Mistakes Happen: Turning Student Crashes into Teachable Moments with Your CNC Mill

College freshman are immersed in new experiences at the start of the fall semester – their first time away from home, shopping on a budget, and, many times, their first time coming face to face with a CNC machine. We’ve all seen them.

The world of manufacturing and engineering is constantly changing and progressing, and so does the education to get quality workers in those industries. The Madison College Robotics and Automation program concentrates on preparing students for industry by giving them hands-on experience with a variety of tools and machines, including a Tormach PCNC 440.

Earlier this week, we visited a local technical school, Madison College, to see what they were up to with their PCNC 440. As part of the automation integration program, an array of students have had the opportunity to use Fanuc robots for different programming and automation challenges. Students did everything from packaging candy to unpacking a CD. But, we’re biased, and our favorite took blank

With their size and approachable design, Tormach machines have found their way into a number of classrooms at high schools and colleges around the nation. While the uses for a CNC mill or lathe in the classroom may seem obvious – teaching kids to machine parts – you may be surprised at how many teachers are doing much more than just teaching machining.

IT Program Manager by day, maker by night, Kent Myers writes extensively about his interests and innovations on his popular blog, KentMyers.net. “I’m a computer network manager with a mechanical engineering degree that I never really used. I’ve always liked to build and create things, but in my day job I mostly sit at a computer. So, I started getting into woodworking and have done a lot of projects in the past 20 years. If you’ve been to my website you can see some of the work I’ve done,” Myers explained.