Alumni

New Equipment a Boost to Engineering Students

Valparaiso University's engineering students will be able to create more complicated metal and plastic parts faster and more easily on two new machining devices.

The College of Engineering has purchased a new computer numerical controlled vertical machining center and a new lathe—both built by Haas Automation Inc.—that are among the most popular models used in industry today. The equipment was purchased with money raised during the university’s last campaign, “Three Goals, One Promise.”

The machines will allow students to design almost any part imaginable and then cut it out of a block of metal or plastic. They also will be able to design parts right at the milling machine in a conversational programming language, rather than needing to design a part using computer-aided design software and then loading that design into a machine. Students will begin learning how to program and use the equipment during their sophomore year as part of a hands-on course introducing them to manufacturing processes.

Later engineering courses build upon those design and programming skills, and culminate in a senior design project.