Think about your favorite action movie and picture that one scene in the bustling control center, where operatives diligently monitor their stations, collecting essential data and calling out updates as their leader relays mission-critical information to the heroes in the field. Spaces like that are more than fiction, and the Winsted Corporation, located in Eagan, Minnesota, is the one bringing them to life.
As a designer and manufacturer of control consoles and furniture, Winsted creates highly functional environments for some big-name players, like the Minneapolis Ground Control Center for Delta Airlines, and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, just to name a few.
As their portfolio and clientele continue to grow, Winsted’s team is also expanding. One way they’ve found to invest in incoming talent is by hiring college interns through the SciTech Internship Program.
“Our goal when hosting internships is to provide value to both our company and to the individuals we bring on,” said Zack Zimmer, Winsted’s Director of Engineering. “We’re looking to grow as a company and we believe that by bringing Will and Alex on, they can add value to our team and help us develop new products and ideas.”
Meet the interns:
Mechanical Engineering Major Alexander Dufresne and Product Design Major William Herbek interned with Winsted last summer, each taking on different projects within the company.
As a mechanical design engineering intern, Dufresne worked in manufacturing, mostly with sheet metal, working hands-on with the raw materials and creating designs in SolidWorks. He started, however, by updating Winsted’s part library, creating models for components, building parts, putting them through assemblies and creating a more packaged file system.
“That was really helpful,” Dufresne recalled. “It let me get familiar with the product first.”
“Alex is curious and not shy about asking questions,” said Luis Maya, A Senior Design Engineer at Winsted. “It’s good that he enjoys solving problems. That’ll take him far.”
Maya’s advice to his intern: “Don’t be afraid to get into the fire.”
Herbek worked as an industrial design intern, assisting Doug Wisser, also a Senior Design Engineer, in developing a new console. He also helped set up a new workstation and created user packets for Winsted’s clients to assist with product assembly on site.
One of his best takeaways from the experience, Herbek said was, “how to communicate design concepts to non-design-oriented people.”
“William’s communication skills were very valuable,” Wisser said. “It enabled us to translate these ideas to more of our company.”
Having concluded their internships, Dufresne and Herbek made impactful contributions at Winsted while achieving their personal goals as well, moving on to their next opportunities with industry experience and real-world projects to add to their portfolios.
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