AOE Machine Shop Usage Letter
Dear All,
Please note the following:
1. Student use of the machine shop. The machine shop is open to all AOE undergraduate and graduate students who have a need to use it and have been trained. James has an area marked out for student use containing suitable machines.
Machine Shop Safety Course is required for student shop use.
To register:
Go to: http://www.ehss.vt.edu/train.php
-Click Machine Shop Safety category
-Select Machine Shop Safety,offered online
-Click Register Button
-If you are already in the system your information will be there.
Under comments specify AOE student shop.
-If you are not in system, enter your contact information as a new individual
Enter name, pid, contact info, & specify department as AOE student shop.
You'll be redirected to a page with instructions to complete the course.
If you have any questions regarding registration, contact:
EHSS
Robin Miller
email: rmmiller@vt.edu or 231-2341
Once Machine Shop Safety Course is completed, interested students should visit the shop between 2-3pm any weekday afternoon. Trained students can use the machine shop whenever it is open – normally 7-5 M-F. Note that undergrad student groups working on non-sponsored projects wanting to build items using the rapid prototyper, or that might require work being sent to an outside shop can apply for department funding, as described in the flyer.
2. Handling of external and internal machine shop work, and the department 50% cost share. The machine shop is ready and able to accept all research and educational fabrication jobs. This includes jobs that you feel may require specialized capabilities that the department does not have. When you submit a job to the machine shop queue, James and his staff assess the job goals and requirements and decide whether the job can be done in house or not. (Your and your students’ discussion of the job with the shop staff is very helpful in this process.) If they decide that the job cannot be done in house, they will select the most suitable outside shop (with your input) and will work with that shop to ensure that your specifications and other goals are met. Please note that outside jobs that are handled by the AOE machine shop in this way will still qualify for the same 50% department cost sharing that is applied to internal jobs.
3. The job queue. Jobs, as always, can be submitted in the online queue at https://www.aoe.vt.edu/shop/login.php. If you are not set up with a ID and password, please let me know. Students and others wishing to monitor job progress only can log on with the ID ‘guest’ and PW ‘guest’. The machine shop sends weekly updates (usually on Fridays) to all faculty who have jobs in the queue, detailing job progress.
4. Graduate student work area. I am aware that graduate students working in our experimental labs may often need access to simple machine shop tools (e.g. band saw, drill press) after hours. I am working on a grad student work area, to be housed in the old receiving area (outside the new Structures Lab). Use of the machines would be controlled by a card swipe system, which would allow only authorized graduate students to use the machines and would require two such students to be present when the machines are used. I would appreciate any thoughts you have on how to best set this up and what machines should be available.
Thanks,
William
_______________________________________
William J. Devenport,
Professor and Director of the Virginia Tech Stability Wind Tunnel,
Assistant Department Head for Facilities,
Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering,
Virginia Tech, 215 Randolph Hall, Blacksburg VA 24061-0203
Tel: (540) 231 4456. Fax: (540) 231 9632. Email: devenport@vt.edu