The Company
My original role consisted of primarily process engineering-related work. Time standards, efficiency, equipment troubleshooting, and the like. I began working with the heat treatment team: organizing equipment, designing optimal floor layouts, creating standardized systems for calibrations tracking, and dealing with AMS/NADCAP reguations and audits. Eventually, as you'll see, I picked up more responsibilities and established my role within the company as a fixtures fabricator and tooling engineer.
The Immediate Role
I spent much of my time learning the ins and outs of large-scale aerospace manufacturing, including the meticuluous care and specific instructions provided for each batch of parts. Through this, I gained an appreciation for attention to detail. Aerospace regulatory audits are notoriously stringent, and it was through this diligence that I properly grew in my understanding and application of ASTM, AMS, AWS, and ISO standards.
The Side Quest
I had some previous experience as a welder in Baja, and so it just so happened that my manager also oversaw the weld shop, and our welder had been out for months. In a matter of weeks, I reorganized the shop area for EH&S compliance, worked with facilities engineers to install new safety equipment and adequate ventilation, assembled a new MIG welder, and reached out to various teams on projects.
The Synthesis
While welding production parts wasn't within project scope (mostly due to the plethora of AWS requirements and qualifications), welding quality-of-life fixtures and tooling was. I discussed with operators about what could make their lives easier, and they frequently pointed to old or battered equipment. I developed furnace aligners, part holders, and extensions so operators could do their jobs faster and safer. All this while ensuring metals could be welded with enough retained strength.
The Extension
In addition to all mentioned responsibilities, I also had the opportunity to do some more advanced tooling design. I made holders for a roughness tester, designed a clamp fixture to fulfill a GD&T flatness callout, and even tried to print parts to fix a laminator (the last was not as successful).
The What and How
I used a multitude of difference pieces of equipment, often getting scrappy and reaching out to different teams for different tools. I would frequently use the XRF gun to characterize scrap metal to design welding parameters. There was a plethora of fabrication equipment including a plasma cutter, TIG/MIG welders, an oxyacetylene torch, and other odds and ends. I became familiar with the Instron for testing and the SEM for characterization, and Moog allowed me to do some testing for my capstone and Baja projects.