Engineering Co-op Intern
Kevin
Experience Information
Employer: Altus Industries
Job Title: Engineering Manager Assistant
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Received Credit: Yes
Paid: Yes
Abroad: No
Description of the Organization
Altus builds mobile carts to be used in a medical setting. They are sold primarily to health care providers and hospitals. It is a small company with around 15 employees. The owners work closely with the other employees to ensure that the company is growing and moving in the right direction and take on a lot of responsibility with respect to the company.
Description of the Tasks/Projects Completed
This semester, I designed fixtures that are being used to create one of the monitor mounting systems that we sell. These fixtures allow the systems to be built in a faster and safer manner than was previously used. I also worked on designs for a cart that has a magnet in it so that hospitals can use tablets on the cart, move the carts around and not have the tablets fall off.
Skills/Knowledge Gained Through The Experience
This semester, I learned a lot about the manufacturing processes that are used in the creation of the parts we design and use on our carts. When designing the fixtures, I talked closely with the fabricators so that I can change some parts of my design for them to make it easier and cheaper to make.
Favorite Part of the Experience
My favorite part of this co-op experience was when I saw my fixture designs come together. I have never designed something as complex as them and seeing them actually work as intended is such a good feeling.
How the Experience Influenced Future Career Goals
I want to be a part of the engineering side of a company as well as the supply chain portion of the company because I enjoyed talking and visiting with suppliers this semester. I learned so much more talking with them and I will be able to use that a lot in the future.