Schools
Longtime Worcester Company Invests In New Community College Manufacturing Center
The local college is getting a major investment to expand hands-on training for advanced manufacturing careers.
WORCESTER, MA — A local community college is getting a major investment to expand hands-on training for advanced manufacturing careers.
Quinsigamond Community College and Saint-Gobain North America announced that a three-year partnership will support new equipment, lab furnishings and classroom furnishings in the college’s future QCC Center, which is scheduled to open in 2027. The funding will also help QCC integrate computer science, engineering and robotics into its advanced manufacturing program.
The learning space will be named the Saint-Gobain Advanced Manufacturing Center at QCC in recognition of the company’s investment.
“This partnership with Saint-Gobain reflects our shared commitment to education, innovation and hands-on learning,” QCC President Luis Pedraja said. “By investing in our students, we are preparing the next generation of skilled professionals who will shape the future of manufacturing in Central Massachusetts and beyond while building a strong pipeline of talent for employers across the region.”
The planned QCC Center will also include student engagement areas, a gymnasium and dedicated space for the college’s hospitality program.
Dennis Dean, dean of QCC’s School for Computing & Applied Technologies, said the investment will help students gain experience with technologies used in the modern manufacturing workforce.
Saint-Gobain has operated in Worcester for more than a century. The company opened a new 47,000-square-foot administration building at its manufacturing campus on Stores Street in December 2025.
The company also transferred about 51 acres of its former Worcester property to the Worcester Business Development Corporation in 2022. That land is now being redeveloped as GreenTech Park, where officials recently marked progress on $10.4 million in infrastructure improvements.
“Our partnership with Quinsigamond Community College reflects our commitment to strengthening the workforce, advancing innovation and supporting hands-on learning experiences that prepare students for success in modern manufacturing,” Saint-Gobain North America and CertainTeed President and CEO Mark Rayfield said.
