Middle East conflict delays delivery of $2.6 million platform to new Baldwin County school

A $2.6 million piece of equipment integral to future instruction at a new Alabama technical high school near Loxley might not arrive until after the school’s opening in August because of international conflicts affecting shipping in the Middle East.

A large, 26,000-pound industrial engineering simulation training platform is being shipped in one piece to the U.S., but its arrival is stalled because “international issues that are going on in the Red Sea,” according to Baldwin County School Systems CFO John Wilson.

“We were on track to get it shipped by July 20, but we got a notice this week that due to international issues, it might be delayed to August 4,” Wilson said.

“I don’t know the details,” he continued. “Is it taking an alternative route? Is it stuck in the middle (of the Red Sea) or if they are holding back until the (conflicts) clear out? It is a big piece of equipment.”

Mechatronics

The equipment, once it arrives, will be installed inside Baldwin Prep that is currently under construction along Alabama State Route 59 in the northern area of Loxley south of Stapleton. The $100 million school is expected to open in August, offering a first-of-its-kind technical curriculum in Alabama.

Wilson said any delay in the simulator’s arrival “will not mess us up” as the school readies to host a mechatronics program inside the new 182,000-square-foot school. The program is designed to introduce high school students to a host of skills: Electronics, robotics, hydraulics, pneumatics, programmable logic controls, motors, and advanced manufacturing.

“Any first couple of weeks with any career tech program deals with safety classes,” Wilson said. “The delay is not anticipated to mess things up. We are excited for our students to train on it and to learn a lot about the hands-on aspects of working in an industrial environment.”

The mechatronics program incorporates computer, electrical and mechanical engineering for careers in industrial automation. According to the school system, the average earning potential for a job with mechatronics training is $81,000. The average competition time for the program is three years.

The training platform will be used for the program is a product of DarbyTech Training Equipment Inc., based in the United Kingdom. According to a company brochure, the trainer platform includes tanks, electric motors, pumps, filters, strainers, exchangers, gauges, valves in 10 variations, steam traps, piping, flanges, gaskets, blinds, and orifice plates.

International disruption

The platform was constructed in France and is being shipped intact to the United States.

But international shipping is in disarray after Iranian-based Houthi rebels based in Yemen have attacked ships in the Red Sea since November. The rebels have claimed they are staging the attacks because of the ongoing Israel-Hama war in Gaza that erupted last October.

A vessel, called the MV Tutor, was struck last week and became the second ship sunk by the Houthis. A British-registered vessel, Rubymar, was sunk in March after it was struck by ballistic missiles fired from Yemen.

Beyond loss of life, the Houthi attacks have severely disrupted transit through the Red Sea, which connects to the Suez Canal – a vital thoroughfare that accounts for 10-15% of world trade.

The disruption has caused container shipping companies to re-route vessels on a much longer route around the southern tip of Africa.

As a result, freight costs have soared in recent weeks.

School’s opening

The international conflict might be affecting the arrival of a key component within the school, but it has no effect on the school’s pending opening.

Wilson said the goal is to have students report to Baldwin Prep Academy on the first day of school. The 2024-2025 school year in Baldwin County begins on Aug. 8.

The new school will open with 800 students enrolled for the school year, with the majority of students attending its health sciences program followed by cosmetology and welding. The school system will have roughly 45 employees that includes teachers, counselors, and staff.

All 800 students come from Baldwin County despite some interest from nearby counties about sending students to the new academy this year.

“There was so much interest from Baldwin County students, and they had the first right on this,” Wilson said. “The fact that we’re opening up on Day 1, at a complete and full capacity, limited our ability to go outside the district.