As this summer rolled to an end, so have the multiple summer internship programs throughout different industries. For years, manufacturers have hired interns within its departments to solve critical problems with fresh perspectives. This year’s Strongwell’s internship class was impressive in many ways.

L:R (Tyler Douglas, Dr. Wetteland, Reece Emery)

National Intern Day has always been recognized as the fourth Thursday in July. In collaboration with that day, Strongwell celebrated National Intern Week as way to promote the work of the interns and how their projects impacted their departments. During the week, interns were introduced to different departments, celebrated National Intern Day with snacks and refreshments, invited a materials professor and advisor to tour, and provided team members with presentations of their projects and experience at Strongwell.

Reece Emery (R&D Laboratory Intern - University of Tennessee-Knoxville) presented his findings on how resin systems and their suppliers impacted the pultrusion process.

Matthew Dean (Process Engineering Intern - Virginia Tech) worked on a grit application process that would improve employee ergonomics while reducing waste. His budgetary design was motivated by ingenuity and locally sourced materials from a hardware store.

Tyler Douglas (Maintenance and Machine Build Intern - University of Tennessee-Knoxville) presented his solution design on simplifying pigment introduction while reducing costs with a savings analysis model.

Miranda Pardue, (Environmental, Health, and Safety Intern - East Tennessee State University) summarized how her internship has altered perspectives on manufacturing and its protective role in safety and the environment. She also provided a more interactive guideline to improve safety engagement measures.

Marissa Sluss (Fab Sales and Drafting Intern - Virginia Tech) worked on fine tuning her drafting skills in AUTOCAD and Inventor. She also assisted the drafting department in customer engagement and review processes. Chris Wetteland (Materials Science and Engineering Professor - University of Tennessee) toured Strongwell to observe some of the studies and projects completed by interns. In addition to his tour, he met with department managers to better understand FRP materials, processes, and manufacturing.

Are you interested in an internship at one of Strongwell’s facilities? Click on one of the links below to download and complete an application to submit with a letter of interest to [email protected].
Virginia Application
Minnesota Application