AVNC Continuing Education has twenty-two years of teaching & training experience with professional development courses, short courses, lectures, and training seminars. Noise & vibration related topics include acoustics, vibrations, noise control, modal analysis, noise & vibration instrumentation, noise & vibration measurements, digital signal processing for acoustics & vibrations, and sound intensity.

AVNC was founded in 1984 by Drs. William R. Thornton and Andrew F. Seybert when they offered a course in the emerging technology of the Sound Intensity Method. Their no frills pragmatic approach, combined with the “Hands On Workshops”, became an instant success and the cornerstone of AVNC short courses and seminars in acoustics, vibrations, and noise control. Courses were added to the curriculum at the request of students. AVNC has a large inventory of equipment that is continually updated as the need arises.

Lectures are interspersed with “Hands On Workshops” to complement material being presented in class by skilled & experienced instructors. No marathon all day lectures! The AVNC professional staff recognizes that students cannot sit through eight hours of lectures and still retain the material. Studies show that the retention rate drops dramatically after three hours of continuous lecture. As a learning alternative, AVNC intersperses lectures with workshops. “Hands On Workshops” are 50% of the course. Morning lectures are followed by afternoon workshops. This eliminates the tedium of long lectures. Some lectures are interspersed with workshops and demonstrations.

Students learn key concepts in lectures and apply them in the workshops. This gives immediate reinforcement to the lectures and allows students to grasp new concepts “real time.” Students use instruments throughout the week which builds confidence. After hours, students can conduct their own experiments with the supervision of an instructor. These highly refined “Hands On Workshops” are the hall mark of the AVNC short courses and seminars.

AVNC has no commercial ties. All equipment and instrumentation is owned by AVNC. Students are given pure, unadulterated, impartial information which allows them to make informed choices when they purchase instruments or equipment.

Upon completion of the course, students will be proficient in the use of instruments related to the course. Students learn how to do calculations and work with decibels so that they are intimately familiar with these concepts and can apply them back in their own work environment. When they leave the course, students will have the skills to use instruments and make calculations to solve routine problems.

Each course has a complete set of bound notes. Students can listen and learn without the distraction of note taking. All lecture material is contained in the notes. Students who attend these courses are very serious about learning and they devote their entire week to learning as much as they can about acoustics, vibrations, and noise control.

All instructors are nationally recognized experts who are highly motivated with decades of experience in their area of expertise. Instructors are hand picked by AVNC and asked to participate in the AVNC Continuing Education program. These graduate level engineers, who are noted for their teaching skills, avoid complicated theory and lengthy derivations. Instead, these highly experienced instructors present key results and pertinent information.

AVNC courses are held at the Seven Springs Mountain Resort Conference Center to avoid the distractions big cities and boring hotels. This remote mountain resort allows students to immerse themselves in a total learning environment, removed from the hubbub of everyday life. Students work hard in class and socialize with fellow classmates after class, frequently talking shop and comparing notes. Students receive an unparalleled learning experience while enjoying the camaraderie of their fellow classmates. Activities that provide exercise include mountain biking and hiking within the beauty of the scenic Laurel Highlands.

Companies who use or have used AVNC include Kimberly-Clark, Eastman Kodak, IBM, Seagate, Cummins Engines, PacCar, General Motors, Ford, Honda, Whirlpool, General Electric, Trane, Dupont, Exxon, Kohler, Onan, Boeing, Electric Boat, Freightliner, Allied Signal, Goodyear Tire, Armstrong World, Eaton, Reliance Electric, Owens Corning, Hewlett Packard, ITT Automotive, Dresser Rand, Mobil Oil, Champion International, Liebert, Westinghouse, Quantam, Leybold, Rockwell, Halliburton, Southern Services, Crown, PPG, Bridgestone/Firestone, Sensus, Caterpillar, Blachford, Kenworth, John Deere, Foster Wheeler, and Respironics, among others. The list continues to grow.

Government agencies and along with the U.S. Government and Defense Departments are regularly represented, as are the USAF, US ARMY, USCG, USN, NASA, and Sandia National Laboratories.