Manufacturing students make top 10 at ISA Student Games in Canada
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Nick Willman, student in the Advanced Manufacturing program at Francis Tuttle Technology Center, works with his team on their competition project at the annual ISA Student Games at SAIT in Calgary, Alberta. Nick and his team won second place. -
Francis Tuttle Advanced Manufacturing student Sawyer Wilhelm, far left, works with his teammates on their project at the annual ISA Student Games at SAIT in Calgary, Alberta. The team won fourth place.
Francis Tuttle Technology Center students represented the nation when they attended an annual gathering for industrial automation.
Students from the Advanced Manufacturing program competed at the International Society of Automation Student Games at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) in Calgary, Canada. They were the only students representing an American institution and worked alongside fellow manufacturing students from across the globe.
“Getting to interact with people from different cultures and perspectives was the best part,” Nick Willman, Advanced Manufacturing student from Francis Tuttle, said. “You are partnered with other students chosen randomly and you are given three hours to complete a task as quickly and as efficiently as possible.”
Willman placed second in his competition. Sawyer Wilhem placed 4th, Ben McRorie placed 6th, and Kaden Smith placed 10th. This was the first time attending the ISA Student Games for all four Francis Tuttle students and it was an unforgettable experience.
“My team was pretty diverse,” McRorie said. “I got to learn stuff that I didn’t know right on the spot.”
Advanced Manufacturing Instructor Matt Maynard regularly takes a group to SAIT for the games. SAIT is an ideal host for the games because of the wealth of industrial automation tools and training equipment they have available.
“They have one lab that has as much as we have here in all of Francis Tuttle,” Maynard said. “And on top of getting to experience all that, the students get to practice team building and build those communication skills.”
The industrial automation competitions simulate real-world work to help prepare students before they enter the industry. Maynard said he took inspiration from the ISA Student Games to create a new competition simulating the oil and gas industry that will be used at SkillsUSA State competition in April.