Both current and former students of Warren County Technical School’s Welding and Steel Manufacturing program are benefiting from a relatively new partnership with Alpha-based Hunterdon Transformer. In just under a year, the company has hired a handful of students who have gained both valuable field experience and a paycheck. The company also has hired a few former students to join the fabrication department.
This relationship has proven mutually beneficial by establishing an employee pipeline between the district and company. That is why Warren Tech has named Hunterdon Transformer and the company’s vice president, Peter Droelle, as its 2023 Business Partner of the Year.
Droelle initially contacted Warren Tech in February 2023 to forge a partnership with the Welding and Steel Manufacturing students. His willingness to welcome students into the workplace and support them has not only provided students – and even former students – with an employment opportunity in their field, but also with a positive influence as they start their professional lives.
“Warren Tech has great respect and gratitude for the efforts of Peter Droelle and the entire Hunterdon Transformer team for helping our students achieve their goals, gain quality experience and positively impact society,” said Chad Feilbach, WCTS Welding and Steel Manufacturing instructor. “We look forward to continuing our professional relationship.”
Droelle also expressed his appreciation for the partnership, noting how Warren Tech students “come to Hunterdon Transformer with the skills, knowledge and work ethic to be very successful in the field.”
Two Warren Tech graduates are currently taking on a significant fabrication project involving large industrial transformers. A current student is helping with administrative work before joining the company’s fabrication department. Each is paving the way for future Warren Tech students to follow and benefit from this partnership between the district and Hunterdon Transformer.
