High School Essay Winner: Manufacturing and Me

Editor's note: IndustryWeek recently teamed up with the Subortus Project on an essay contest for teens, run by teens. The theme was "How is manufacturing a part of your life?" We're pleased to announce the three winners and run their outstanding essays. Congratulations to Angelo Douglas, Arth Italiya and Sahkyas Paulino Santos!

On December 24, 2015, I opened my first Lego set. It was a white airplane, yet I did not see it as a simple plane. It was the first building block in the path to unleashing my creativity. Those pieces did not just become a plane; they were statues, towers, cities and anything my brain could fathom. As time progressed, I grew to learn that was the basis of manufacturing.

Throughout my life, I have always enjoyed activities like designing robots and taking apart systems with the purpose of rebuilding them to form something vastly different, but it was not until my sophomore year of high school that I realized all those activities were related by one common denominator, manufacturing.

Manufacturing is a very broad industry as it plays a role in all fields; it is accountable for the mass production of technology, machines, buildings and food that are accessible to us. Nonetheless, the aspect of the manufacturing industry that I prefer is machining. I started machining my junior year of high school, and it became a vital part of my day-to-day life: expanded the way I think, transformed my perspective on everyday objects and provided insight into how various consumer goods are created. I learned how threads and screws were produced and found myself further evaluating seemingly common objects that have thousands of applications.

Furthermore, machining provided me with the knowledge of measurement tools like calipers and micrometers, which gave me a concept of scale: the minute work and attention to detail that is required to attain precision.

The accuracy needed to machine helped me realize that the trade is not as simple as it appears to be. It gave me a different perception of all the machining processes and precision levels that are required behind the scenes to develop and create various objects.

Without the insight provided by my experience in a machine shop, I would not be able to appreciate the manufacturing process, precision, and work that are required to produce almost all commonly used objects. Work that is often taken for granted by the consumer, as the details are not visible to the untrained eye.

The lack of appreciation on the consumer end teaches machinists to understand that the most vital aspects of the trade won’t always be recognized, but recognition shouldn’t be the driving force behind your career. This lesson illustrates how the manufacturing industry has helped me grow in both the personal and professional sectors.

Manufacturing has played a significant role in my life, from the courses I’ve taken to the activities I’ve joined. With the knowledge I obtained from the course, I decided to become an intern at the Atlantic Technical College machine shop. Becoming an intern was the best decision I could have made because it allows me to immerse myself in the environment I aspire to work in.

In summation, manufacturing has always been a constant in my life, even when I wasn’t aware of its existence. My first Lego set became the starting point of endless opportunities and dreams; it is now the pivotal piece that my actions stem towards, and it will grow to become the field that I work in.