MACHINE LEARNING

Davies adds cu ing-edge tech to manufacturing lab

LINCOLN – According to Briar Dacier, an Advanced Manufacturing instructor at the William M. Davies, Jr. Career & Technical High School, the gift of a cutting-edge Swissstyle CNC Machine to his specific education program will guarantee new and better jobs to his students.

Dacier, colleagues, Director Mary Watkins, Associate Director Jose Libano and numerous others recently congregated by the machine in the Advanced Manufacturing lab for an event to thank the Robert E. Morris Corp. for the donation and also watch instructors and students show off its capabilities.

The five-axis machine, valued at over $150,000, represents a significant addition to the lab and program. Not only is it the only machine of its kind in Rhode Island dedicated to Swiss-style CNC (or Computer Numerical Control) training, but it also includes 10 days of specialized training, ensuring that Davies students receive the most advanced education possible in this critical field.

After the official unveiling of the machine, David Chenevert, the Rhode Island Manufacturers Association President, who facilitated the gift from the Robert E. Morris Corp., provided insights into the machine’s capabilities and spoke of how it will impact the future careers of Davies’ students.

”First, there is not a CNC machine of that caliber anywhere for training purposes; it’s the only one in the state of Rhode Island, so if those kids learn that five-axis machine, they could be graduating and earning 25 bucks an hour,” Chenevert said. “Once they learn how to run that, they will be able to step it up and become a top set-up person and make $30-40 an hour.

“I owned a company for 31 years in advanced manufacturing, and I purchased over 65 machines from the company that donated that one, so I contacted my pal, the owner, and said, ‘Hey, it’s about time we get something up here so kids can learn something about Swiss machines,’ and he agreed. That’s when he donated.

“Swiss-style machines are very different types of machining compared to turning centers that you see everywhere else. The Swiss is very particular in expertise, and it’s perfect for the aerospace and medical fields.”

When asked exactly what such a machine does, Dacier answered simply.

“A good definition of what CNC is designed for is to reproduce the same part time after time with very high precision,” he said as he exhibited the system. “So you can make the same part over and over and it will be the same exact duplicate.

“If you went to a manual machine – a manual mill or manual lathe – you’d have to work the handles and you’d be bringing down the quill, you’d be drilling holes. With that, hopefully, your next piece will be just like the first one, and so on and so on. With a CNC, you can virtually guarantee it.

“This is extremely important to this school and the kids in Advanced Manufacturing and other fields,” he added. “This is where today’s technology has already been and where it’s going to full automation, so robotics, having a robot arm, loading and unloading parts and having programs run five, six, seven axes at a time, it can make complicated parts seem very easy to make.”

Dacier went on to say there are four industries within the field of manufacturing, including automotive, medical, defense and aerospace, and what part he or she will be making depends upon the industry they are in.

“Say I was in the medical field, I’d be making syringes, needles, really small items, and that’s where the CNC comes into play,” he said. “The medical industry is a huge one for Swiss machining because there are some super small diameters and some very high precision, which is what you need. The tools that the doctors use to cut somebody open, you need intricate tools, and that machine is how those are made.

“Having this is great. It allows you not only to machine in two axes but five axes, so now we have live tooling, and what that allows you to do is not only turn down a large – or small-diameter shape, but you can also cross-drill, you can engrave, you can machine different shapes. It’s almost like having a milling machine and a lathe all in one.”

Davies senior Isabel Perez Camacho said that she can attest to that.

“Having a machine like this where we can mass produce in continuous cycles, it really gives us a feel of what that area in machining is,” she said. “While we do have that with other CNC machines, you can’t do continuous cycles. You have to change the parts or take them out, and you’re still kind of limited.

“With a machine like this, you put the bars on the machine and you can put it on a continuous cycle, pump out multiple parts. Something that fast and with that many different operations in multiple setups, but all happening at one time and one cycle, yes, it did blow my mind the first time I saw it.”

Camacho hasn’t even graduated yet, but she’s working in the automotive field with Greystone of Lincoln; she’s currently serving as a quality technician in the Launch Pad Training Program, so she knows her stuff.

“We’ve received that CNC machine to support Rhode Island manufacturing, and it was a most gracious gift,” she said. “That’s what it’s for, to help us as students learn. It starts in the schools. You have people retiring in industry, and there’s no one to take their job.

“Also companies can’t afford for trainees to continue to make bad parts,” she added. “We need to have a foundation. Going out into the field with what I know, the company I work for said, ‘Oh, you already know that?’ And my answer was, ‘Yes, I learned that at school, over at Davies.’ Even when we go on field trips, like when we went to CCRI, the instructor was shocked how much we knew.

“This CNC machine helps us further all of that.”