Engineering Vols secure victory in SEC Machining competition
Although the competition takes center stage during the event, its broader purpose is to attract university students to learn advanced manufacturing techniques, develop skills for the workforce of the future, and fulfill the mission of land-grant universities.
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK), reaffirmed its prowess in advanced manufacturing as it claimed top honors in the second annual SEC Machining Competition. The competition started on Wednesday and wrapped on Thursday afternoon at the Tennessee Manufacturing and Design Enterprise Building (TN-MADE) in Hardin Valley.
Organized by the university, the competition saw participation from teams representing various Southeastern Conference (SEC) schools.
Tony Schmitz helped organize the event. He is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical Engineering at UTK. Schmitz highlighted that the primary objective was to foster Southeastern cooperation and collaborative learning.
“Hosting this event for the second year in a row is a tremendous opportunity for the Machine Tool Research Center. While the intent is to foster a culture of cooperation and collaborative learning, it’s a nice addition to win two years in a row,” said Schmitz in a UTK press release. “All these students have committed to advanced manufacturing education, and they demonstrated what they’ve learned today.”
Although the competition takes center stage during the event, its broader purpose is to attract university students to learn advanced manufacturing techniques, develop skills for the workforce of the future, and fulfill the mission of land-grant universities.
“Advanced manufacturing is crucial to the U.S. economy and defense. We’re interested in helping to meet this need by restoring jobs that moved to other countries in the past decades. Friendly competitions like this create a network of university students who will be tomorrow’s manufacturing leaders. We are building relationships between our institutions that will support and grow U.S. manufacturing,” Schmitz said.
Teams from several SEC universities, including Mississippi State University, Texas A&M University, the University of Florida, and the University of Missouri, joined the competition. Each team was tasked with machining metal pieces into an oscillating piston air engine using randomly assigned CNC machining centers.
According to the press release, UTK’s winning team comprised graduate research assistant Dylan Pollard, senior Mac Patrick, and junior Olivia Teska.
The event received support from various organizations and partners, including the U.S. Department of Defense Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment program, Project MFG, America’s Cutting Edge, the Southeastern Advanced Machine Tools Network, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Manufacturing Demonstration Facility, the UT-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute, participating SEC universities, MSC Industrial Supply Co. (cutting tools provider), ZEISS (part measurement provider), and the Gene Haas Foundation (supporter of the Machine Tool Research Center).
Professor Schmitz expressed his hope to expand the competition to more SEC schools and eventually extend the field to universities from other conferences, ultimately contributing to a stronger future for the country’s manufacturing sector.
Like what you've read?
Forward to a friend!