Travis' Reflection

ME 250 has been a great learning experience for me. It was my first dip into the world of design processes and machining. Most importantly, it was a great chance to learn how to work together with a few bright people to visualize and create a (hopefully) well-engineered product. Not only were the members of my group all learning about the design and manufacturing process together, but we were applying that knowledge in a near real-life manner. We learned the value of teamwork, as well as the importance of time management.
Of the lessons I have learned over the course of this class, I hold teamwork as the most important. Very rarely does a class allow for a kind of real-world teamwork. The third and final segment of this course was pure teamwork, and because of the intensity of the teamwork forced upon us, I feel I have greatly improved both in getting along with and understanding team members. I feel I have also improved my understanding of what must be expected of a team member, and how even the smallest of mistakes might be seen by those who are depending on good work. It works the other way, too. Even a small gesture of kindness toward your teammates goes a long way. If one could take the project home and finish that one thing that has been bugging the team, it might not be a lot of work, but you will get a lot of appreciation for doing it. Unfortunately, I also witnessed some poor teamwork (in other groups) and the effects that it can have on both the team members and the quality of the product. Overall, I have learned that I will usually have to work with others, and when I do, I will know how important good teamwork is.
Time management was critical on a big project like the one we had, especially because few of us knew exactly what to expect, as we were all learning. The deadline dictated many of the days we were forced to work, and many times we found it necessary to spend hours more than we had planned. Without planning, though, we would have been in heaps of trouble.
Of the design process and manufacturing, I learned a great deal. I hardly knew what a metal lathe was before I took the shop classes. Now I can boast that I not only designed a part to a real robot, but also cut it on a laser jet! I feel much more familiar with the methods of thinking required in the design process, and am somewhat comfortable with the important machines in the workshop.
This course benefited me greatly, but can still be improved in several ways. Most importantly, I felt that we were not given as clear a view of the project as could have been given. Many rules were made up as we went along, and in many cases we had to design things on only a half-knowledge of what would really be given us. A good example of this is that many people had ideas of a sort of vacuum machine. Until we were able to actually look at the arena and the kit contents, it seemed like it might have been a good idea. I personally don’t know how to make an effective vacuum tube out of simple parts, so I came up with simpler ideas, but that was just what they were; ideas. Partly, I understand that the first few weeks were designed to stimulate our imaginations and give us a chance to walk through the design process, but many of us wanted this walk to benefit the project we knew we would be faced with, and that simply wasn’t possible. Another point I might add: Our homework grades came back to us very slowly, and I must have turned in seven or eight assignments before I was given any idea how I was doing on them. I believe that it is important to hand back assignments quickly (and to give more constructive feedback; There were times when I looked at my answers and didn’t even know why that “3” grade was there instead of a … I don’t know, “4?”) in order to allow the students an earlier chance to get motivated. Most students probably thought they were doing fine. I wonder how many would have done better and tried harder had their assignments been given back in a timely fashion?
Yes, I did put in a lot of work throughout this course, but I do realize that I could have done better myself. For one, I could have made sure to get more sleep, so that when I came to class I could concentrate better. Life always seemed to prevent that this semester. For another, I sometimes found myself pressed for time and thus unable to put in as much of an effort as I would have liked on an assignment. I still did fine, but I could have done just that little bit better.