We have been many places, and done many things in the past 10 days that have included our Danish Exchange students.
But, as usual, Jeff asks, again, what have you learned?
Please, comment thoughtfully here; tell us something that has this week, or may, change your life.
Spill your guts. (:
Then, consider this: http://youtu.be/nJmGrNdJ5Gw
RSA
What have I learned??? I have learned that the demands of work and school conflict. The balance is more difficult than I thought it would be. Due to the fact that we are slammed at work going on field trips and such really is not an option. Just getting enough time in the shop to complete the assigned tasks is a challenge. But I keep pressing on...
ReplyDeleteI'm in the same boat as you on this one.
DeleteSo far in class I think the most important thing I've learned is that I will always be learning. It's the easiest concept to comprehend but when I started school I figured "Hey, I'll go get my degree and I can just work the rest of my life in my career field" WRONG. Couldn't have been more wrong. I'm very eager to see what the future has in hold for our field and can't wait to get into some of the more technologically advanced systems.
ReplyDeleteOver the last 10 days we were able to do a wide range of things from going to seattle, talking with the danes, seeing williams pipeline, and our allignment tasks. I feel like i have learned a lot of valuable things over this last week or 2; as for the most valuable peice of information i would have to say would deal with the tool of stepping out of your comfort zone and talking with people. When meeting someone new it is always a stretch for both people to start conversing about things, learning from one another, and building a relationship. The same thing happened when the danes came. You wonder how to interact with each one not knowing where they have came from in their life, career, ect. Once that initial conversation starts its always amazing how quickly a relationship is built and common interests come about. After this point you gain so much from building that relationship its really endless. You can gain knowledge, a different perspective (in the danes case a totally different world view), and on a personal level you gain a friendship. Having the ability and tools to meet people, talk with people, and build relationships is a quality tool in this industry as well as in life.
ReplyDeleteI personally learned the most from berthesun park and the williams plant more so then the kenworth factory. I felt at the kenworth factory that we saw a lot of cool stuff the was really interesting to see, but I dont think I really learned anything that will benefit me for my future from it. On the other hand the at the williams and at the park I felt like I learned alot of useful information on old and newer technologies that, I feel will benefit me in the future. plus it was really cool to see some old ideas and ingenuity to make technology work for them on those old machines, as well as getting to see the sure size of some of those huge engines at williams.
ReplyDeleteHonestly in last 2 weeks I have learned alot more about the Air Brake system on trucks and different alignments that can be performed. Watching Mike's video's and reading the pdf that he made up teaches you alot about thrust, toe, camber, caster, and tire wear. I even made my own aligning bars to put around the tires on my car and to basically have in my collection of special tools. Visiting with the Dane's was very amusing and knowledgable. I did not attend the Kenworth Factory Tour this year but if it was anything like last year's Tour, I am sure the newer students had a blast. Same goes for Berthesen Park. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the Williams Plant Tour because I had to work late but hopefully the opportunity will arise again in the future. I notice alot more going on this year compared to last year and I am thankful and happy to be apart of it all.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest thing i have learned is that technology is always advancing and im gonna have to always have the student mindset as new and smarter products come out on a regular basis. If i ever get settled with the information i have learned and refuse to learn more someone else will want to learn that and will gladly take my position so im happy that i want to learn as much mechanical knowledge as possible. Ive also learned that something will always stick in your mind better when you make a mistake on it cuz the best way to learn is doing it yourself and pushing your knowledge to its full potential.
ReplyDeleteMy first choice at BTC was automotive, not to say anything bad about it, but I realized something after going into diesel. Especially more recently after going on the different tours, that we have a lot more doors of opportunities open to us with everything from tractors to bulldozers,trucks,stationary and power generation. I think were only limited by our own "good enough" attitude when approaching anything new that we encounter in or out of school.
ReplyDeleteOur experiences of the last 10 days have been interesting and informative. I learned and saw different designs for paccar to increase mileage and minimize wear and breakdowns. And the turbines at williams pipeline is amazing it reminds me why I am wanting to go into the power generation of diesel technologies.
ReplyDeleteI have more then ever learened how true the comment you wrote on the board one of the first days i was in your class is true. "you will never step foot in the same river twice. The river is not the same, and I am not the same." This was made the most clear with the second trip to kenworth. The factory even the the same was completly different. The way I saw everything was different, and the way i understood everything that was going on around me was inccredibale. I know i would not have been able to do the things i am able to today without the classes i have taken. Thank you Jeff
ReplyDeleteI've been learning many new things at Ferndale on a daily basis, but the thing that I've learned the most or that has proved itself is that staying determined, keeping a passion for the field and hard work pays off and has good rewards. Balancing school, working at the bus garage and then nights at Lowes has been hard and tiring but I look at what the outcome has been I am pleased with all my efforts. Keeping up in class has been the hardest part. The other main thing that I have learned is stay in contact with your connections "network" on a regular basis, that’s not daily but let them know you haven’t forgotten them and what they've helped you achieve. You never know when they could lend you a hand.
ReplyDeleteGetting to know a little about the Danish students culture was rather intriguing to me. I lived in Greece for two years when I was little and so learned at an early age that cultures vary tremendously, but to this day am still fascinated how vast our differences are.
ReplyDeleteWorking on alignments for the first time went a bit slow as it seemed so simple, until I got to the laser set. Oye, that was irritating. But once I was made to understand how to read the tool, I grasped the concept quite easily and had to explain to another how NOT different the string and laser alignment are.
I enjoyed learning more about the culture in Denmark, and how much differently they live and interact. I have learned more about the manufacturing side of things at the Kenworth facility. It was interesting to see how quickly they can build a truck from the very beginning to the show room floor. In sharp contrast it was nice to see the old machinery and equipment at Berthusen Park in Lynden. It shows me just how far we have come in technology and equiptment. It was also nice to see simple designs.
ReplyDeleteI learned that if you truly want to learn how to do something,just ask and maybe they will teach you
ReplyDeleteThe highlights for me, over the past 10 days, were going to the Kenworth factory and the Williams pump station. At the Kenworth factory it was hard for me to hear what our guide was telling us, so I didn’t catch all of what he said. I was overwhelmed with all the action, machines, tools, layout of assembly line, all the parts, and all the other birds flying around. So I didn’t really learn any of the fine detailed facts, but the basics of how a Kenworth truck is built and what it takes to build them.
ReplyDeleteThe engines at the Williams pump station are comparable to the engines that are in the commercial fishing boats that I used to work on. Although there are many similarities in these engines there are some differences. Some differences are their design and that the boat engines don't have the big pump off the side of them. Also, the boat engines don't have the big fan cooled radiators, but instead they are cooled by the ocean water. Since I have seen engines that compared to those at the Williams pump station already, the size of them didn’t amaze me that much, but the turbines were pretty cool. I have not seen one that big up close in person before. The power that those things put out is pretty amazing. It was cool to learn that the station is controlled by people all the way over in Utah.
In shop I have been working on taking out and reinstalling the front axle of the International outside. It’s been fun taking that old bucket of rust, grease and dirt apart. I’ve learned how to take things apart without applying heat to them. Getting a bigger hammer or impacted wrench seemed to work out just fine.