ITT Launches Signature Engineering Education Program in China

ITT Corporation (NYSE:ITT) recently completed the inaugural year of the ITT Golden Gear Academy, a program dedicated to offering educational opportunities to promising engineering and mechanics students in China. Developed in cooperation with local partners Science and Technology Daily and TusPark Co.Ltd, the program launched in September, bringing together senior professors, industry experts and elite students with the goal of cultivating China’s engineering technology talent and enhancing the competitiveness of the industry.

“As a diversified leading manufacturer, engineering is at the heart of what we do at ITT and is central to our heritage,” said Jenny Schiavone, vice president and chief communications officer for ITT. “Our commitment to China is also a key part of our heritage because we believe that there is huge potential for engineering to help serve the needs of the rising middle class and enhance environmental sustainability. That is why a cornerstone of our corporate citizenship efforts is cultivating talented people for this important profession.”

The program gave 45 elite engineering and manufacturing students from top universities in Beijing the opportunity to attend courses conducted by university professors, industry experts and ITT senior executives. The students also had the chance to team up to participate in an Innovation Competition in which they could apply their knowledge to real-life industry scenarios. This year 32 students from universities in Beijing received “ITT Golden Gear Academy” certificates. Of those, 17 outstanding students were awarded the “ITT Golden Gear Academy – Distinguished Future Engineer” scholarship. The students are also eligible to apply for an internship placement with ITT.

“At ITT, we believe it is our responsibility to help find and develop potential talent in the manufacturing and engineering industry,” said Howard Luo, Executive Director for ITT in China. “The ITT Golden Gear Academy is an example of integrating education and training in order to promote the development of future engineers in China. Through programs like this, we will continue to support the growth and sustainable development of the manufacturing and engineering industries in China.”

Jing Yang, the League Secretary of Science and Technology Daily, said, “China is transforming the role that science and technology play in its development and is investing in the future by actively promoting innovation in the industry. The ITT Golden Gear Academy offers engineering students an opportunity to learn about global science and technology developments from leading experts in the industry in order to develop their abilities.”

Quanhong Shen, General Manager at TusPark Co. Ltd said, “Science, technology and education are the core focus of Tuspark. We seek to incubate science and technology companies in order to further the industry as a whole and talent cultivation plays an integral role in that. The ITT Golden Gear Academy that we supported in partnership with ITT and Science and Technology Daily aims to cultivate more innovative talents in engineering, therefore contributing to the development of the engineering industry in China.”

About ITT

ITT is a focused multi-industrial company that designs and manufactures highly engineered critical components and customized technology solutions. Our customers in the energy, transportation and industrial markets depend on us to solve their most critical problems, and we focus on partnering with them to find solutions to their unique challenges. Founded in 1920, ITT is headquartered in White Plains, N.Y., with employees in more than 35 countries. The company has sales in approximately 125 countries and generated 2013 revenues of $2.5 billion. For more information, visit www.itt.com.

About ITT China

ITT Corporation’s origins in China can be traced to the 1920s. As early as 1928, ITT installed the first telephone exchange system in Shanghai. In 1996 ITT (China) Investment Co., Ltd. was established in Beijing, which greatly promoted its investment and development. ITT China has more than 1,200 employees and manufacturing facilities in Shanghai, Wuxi and Shenzhen. In 2013, ITT sales revenue in China and Hong Kong reached $210 million.

About Science and Technology Daily

Science and Technology Daily is hosted and supervised by China’s Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST). It is the largest science and technology media source in China and is highly influential in engineering-related industries. Topics covered in Science and Technology Daily include IT, medicine and military developments. The newspaper has a circulation of more than 300,000 per issue in China. Readership includes decision makers, government officials, professionals and technicians in science technology.

The Youth League Committee of the Communist Youth League of China in Science and Technology Daily is the department responsible for Chinese youth development programs. By leveraging Science and Technology Daily’s media resources, the department is able to carry out research and study on nationwide education and youth skill development initiatives. In the meantime, the department contributes the research findings to policy making of the Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Education. The department has solid relationships with Chinese academia for various kinds of talent training and development programs.

About Tsinghua TusPark Co., Ltd.

The Tsinghua University Science Park (TusPark) was set up in August 1994 by Tsinghua University and has more than 30 branches in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other major cities in China. TusPark (Beijing) is presently the largest university science park in the world. As an extension of Tsinghua University’s social services, TusPark provides a platform for promising pioneer enterprises and talents with innovative ideas to rapidly take their ideas from the lab to the market. In addition to its strong connection with Tsinghua University, TusPark has a strong relationship with many local governments in different provinces in China.