Air University gains valuable training through Tiger Motors Lab
Published: Jan 29, 2024 11:30 AM
By Carla Nelson
For the fourth consecutive year, a cohort of students from the Air Command and Staff College, part of Air University - the U.S. Air Force's premier institution for professional military education - recently spent an afternoon at Auburn University’s Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering. The group visited the Tiger Motors Lab, commonly referred to as the Lego Lab, where they engaged in a session focused on leadership education.
Air University Fellow Weston Fulfer reached out to Tom Devall, director of the lab and auto manufacturing initiatives for the department, to schedule the training this year.
“I was a part of this Research Task Force last year when we came to visit the Lego Lab,” Fulfer said. “It was absolutely the highlight of the year.”
Fulfer, in collaboration with J. William DeMarco, the director of Air University Innovation and Analysis, oversees the University’s Innovation Research Task Force (iRTF). They recently arranged for a group of 11 students to visit the lab on Jan. 24.
DeMarco said the training, which incorporates how continuous process improvement is crucial in fostering innovation and leadership skills, is exceptionally beneficial for the students.
“While the U.S. Air Force has implemented continuous process improvement (CPI) through various methods, the experiential learning offered by Tom stands out,” he said. “Tom’s approach to teaching CPI goes beyond traditional methods and provides our students with a unique opportunity to not only learn about CPI but also experience it firsthand. It’s this combination of experiential learning and Tom's guidance that makes this training particularly valuable.”
Fulfer described the training as “life-changing,” and DeMarco said he continuously receives positive student feedback.
“It is consistently rated as one of the top lessons within our year-long research task force,” he said. “Due to its popularity and effectiveness, we are hoping Tom and Auburn will consider the possibility of incorporating a visit to this lesson into our new Innovator’s Development Course in the future.”
Media Contact: , carla@auburn.edu, 334-844-1404
A cohort of students from Air University, the U.S. Air Force's premier institution for professional military education, recently spent an afternoon in the Tigers Motor Lab to take part in leadership education.
