutually beneficial and strategic relationships we will be developing with all of the PACE partners,” said Prairie View A&M University President Dr. Charles A. Hines at a donation ceremony held last month on the university’s campus.
PACE has made donations to 15 universities in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
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