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INTERN Spotlight


“Matt was open to new concepts and coaching. Matt learned new concepts very quickly and even better than some experienced engineers that I have worked with in the past... Matt enthusiastically supported many mundane tasks that he quickly learned and completed to meet production deadlines. Matt is an energetic, smart and creative young engineer that is passionate about learning and growing his technical skills. Just as important, Matt has very good people and communication skills.” – Joe Beauchemin, Hitchiner Manufacturing Co., Inc.


MATT NAUGHTON Hitchiner Manufacturing Co., Inc.


T


his summer I worked primarily with statistical process control (SPC) at Hitchiner Manufacturing. My main project involved enhancing our SPC systems and implementing SPC in other areas of our plant. The initial step was to assess our current state of SPC. During this stage I found that our use of pre-control charts is ineffective for process monitoring and that they are producing dramatic over adjusting of many of our grinding machines. This was inducing more process variation and making it difficult to differentiate between


normal and special cause


variation. I decided to propose a shift towards using x-bar and R charts that would prompt an operator when it was necessary to make an adjustment to the machine. Once we configured the WinSPC software, we conducted trial runs with operators using these x-bar charts which prompted the need for adjustments. Whenever a point fell outside of the control limits, it notified the operator to make an adjustment. We decided to avoid the use of many of the other common Western Electric SPC tests due to many predictable assignable causes at the machines I was working


30 ❘ December 2019 ®


with. This software also alerted for the need to scrap or rework a part based on its dimensions.


The results from these trials were


very good. Inexperienced operators were able to produce minimal scrap just by following the instructions that were given from the x-bar charts. It was estimated that using this new technique would save Hitchiner about $10,000 yearly in scrap and rework at a single machine. Currently, we are waiting for supervisor and engineering approval before we can fully implement the change to this new process monitoring method. On top of this, my boss and I demonstrated to everyone within the company how effective and valuable SPC is within the investment casting industry.


The most important thing my internship taught me is how valuable data and analytics are in industry. Before starting my internship, I had very little knowledge of statistics and had never seen how they can be applied. Now I am a massive supporter of using data to make decisions. I spent a lot of my summer building regression models, running gauge R&R’s, and searching for correlations. Data and analytics are now a huge part of my career moving forward.


Being a chemical engineer, l


never thought that investment castings would be an industry that I would spend much time in. However, being around the industry for the summer I have a newfound respect and desire to learn more about investment castings. I worked as a quality engineer this summer, but I was inherently drawn towards the work of many of our process engineers. I found myself very excited to learn about grain sizes, shell codes, and wax injections. I love the fact that the investment casting industry is simple on the outside but incredibly deep and complex on the inside. I plan on one day getting a master’s degree in data science while also pursuing a master’s in a form of engineering or materials science with the hope of making myself experienced in both data and engineering. I want to be a knowledgeable and experienced leader in whichever industry I end up pursuing. This internship showed me the intricacies and benefits of investment castings. Investment casting may very well be what I spend most of my life’s work


on, as I have already started


looking for an internship in this industry for next summer.


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