College gifted refrigeration unit from Motor Truck Thermo King

Motor Truck Thermo King, a Corporate Tomorrow Maker at Pennsylvania College of Technology, has donated a new Precedent S-750i trailer refrigeration unit that greatly enhances career-building students’ exposure to the latest equipment.

“The S-750i refrigeration unit has been available less than one year, and our students will now be able to be better prepared to enter the industry with confidence,” said Brad R. Conklin, instructor of diesel equipment technology. “Traditionally, we purchase a unit once it has been on the market for a few years. Motor Truck recognized this struggle and wanted our students to have hands-on experience with the newest technology in our refrigeration lab."

The unit includes an engine that has three speeds to save on fuel consumption, meets all current and proposed emissions without a diesel particulate filter, and uses the latest environmentally friendly R452a refrigerant, he explained.

“Motor Truck Thermo King is pleased to provide this state-of-the-art technology to Penn College students,” said Frank Miller, executive vice president for Motor Truck Thermo King. “Our company prides itself on staying up-to-date on technology and changes in the industry and having students understand this technology sets them apart from other graduates, as well as positions them to be stronger employees when they come to work for us.”

Motor Truck Thermo King and its sister company Kenworth of Pennsylvania have partnered with Penn College for nearly a decade, consistently providing equipment for faculty and students and employment for alumni. A pair of labs at the college’s Schneebeli Earth Science Center have grown out of that collaboration: the Motor Truck Thermo King Refrigeration Lab and the Kenworth of Pennsylvania Advanced Electrical Diagnostics Lab.

Even prior to receipt of the Precedent unit, the refrigeration lab housed five pieces from Motor Truck Thermo King, purchased with a deep discount from the dealer.

“When we call to order parts, Motor Truck often donates them – and even delivers them to us here at the Earth Science Center,” Conklin said. “They give me access to training and technical manuals for the Thermo King equipment, which allows me to design labs for each unit that our students will complete during the Truck & Trailer Refrigeration Systems course.”

The Precedent S-750i will primarily be used in that class, part of the curricular basis for the college’s associate degree in diesel technology. Students in the Basic Electricity and the Diesel Electronic Fuels: Systems, Operation & Diagnostic courses also may have lab time with the equipment, he said.

“Motor Truck Thermo King and Kenworth of Pennsylvania continue to demonstrate a strong partnership and advocacy for Penn College's hands-on technology education,” said Elizabeth A. Biddle, senior corporate relations director. “We are thankful for the steadfast partnership of this Corporate Tomorrow Maker.”

Motor Truck Equipment Co. and Kenworth of Pennsylvania are members of the Visionary Society ($100,000-$499,999) on the college’s Donor Wall.

“My hope is that our students will recognize the dependability Thermo King has to offer and how environmentally conscious Thermo King is as a whole,” Conklin added. “Even if our students don’t end up working on Thermo King units right after graduation, they may be in a position later where they influence the purchasing of units for their company. I know they will look back at our relationship with Motor Truck and realize the value of the Thermo King name.”

More information about diesel technology and related majors at Penn College is available through the School of Engineering Technologies or by calling 570-327-4520.

For more about the college, a national leader in applied technology education, email the Admissions Office or call or call toll-free 800-367-9222.