2nd Annual NAPTA Troubleshooting Skills Competition
College Teams Battle at 2nd Annual NAPTA Troubleshooting Skills Competition in Gonzales, LA
April 21st 2018 — Teams of college process technology students from across the country competed in the Fifth NAPTA Troubleshooting Skills Competition at River Parishes Community College on April 20th and 21st.
The top ten three-member teams participated in this competition. A qualifying round held at each local college determined the top ten teams to advance to the NAPTA Finals Competition. Thirty four teams competed in the qualifying round.
San Jacinto College Central Campus in Houston won the honor of Top Troubleshooting Team, their second year to compete in the event. Kenai Peninsula College – Kenai River, took second place, and Sowela Technical Community College took third place.
The four-round Finals Competition tested the teams’ troubleshooting skills on recognizing and resolving problems with various energy industry-related scenarios, using computer-based simulation and virtual plant environment software. Students also got to meet with industry representatives at the Shell Industry Networking Hour held prior to the Finals Competition.
The teams competing were:
•Bellingham Technical College (Washington)
•Bismarck State College (North Dakota)
•College of the Mainland (Texas)
•Kenai Peninsula College-Kenai River (Alaska)
•Northern Oklahoma College (Oklahoma)
•River Parishes Community College (Louisiana)
•San Jacinto College (Texas)
•South Central Louisiana Technical College (Louisiana)
•Sowela Technical Community College (Louisiana)
•Victoria College (Texas)
The North American Process Technology Alliance (NAPTA) sponsored the event. NAPTA is an organization of the Process Technology (PTEC) education providers and their business, industry, and community advisors cooperatively working toward their common goals. The River Parishes Community College Process Technology program hosted the event.
“NAPTA’s 2nd annual Troubleshooting Skills Competition was a tremendous success and again provided the ultimate opportunity for education and industry to emphasize the importance of critical thinking in process technology. Thanks to the support of our membership PTEC learning was taken to a higher level,” said Eric Newby, NAPTA Executive Director.
“Once again, the high level skills of teams from across the country were on display during this fifth annual competition. The judging panel was very impressed by the knowledge of troubleshooting concepts demonstrated by the student competitors and the guidance provided by their coaches,” said Gayle Cannon, the competition lead judge who has both industry and education experience.
“This year’s competition saw the greatest number of registered teams to date. Our industry sponsors were a huge part of the success of the event, their contributions of monetary funds and improvement suggestions are helping to sustain the Troubleshooting Skills Competition as we move forward to begin plans for the 2019 event,” said Martha McKinley, Coordinator for the Troubleshooting Competition.
Other event sponsors included BASF as Event Underwriter, Shell Oil Company as Diamond Sponsor, Valero as Platinum Sponsor, INEOS as Gold Sponsor, Eastman Chemical Company and Bayport Technical as Silver Sponsors, and Simtronics, Systran Training & Technical, and RISC as Sponsors in Kind.
Troubleshooting is a capstone course for Process Technology programs. Process Technology (PTEC) programs teach operation skills required in industries such as petrochemical, power generation, pharmaceuticals, waste water/water treatment, and related fields. PTECH programs typically confer a two-year Associates degree. Students learn about equipment, safety, quality, instrumentation, systems, and operations—all of which they must understand when troubleshooting problems with a process.
NOC Students selected for the NASA Experience
Northern Oklahoma College students Zachary Fruits of Tonkawa and Payton Malcolm of Ponca City have been selected to travel to NASA’s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center this summer to participate in the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) onsite experience.
They were selected as two of 280 community college students from across the United States to be part of the NCAS onsite experience.
NCAS begins as a five-week online activity culminating with a four-day on-site event at a NASA Center offering students the opportunity to interact with NASA engineers and others as they learn more about careers in science and engineering. While at NASA, students form teams and establish fictional companies interested in Mars exploration. Each team is responsible for developing and testing a prototype rover, forming a company infrastructure, managing a budget, and developing communications and outreach.
The onsite experience at NASA includes briefings by NASA subject matter experts, information on how to apply for internships and a tour of NASA’s unique facilities.
NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars is an activity funded in part by the Minority University Research and Education Program, or MUREP, which is committed to engaging underrepresented and underserved students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in authentic learning experiences to sustain a diverse workforce.
With this activity, NASA continues the agency’s tradition engaging the nation in NASA’s mission.
“NCAS not only inspires community college students to advance in STEM fields, but it also opens doors for future careers at NASA. NCAS has a legacy of alumni moving from NASA internships to and ultimately entering the NASA workforce. It is rewarding to see the progression of a student from NCAS participant to NASA colleague,” Joeletta Patrick, Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) Manager.
Contact Us
Northern Oklahoma College
580.628.6440
Crowder Science Hall 201
1220 E. Grand, Tonkawa, OK 74653
Dr. Frankie Wood-Black, Division Chair