Enchanted Forest Theme Park (2014-2018)
Before I began accumulating engineering experience I spent my summers at the Enchanted Forest Theme Park in Turner, Oregon. My first summer at Enchanted Forest was in 2014 as a junior in high school. I spent my first year as a parking lot attendant, where I would greet guests and direct them to the nearest open spot while also ensuring nothing dangerous was going into the park. Here I learned an appreciation for basic logistics, customer service, and parking lot attendants everywhere. During my second summer I worked various new positions, ranging from park sweeper to food service, reception to retail. This second summer was extremely valuable, as I was able to get a much better understanding of what the whole park was like from the inside, as well as what I liked and didn't like about each job.
At the start of my third year, an internal job posting was put up for a musician to play in the traditional Irish Band that entertained guests in the park. I grew up playing piano and singing, and had a knack for picking up melodies and rhythms quickly, so I applied for the open drummer position and joined the band. I played in Possibly Irish from 2016 until 2018 about three days a week, with 3 to 4 shows a day. Between shows and on my off-days, I was in the main office working as an assistant to one of the park's two owners. In this position I got to try out graphic design in a professional capacity for the first time while designing signage for the park. I also created training documents, trained employees, worked with vendors, and created advertisements for the park. I loved getting to explore so many different skills all while entertaining guests and growing as a leader along the way.
The Largest Concrete Witch's Head in the World! (probably)
ATI (2018-2022)
My first experience with ATI was from April 2018 to March 2019, when I fulfilled clerical duties for the chemical operations department of ATI - Millersburg. Here I learned the general ins and outs of working in a manufacturing setting, as it was my first time! I processed document revisions in this position and became very familiar with standardized document management and the importance of a well-maintained repository of information.
After about a year in this position, I worked as a quality and technology intern at the ATI Albany Operations plant (located in Albany, OR, now defunct) through the MECOP program at Oregon State University. From April 2019 to September 2019 I worked on various quality assurance projects, but my primary focus was on information collection from operators and machinists. I worked with external vendors, engineers, and executives to initiate a project with a predicted plant-wide reduction in waste generated of 20%. This internship was slated to be 6 months, so upon completion, I returned to OSU to begin my 4th year.
As I'm sure you know, early 2020 was a tumultuous time for everyone. While I was initially supposed to begin my second MECOP internship in the spring of 2020, I ended up registering last-minute for classes spring term, as the internships were cancelled due to the pandemic. Still in need of summer work, I reached out to my contacts at ATI who were gracious enough to find a space for me as an intern in Millersburg, OR, as a Continuous Improvement engineer from June 2020 to September 2020. In this position I focused on strengthening my project management skills by identifying waste in processes and eliminating it with the help of executives, operators, and managers. I created process maps, documented workflows, and collected data both numerical and experiential.
After leaving ENTEK and coming back to ATI, I took up the part of Project Engineer for the Plant Engineering department. Here I acted both as project manager and mechanical designer for many projects. One day I'd be designing a new tank system for treating materials, the next I would be scheduling work with multiple contractors and putting together budgets for all of my projects. This work taught me a lot about what I do and don't like as an engineer. I learned that for me, project management is secondary to doing fulfilling design work. I love getting to design something and then see it become reality and function properly (eventually).
During this time at ATI, I worked with Microsoft Project, Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Teams, and Outlook. I also gained experience with Oracle Business Intelligence and SolidWorks.
ENTEK MANUFACTURING (2021)
I thoroughly enjoyed my first post-graduate job as a design engineer at ENTEK Manufacturing LLC in Lebanon, OR. My daily work consisted of designing mechanical infrastructure for a new manufacturing line in Indonesia (though I was wont to mess about with the company's Markforged 3D printer in my spare time). It was a very new experience, but luckily my team of fellow engineers were all gracious enough to show me the ropes as I dove into this a new chapter of my life.
Via trial by fire, I acquired a good understanding of Autodesk Inventor, Autodesk Vault, and Microsoft AX as my holy trinity of software. While it's great to have good software, I quickly learned it's even better to be a good people person. My job required a good amount of interaction with various departments and fabricators, and being able to level with different parties had saved me a lot of hassle and confusion.
I eventually made the decision to head back to my work alma mater (ATI) to take up the role of Project Engineer. This decision was tough as I hadn't spent very much time at ENTEK, however I had gained enough experience to know I wanted more mechanical design work and ATI provided the opportunity to do so!
Daimler Truck North America (2022 - 2024)
While at ATI, I gained valuable experience in project management and leadership. I also gained a better understanding of what type of design I enjoy, and that happens to be customer-focused product design. I found an opportunity to explore this more with Daimler Truck North America in Portland, OR. So in late summer of 2022, we moved up to Salem, and I began my weekly tradition of commuting up to Portland twice a week (thank goodness for hybrid work). At DTNA I joined the Chassis - Powertrain team as an engine integration design engineer. While in this role, I coordinated project updates, designed on-engine parts, lead meetings, and tracked which parts got used and when on the tens of hundreds of truck configurations offered. The team at Daimler was fantastic, and being surrounded by so many experts in their fields meant I always got to learn something new each day. As the world recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic, Daimler shifted back to a fully in-person work schedule. I took this as an opportunity to find a role that was more hands-on and closer to home.
INPRIA (2024 - PRESENT)
Seeking more hands-on engineering work, I was lucky enough to join the team at Inpria, based in Corvallis, OR. My wife and I moved to Independence, OR to split the difference in our commutes, and I began my work as a Process Engineer. Inpria gave me insights into an industry I had never experienced prior: semiconductor manufacturing. Inpria manufactures photoresist, a product used in the semiconductor manufacturing process by companies around the world. At Inpria I wore many new hats, including: trainer, training developer, equipment operator, process improvement coordinator, and of course mechanical designer. The team I get to see every day is filled with brilliant, driven minds that inspire me to always keep growing.