The New Brunswick Community College (NBCC) is seeking to acquire a mobile trades training trailer to promote skilled trades programming and increase access to education in the province.

“New Brunswick faces a skilled labour shortage that can be positively impacted by reducing barriers to increase access to education. Additionally, those in rural communities and Indigenous communities are disproportionately affected by common barriers to education,” the NBCC said in a press release.

“One way to enhance the reach of education is through a mobile trades training trailer. In many jurisdictions across Canada, colleges use training trailers to deliver pre-employment, apprenticeship, and contract training at off-campus delivery sites making education opportunities more flexible and within reach of many who cannot pursue post-secondary education,” the statement added.

Training trailers are mobile classrooms that provide flexible teaching space. They are 53 feet long with expandable slides creating over 1,000 square feet of space. The units are configurable to support multiple disciplines and trades.

The units are self-contained with onboard generators to handle everyday power and more high-demand items like welders. For medium to long-term use at one location, the units are typically connected to shore power, similar to connecting a mobile office to power at a construction site.

Potential benefit

Through training partnerships and other service agreements, the unit could be available for industry and other schools to utilize via contract or short-term rental agreements increasing the potential benefit to the province.

For Indigenous communities, experience demonstrates that programs delivered within the communities have a greater completion and overall success rate than those delivered off-site.

As a secondary benefit, units offer significant visibility and promotional value for careers in trades. When not in use for training, the units are used to recruit and promote skilled trades to high-school students and the community.

The NBCC is receiving donations and funding from different sources and suppliers to alleviate some of the costs of the expensive endeavor. For those interested in participating in either donating or getting NBCC help on good equipment at a reasonable price, contact Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association’s Jean-Marc Picard at jmpicard@apta.ca or Mary Butler at Mary.Butler@nbcc.ca.