Engineering Your Future - Engineering Profiles

Systems
Biomechanical
Electrical/Photonics
Robotics
Chemical/Materials
Civil

Tom, Systems Engineer

Tom is a Systems / Mechanical engineer. His degree is in mechanical engineering, but he has taken that base knowledge and expanded it to bring other areas of engineering into his world. “As Systems engineers, we combine many engineering disciplines to develop some kind of new gizmo that does something that has never been done before to suit a specific need or functionality.” Working in a team oriented environment, each project comes with new and different challenges. Working with creative people and having the resources to solve those challenges is part of what excites Tom about his job. “Everything excites me about my job. The fact that I get to come to work and build micro-air vehicles and morphing aircraft with really cool functionalities that didn’t exist before, now that’s exciting.”

Tom’s educational experience included a co-op working arrangement. In his case, he went to school for four months, then went to work for four months to use what he’d learned in his classes. That cycle repeated throughout his college experience. “The really great part about the co-op program was that I could apply what I just learned to real-world problems.”

Watch and listen to Tom tell us about two of the advanced projects on which he’s currently working. (Approx. 10 min.)
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Kim, Biomechanical Engineer

Kim is a Biomechanical engineer whose job is to learn as much as she can about the human body and about physiology, so that she can help develop new ideas and create new products that are designed to best meet people’s needs. “One of the products I helped develop was a set of track and field starting blocks for the Japanese Olympic track team that measured start efficiency. Knowing the products we make are being used by people who are at very elite levels of competition is very rewarding.” Kim also works with athletes who have sports injuries. Her work helps in both injury prevention and rehabilitation. “We can help show an injured athlete that they’re going to get better, and it’s great to know that we’re going to be a part of that!”

Kim recommends that if you’re interested in engineering that you not only take the math and science classes needed, but that you consider English, Art and the creative aspects that go into engineering. “So, I recommend you solve puzzles, join the band, and all those extra things because they will help you be a better, more creative engineer.”

“I love being an engineer. I get to do a lot of traveling, I get to present my work and meet people; it’s really fun and I enjoy it!”

Watch and listen to Kim tell us about the value Biomechanical engineers bring to others. (Approx. 10 min.)
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Stan, Photonics Engineer

Stan is both an Electrical engineer and a Computer engineer who specializes in Photonics engineering. He works at the United States Air Force Research Lab where he’s a research scientist engineer who develops technologies and solutions for the military in defense of our nation.

Photonics is about light; it’s about bending it and steering it. Many different applications utilize photonics. For example, lasers use photonics as a focused energy that is very fast and can be controlled. “Our work in the Air Force Research Lab is to develop systems that can operate much faster than in the past.”

Stan says, “Engineering will always require the use of problem solving skills as well as science and mathematics. It’s a process. It’s about being able to identify the problem, come up with solutions, select the best solution, then apply that solution and make sure it worked. Creative thinking and imagination allow you to think beyond the norm. So, being able to envision something and then implement it is part of the exciting world in which engineers live.”

Watch and listen to Stan explain how photonics is used by the United States military. (Approx. 10 min.)
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Erik, Robotics Engineer

Erik is a robotics engineer. He works with mechanical, electrical and computer controls engineers to design, build, and program robots. According to Erik, “Engineers are problem solvers.” During the process of building a robot, there is always a “gotcha!” This is when something doesn’t work quite the way it was intended to work. “You typically know you’ve got a ‘gotcha’ or an ‘oops’ when your robot crashes. Then you scratch your head and say, ‘what happened here?’ and you go back to the beginning and work through it again.” Building robots, and any other type of engineering, requires constant experimenting before things work out just right.

Watch and listen to Erik tell us why it’s worth the effort to build robots and how we use them for the betterment of humankind. (Approx. 10 min.).
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Tara, Chemical Engineer

Tara is a chemical engineer who specializes in aerospace materials research at the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory. Her team helps create the new composite materials that are used to build America’s cutting-edge military aircraft. The materials she engineers are lighter and stronger than traditional aluminum. Plus, they have “stealth qualities” which means these materials and the shapes in to which they can be designed can help hide a jet from searching enemies. It makes aircraft almost invisible to radar on the ground or in the air. Today, composite materials have uses beyond aircraft. Because of their strength and light-weight, they are used in the making of snow skis, bikes, tennis racquets, golf clubs and other sporting equipment.

“I first thought about becoming an engineer in junior high and then took the higher level math and science classes in high school. I didn’t know at that time that I’d end up working with composites on airplanes, but it’s really cool. On a daily basis I use the algebra and science I learned in school.”

Watch and listen to Tara tell us about her passion for engineering. (Approx. 10 min.)
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Gary, Civil Engineer

Gary is a civil engineer who builds big buildings. He tells us, “Civil engineers build structures, dams, roads, bridges and large environmental projects. I’m a civil engineer who builds buildings. During school, I thought I would like to focus my career on being a structural engineer, the person who takes the architect’s designs and converts them into building plans that account for design strengths and materials. But later I realized, I like to be involved in the construction aspect of the building. In other words, I wanted to be the one on-site who figures out how all the pieces of materials come together in a particular sequence and then make that happen.”

“A city is a place where people live, work, learn and play. Civil engineers like me affect a city by building the buildings we live and work in, the schools and arts centers we learn in, the sports stadiums we play in, and the roads and bridges we use to travel on. We get involved in all of these projects and really help create the fabric of the city.”