Manufacturing at Haworth
Kevin
Experience Information
Employer: Grand Valley State University
Job Title: Co-op Student
Major: Product Design and Manufacturing Engineering
Received Credit: Yes
Paid: Yes
Abroad: No
Description of the Organization
Haworth is a family owned company that sells both products and services revolving around office solutions. This entails planning and designing office spaces along with supplying the furniture to fill the design.
Description of the Tasks/Projects Completed
I was assigned as a manufacturing engineering co-op student. My tasks varied from cost-savings projects to plant layout redesigns. I also assisted some of the other engineers with daily tasks. One of the best opportunities that I was able to take advantage of was a kaizen. During these kaizens the company takes a problem and assigns a group of people closely related to the problem to solve it. These normally last a week long and end with thorough plans to fix the problem assigned.
Skills/Knowledge Gained Through The Experience
Calculating various cost-savings figures along with redesigning layouts in preparation for new product launch.
Favorite Part of the Experience
My favorite part of this co-op experience was meeting great co-workers and working in an environment that was helpful and nurtured learning.
How the Experience Influenced Future Career Goals
When I first began looking for a co-op position I was hoping to get a job focused on designing. This co-op had almost no design influence at all but I enjoyed myself greatly. I would still like to see what its like to design a new product but I now know how to implement the manufacturing process behind it as well.