About 50 SUNY Polytechnic Institute engineering students got a closer look at possible careers in SUNY Poly fluid power during a campus event that brought employers, faculty and students together. The gathering offered a practical next step for students learning to design the systems that move machinery, control equipment and support manufacturing.
The Sept. 29 Fluid Power Industry & Career Event took place in Kunsela Hall. In an Oct. 16 report, SUNY Poly said the program included an industry panel, networking and a career fair focused on internships and full-time employment opportunities in SUNY Poly fluid power.
The National Fluid Power Association sponsored the event, which was organized with SUNY Poly’s Fluid Power Club. The university’s Office of Workforce Development also participated, discussing career preparation and ways students could gain practical experience in the field of SUNY Poly fluid power.
Employers meet students already building their skills
In its own Oct. 6 recap, the association identified Ralph W. Earl and Bosch Rexroth as participating member companies and reported that approximately 50 students attended. It said the companies were impressed by the students and interested in maintaining a connection with the university.
Those conversations build on work already happening in SUNY Poly classrooms. According to NFPA, the university introduced a Fluid Power Technology course in spring 2026 with support from an association grant. The course addresses skills that member companies have identified as important in the field.
Students have also been turning those concepts into working designs. NFPA highlighted three senior-team projects completed during the preceding year: a hydraulically powered water tower, a traction-control scooter and a pneumatically powered maze table. The projects gave students opportunities to apply fluid power concepts to hands-on designs.
A field with everyday applications
Fluid power includes hydraulics and pneumatics. Hydraulic systems transmit power using liquid, while pneumatic systems use gas, commonly compressed air. NFPA’s guide to the technology describes applications in construction equipment, agricultural machinery, factory automation, transportation and other industries.
That range gives engineering students several ways to connect a classroom subject with the equipment and processes they may encounter at work. A construction machine and a manufacturing line can require different designs while drawing on the same basic ideas about controlling force and movement.
A connection that continues beyond one event
SUNY Poly participates in NFPA’s Power Partner University program, which combines engineering education with recurring industry contact. Participating universities support fluid power clubs, invite industry speakers, enter the Fluid Power Vehicle Challenge and host recruitment events.
The vehicle challenge pairs human-powered vehicles with fluid power systems, giving student teams a design problem and access to industry mentors and judges. NFPA also encourages member companies to offer classroom presentations, facility tours and involvement in student projects.
For students studying in the Utica area, those opportunities create several points of contact with the working world: a course, a project, a mentor and a conversation with an employer. The September gathering added another of those connections as students consider where their engineering education can take them.
Image disclosure: The cover and accompanying image are AI-generated editorial illustrations by Utica Phoenix. They symbolize fluid power engineering and hands-on learning and do not depict actual SUNY Poly participants, equipment or events.
