University of South Carolina teams up with Westinghouse on workforce development

The University of South Carolina and Westinghouse Electric Company have signed an agreement to jointly create a workforce development program to support the deployment of Westinghouse AP1000 pressurized water reactors. The partnership was announced at the Third Annual South Carolina Nuclear Summit, which was hosted by the Palmetto Nuclear Coalition in Columbia on September 28 and 29.

The workforce program is to be based at the university's Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing's Nuclear Innovation Center, which the school is planning as part of its fiscal year 2028 budget. The center will focus on workforce development as well as applied research, advanced construction and manufacturing methods, the digital economy, and innovation and investment in South Carolina.

When the memorandum of understanding was signed at the summit, University of South Carolina president Michael Amiridis said, "We look forward to collaborating with Westinghouse to develop workforce education opportunities for our students as we plan for our proposed Nuclear Innovation Center at the University of South Carolina. This partnership between higher education and industry promises to strengthen South Carolina's leading role in the future of nuclear energy for our state and nation."

Luca Oriani, Westinghouse's president of new plant delivery, noted that "this strategic partnership between [the university] and Westinghouse will position the state as a national leader" in nuclear energy.

Elements of the workforce development program that are being considered for inclusion in the Nuclear Innovation Center are state-of-the-art digital AP1000 simulators for training plant operators and university students in a replica control room; hands-on construction laboratories for craft, construction, and maintenance training and for development of advanced technologies through digital work packages, wearables, AR/VR, and AI-enabled execution; and a multidisciplinary certificate program for mechanical, electrical, industrial, and civil engineering students.

Of the collaboration and new plans at the University of South Carolina, Deputy Secretary of Energy James Danly spoke of "the foundation for a new era of American nuclear energy," saying, "We must build the workforce capable of turning that vision into reality. This is why investments in workforce development like the partnership between Westinghouse and the University of South Carolina are so important. These collaborations will build the talent base needed to support new nuclear construction, strengthen our domestic supply chain, and ensure that American families have high-paying jobs for generations to come."