“Parts become harder and harder to find especially as our equipment and materials get older,” said Gary White, TK Maintenance Supervisor. “Rather than replace a whole table or countertop, I brought the broken pieces to Mr. Meyers’ Advanced CAD Design Engineering class. These students are awesome. I show them what I need and they can reverse engineer and 3D print it. I haven’t brought them anything yet they can’t make.”
Recently, White had students make replacement brackets for some of the folding tables. “I just brought the pieces to the class and in a couple of days I had four brand new brackets ready to use. And they’re probably stronger than the originals because these new ones are carbon fiber,” said White.
Will Nathan is a senior in the class and has helped with the projects. He reverse-engineered the bracket design for the tables in one class period. Senior classmate Caden Strait uploaded Nathan’s design and printed it out on his 3D printer at home.
“It makes me feel good. I honestly think doing this is cooler for me than working on my big project in class because it can actually be used for something right now. And the brackets worked perfectly,” said Nathan.
Strait agreed. “It does make me feel good. I didn’t do any of the engineering on it, but just to know it’s something I’ve helped make and is actually being used is pretty cool.”
Both students are seniors. Nathan plans to study mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan. Strait wants to pursue a career in construction management.
Teacher Scott Meyers said he loves the opportunity for his students. “It gives them (students) a project they can do and see it being used in the school. It’s real-world experience for them. This is exactly the kind of project they could face if they end up working in this field.”
Engineering students are also currently working to design a shower bracket for an ADA compliant shower in a locker room at the high school.
“The piece to hold the shower head isn’t there. It’s completely gone. So students have to come up with plans and a design, engineer it and then we’ll print it out on the 3D printer,” said Meyers who was printing the first prototypes in class. “I’m sure we’ll have to make some modifications. But that’s what you do if you’re working in this field.”
White said the classes are a great resource to have available and he’s impressed with the work the students are able to do in a short amount of time. “They’ve saved us untold dollars throughout the district. I appreciate their help and Mr. Meyers for being willing to let them do this. I think it’s a big confidence booster for the kids. It’s a life skill and they’re making something that’s actually being used,” said White.
While most people will never know the tables they are sitting at may have brackets created by high school students, Nathan and Strait will know they’ve left pieces of their work at TK.