MANUFACTURING ENGINEERING EDUCATION IN TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO: REVIEW AND FUTURE RESEARCH AGENDA

Abstract

Manufacturing has long served as the main engine that drives a country’s economic growth and development. Manufacturing engineering (MfgE) education should thus support and help drive advances in the manufacturing sector. In Trinidad and Tobago, there has been much talk about diversifying the economy by strengthening sectors such as manufacturing. However, the bolstering of MfgE education to drive this diversification has largely been ignored. This paper provides an overview of the present structure of manufacturing engineering education in Trinidad and Tobago with an aim of briefly benchmarking its current state. A new concept of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, manufacturing and entrepreneurship (STEMME) education is introduced to draw as much focus on manufacturing and entrepreneurial education as the traditional science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) subjects. A research agenda is then outlined which proposes the future research direction of the authors towards the development of MfgE education to support the sustainable diversification of the economy, specifically the manufacturing sector.