Blog #4 -- MAGNET -- May 23rd, 2023

     Today instead of following of normal routine of waking up and heading East down Gates Mills, Ben picked me up and we headed West! We'd contacted Mrs. Jennie Becker (old Hawken teacher) to tour her new job - MAGNET. Mr. D suggested that we go there to find out about some of the manufacturing processes that could be used to create a more functional and polished jet engine, and it was so worth it. We started in this fantastic building with glass walls and a really open layout. It had been an abandoned CMSD school that was converted in an effort to revitalize Midtown through community building. Mrs. Becker taught us about how MAGNET has two branches, the main one being consulting, and the minor one being workforce development. MAGNET hosts high school and adult programs that directly matriculate into real jobs in the manufacturing industry. The main branch however is essentially a group of engineers that consults for small to mid-sized manufacturing companies. Because MAGNET receives lots of government funding, it is very affordable for companies and helps offset some of the costs for the free services MAGNET provides (e.g. the workshops). Overall, MAGNET serves as the bridge between unemployment rates in the community and unfilled jobs in the manufacturing industry.

    Fully a side note, it was also interesting because I have somewhat of an unexpected personal connection to this organization. My girlfriend's dad works at the Greater Cleveland Partnership which is working on developing the Midtown area, and my girlfriend's mom works at Aspire which will be coming to MAGNET to learn about manufacturing jobs. Just an unusual intersection of their careers that I haven't seen before.

    Back to the main story, I'm going to go over some of the main highlights of the tour. Bulleted makes the most sense here

  • The wire EDM machine was very cool. Super precise manufacturing that might be useful
  • They had an SLS 3D printer which we've been looking for for a very long time. Also could come in handy
  • They had an awesome set of lathes that would be able to machine our inlet
  • There was a small pile of scrap metal that they said we would be free to access
  • They were pretty surprised and excited by the printed out designs we gave them
Overall, a very successful visit that taught us a lot about manufacturing processes, careers, community, and a good bit of fun,

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