At WNY P-TECH in Dunkirk, we’re open to new ideas, innovation, and collaboration. Our students are driven by their passion and supported by our excellent staff. Our goal is to make sure you never stop experimenting or settling. Our industry needs your creative minds, we need you to ask questions, and we’re looking forward to your solutions!

We have everything you need to get started on your journey, including four distinct areas of study you can select from:

It’s amazing what you can do with some fire and metal. Learn the ins and outs of a variety of welding techniques. With eight individual welding bays, there’s no shortage of space for you to master your craft. Recent additions to the program include our state-of-the-art plasma cutter. Pair it with a Computer-Aided Design, and be ready to wowed!

At P-TECH, we'll teach you the proper technique from the ground up and when you're ready we'll work to pair you with an industry partner to expand upon the knowledge you've gained in our shop.

A CAREER IN WELDING

Pursuing a career in welding will provide you a number of paths to choose from. Welding professionals work in infrastructure, transportation, manufacturing, professional, agricultural & natural resources, and industrial-related fields. Working in the welding field can include, but is not limited to, the following type of projects:

• If you like to swim and dive, then you may consider becoming an underwater welder. They perform a variety of tasks including underwater construction, shipbuilding and repair, repairing and building dams, and many other tasks. They often work in the open ocean, but there are also plenty of opportunities on-shore with rivers and lakes.

• Pipe welders work on large pipelines across many industries. The natural gas and oil industries especially employ many pipe welders to work on their industrial pipelines that carry these materials thousands of miles. Pipe welders are some of the best-payed welders in the world, and if you’re willing to travel for this career, you could easily make a six-figure income as a pipe welder.

• Assemblers and fabricators can work on a variety of different items such as computers, boats, cars, appliances, and more. They have to be able to perform a variety of different welding processes and may work in various industries.

It’s one thing to design and let a computer create your idea and it’s another entirely to create and handcraft your idea all on your own. Master the art of the lathe and CNC routing machines to feel the ultimate sense of accomplishment.

At P-TECH, we'll show you how to properly manage, operate, and troubleshoot modern-day machine equipment to produce precision metal parts, instruments, and tools.

A CAREER IN MECHANICAL TECHNOLOGY (Machine Tool)

Most machine tool experts lean toward becoming machinists or advancing to become a tool and die maker. Each path requires the ability to read blueprints, sketches, and CADD files. Working in the Mechanical Technolgy field can include, but is not limited to, the following type of projects:

• Set up, operate, and disassemble manual, automatic, and computer numerically controlled (CNC) machine tools

• Turn, mill, drill, shape, and grind machine parts to specifications

• Read blueprints, sketches, specifications, or CAD and CAM files for making tools and dies

Each year, we speak with WNY P-TECH students about their experience in the program. This is a collection of just a small amount of interviews conducted from 2018-2020.

Daniel Muldowney is a Dunkirk City School District student who attended WNY P-TECH program from 2015-2020. During his senior year, Daniel earned a job at Lakeside Precision in Dunkirk, N.Y. He is currently enrolled in Alfred State where he currently is majoring in Auto Mechanics.

Joseph Schwartz is a Southwestern Central School District student who attended WNY P-TECH from 2015-2020. He followed the Machine Tool pathway and as a senior found employment at Rand. He currently works for Universal Tooling Corporation in Gerry, N.Y.