Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology in Lancaster, Pa., is beginning construction on the $20 million Greiner Center for Advanced Manufacturing.

The school, a state-owned two-year college of technology, is constructing the facility to house the machine tool and computer-aided manufacturing, metals fabrication and welding and heating, ventilation, air condition and refrigeration programs. The center is expected to be open for classes in fall 2018.

 “In a world where we constantly hear of political polarization, partisanship, and ideological silos, this project stands in stark contrast,” says Thaddeus Stevens president William Griscom. “It represents a positive example of a multilevel, bipartisan governmental, public-private partnership, that required leadership, creativity, cooperation, and compromise, in order to become a reality.”

The Greiner Center will be a 60,000-square-foot facility consisting of two buildings on the site of a former National Guard Armory, a short distance from the college’s  main campus.

The facility is being built by the Pennsylvania Department of General Services at a cost of about $20 million. The college raised an additional $2.4 million through a capital campaign, including a $1 million lead grant from Greiner Industries.