Woodward FST Inc - 1st Rotation
David
Experience Information
Employer: Woodward FST Inc.
Job Title: Engineering Intern (Co-op)
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Received Credit: Yes
Paid: Yes
Abroad: No
Description of the Organization
Woodward FST Inc. is a total systems solutions aerospace manufacturer that services many different parts of the aerospace industry as well as a few other industries. They are a larger company with the their closest manufacturing facility to Grand Rapids being located in Zeeland. This plant is home to the production of fuel delivery systems (Injectors).
Description of the Tasks/Projects Completed
Some of the tasks/projects that I worked on included coming up with new processes to aid in the production of parts. I was also apart of a few CAD design projects to either create new processes or improve existing ones. On a daily basis, the tasks varied to working with different engineers on projects or running with my own project. i also did some shadowing on the floor. There was always lots of collaboration with different engineers and operators and that created a great work environment where new ideas were always encouraged.
Skills/Knowledge Gained Through The Experience
Specifically I learned a lot about practical fluid dynamics (I have yet to take Fluid dynamics as a class) and process/manufacturing engineering. In addition my knowledge of how to machine parts has greatly improved and working in a manufacturing setting has allowed for all of this to be practically applied through hands-on experience and projects.
Favorite Part of the Experience
My favorite part of this Co-op rotation was working, learning, and collaborating with the engineers at Woodward. The people here genuinely create a great manufacturing engineering work environment that allows for a Co-op that I enjoy going to everyday.
How the Experience Influenced Future Career Goals
This experience has started to solidify that i would like to work in the aerospace industry. I definitely learned just how large this industry is and that there are so many avenues to go down (such as design engineering or process engineering). I hope to continue on in this co-op absorbing as much knowledge of the industry as I can from the experience.