NSE Product Engineering
Caitlyn
Experience Information
Employer: Stryker Instruments
Job Title: NSE Product Engineering Intern
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Received Credit: Yes
Paid: Yes
Abroad: No
Description of the Organization
Stryker Instruments works on medical equipment and devices that are used during surgeries. High-speed drills, hand drills, attachments, and other surgical equipment is created and made by Stryker Instruments. There are several divisions in Stryker Instruments, including Surgical, NSE, and IVS. I was a part of the Neuro Spine Ears Nose Throat (NSE) division at Stryker Instruments and was given tasks involving high-speed hand drills that were used to perform surgeries involving the NSE region.
Description of the Tasks/Projects Completed
I worked on two of the high-speed NSE drills, the Core-U Drill and the Sumex Drill. Both drills contained rotor issues in which solutions were implemented. The Core-U Drill rotor contained an issue during the assembly of the balance rotor. When the front balancing ring, which is the last component pressed onto the rotor assembly, was pressed, a bur would form due to the misalignment. The front balancing ring was a softer material than the rotor; as a result, a majority of the bur's material was from the front balancing ring. This bur was being formed 30% of the time, causing a slip fit bearing to be unable to be placed onto the rotor for balancing. One this occurred, the entire order would need to be placed into rework until the situation was corrected. My project was to develop and test solutions that would reduce and hopefully eliminate the bur formation issue. Throughout this project, I worked in Minitab and Pro-E to develop DOEs and Rotor Assembly Blanks for testing. There are two possible rotor changes and three possible front balancing ring changes. For the two styles of rotors, a chamfer of 75 degrees was added for the first style, and a radius of 0.0035 for the second. For the front balancing ring, a vibratory finish, Loctite 680, and a combination of the two were added to the different styles. A total of 12 combinations were tested, including the control group. These test results provided feasible solutions for preventing the problem in the future. The Sumex Drill was the highest scrap and warranty product of the NSE division. For this project, I was required to discover and implement a solution to fix one of the larger drill issues. After looking at the complaint trending information and the fishbone diagram that I created, I was able to find that there was a large number of complaints involving the balanced rotor assembly. The rotor shaft drive groove would contain an increased depth after repeated use of the routers with the footed attachments. The rotor shaft drive groove is the area where the rotor comes into contact with the router when a footed attachment was used. The router in the attachment was a harder material than the rotor causing the rotor material to compress form to the shape of the router's contact end. This increased depth created an increased gap between the router and the footed attachments, which impended the craniotomy that was going to be performed. In order to solve this issue, a carbide plug was added to the rotor shaft drive groove area. This solution was found through research performed by the new product development department. For this change Pro-E and PTC Change Request systems were used. I created the changes that were required in the rotor and worked on creating a fixture for the carbide plug to be pressed into the rotor in Pro-E. I also began a Change Request in the PTC system.
Skills/Knowledge Gained Through The Experience
I learned the importance of interdepartmental communication and networking skills. I also was able to learn Pro-E and Minitab programs. I gained an understanding of how different surgeries are performed, and the necessity of having good tools to minimize surgical risks.
Favorite Part of the Experience
My favorite part of this co-op experience was the people and the Stryker community. I felt welcomed at work and was able to be involved in after work activities with fellow employees and interns. I also was able to have the knowledge that the work performed helps others get through challenging times more easily.
How the Experience Influenced Future Career Goals
This experience has influenced my future career goals. I have learned that companies enjoy working with employees to further their development. Most companies even pay for masters programs. I decided that I am going to work while getting my masters in order to maximize my future experiences.