Construction Update

It wasn't long ago that Max Grey broke ground at MRCTC (July 16th) at began constructing IRE's new home. Max Grey has done a lot of damage in the past 6 months, putting up new trusses in the clean lab to reinforce the ceiling against the snow, and building the frame of the new IRE building. Here are some photos showing their work:

New trusses have been put up in the clean lab (they are purple in this photo)

Hard hats past this point! a look into the inside of the building from the adjacent hallway

 The south side of the building

The west side of the construction zone

 Project room on the first floor

 Two project rooms on the first floor

 Looking at the mechanical closet on the second floor

 Looking at the modeling lab from the second floor

Heater working overtime to help cure the concrete

Start counting the days to the finish of IRE's new home! January 14th is when the next semester starts, and we plan on moving in.

End of year poetry

Inspired by the start of winter break, I thought up a little poem:

The end of the semester is finally here,

And Christmas time is drawing near.

Experiments have run and the projects are done,

And the IRE scholars display good cheer.

Back to our family and friends we shall go,

To enjoy food, company, and snow.

Time to rest, the mentors have recessed

And may we all return next year aglow.

End of the semester

The fall semester is winding down at IRE, which means it is time for students to start applying for jobs/internships, if they have not already. This is a stressful and anxious time for many students. Making sure resumes and cover letters sound good and are error free. Sending out resumes and just waiting for responses. 

Then when the responses come there are two things that can happen, rejection or a chance to move further in the process. I feel IRE has worked hard to prepare us for either event. I saw that a post was made earlier about the job search preparation that has happened at IRE. It was a great experience. It provided us with a warm up game, so to speak. It also gave the faculty members a good opportunity to explain that you don’t get an interview for every job you apply for. It was said that one important part of applying for jobs is accepting rejection. I encourage my peers to continue applying and to keep in mind all the good advice that was given over the semester.

Proofread by: Emmy Stage

Finish Strong

The end of the semester is close and I’ve heard students in other programs talk about how their semesters are winding down. My second semester at IRE began fast and continued ramping up without any indication that it will slow down before I fly off the semester’s cliff (different from the financial one.) If the constantly running Ricoh printer/copier at IRE is any indication, everyone else is just as busy. I use and maintain the printer so often that I have come to regard it as a friend that I call Ricoh.

My team’s daily workspace is near Ricoh and he occasionally needs a short break and some encouragement just like my fellow students. At the end of the United Taconite 5-way Distributor  team’s most recent weekly meeting our mentor ,Dr. Charles Johnson, said to “finish strong.” I liked this simple statement of encouragement, so to all students and Ricoh; finish strong.

IRE "Splash" Video

The students and faculty at Iron Range Engineering wanted to treat our ABET accreditation group to a opening video to set the stage for our program. The goal was to capture the students of IRE working in their element. All of the students in the video list their name, city, and generation. The video was a big hit with all of our visitors, and allowed us to show them right off the bat what a dynamic program we have here at IRE.

Minnesota Power Visit

Seven Iron Range Engineering students visited the Minnesota Power Boswell Energy Center located in Cohasset, MN to complete a deep learning activity for thermodynamics. Ron Ulseth led the group on a tour through Unit 4 to track the entire thermodynamic process. The tour consisted of locating the condensers and following the condensate pipe through the different feedwater heaters located throughout the plant. After tracing the line through many floors the line returns to the top of the boiler on the 17th floor. The fireball is created by burning pulverized coal to heat the water to a saturated vapor. The vapor is then superheated and then proceeds to the high-pressure turbine. Upon leaving the high-pressure turbine, the vapor is reheated again and proceeds through the rest of the turbines. The vapor continues back to the condenser to complete the cycle. We were able to learn many different aspects that involved in a real power plant's thermodynamic process. We are thankful for the opportunity to tour Minnesota Power to receive a greater insight into thermodynamics.

Written by: Nate Quinn and Danielle Goebel

Oil Refinery Tour

Last month two IRE students and one UMD student went on a tour of Calumet Refinery in Superior, Wisconsin.  The refinery takes crude oil in as a raw resource and produces products for sale such as gasoline, asphalt, and jet fuel.  This was part of a separations course taken from UMD Chemical Engineering professor Moe Benda, M.S.  We had the opportunity to receive a tour of the process from a mechanical engineer as well as talk to the process manager to ask questions.  The tour consisted of driving around to view the equipment in operation, safety protocols, and the computer interfacing.  As process engineering students we were excited to see the oil refining process first hand and to get exposure to another field of the engineering industry. We were grateful to be able to connect our classroom learning to applicable industries and look forward to the opportunities in the future.   

Written by: Emily Kilpatrick and Emmy Stage

Proofread by: Adam Geisler

New equipment soon to arrive in IRE lab

With our new building reaching completion we are anticipating the new lab, and all of the equipment that will be in it next semester. With this new equipment being available to use, the constructing and manufacturing of projects and experiments will be able to be done in-house. Our lab supervisor is currently in a week-long training and will be qualified for all equipment. Students will be trained as required to run the new equipment.

This is a list of the equipment that will be in our new lab:

FLOW MACH 2 1313B Water jet Cutter

Milltronics RW15 CNC Milling Machine 

Milltonics TL14 CNC Lath 

Hurricane Laser Cutter Model Andrew

Welding Machines
Cutting Machines
Plasma Cutter

Proofread by: Emmy Stage

By: Adam G. and Matt S

Job Search

The main reason why anyone goes to college is to get a job when they graduate. Here at IRE, the faculty assisted us in this process by having all the students submit a job search package which included a cover letter and resume. These documents were reviewed by the faculty and the students were given feedback with suggestions for improvement. The students were then called for mock phone interviews, from these interviews students were given feedback and advice for improvements. Some students get nervous during interviews and the best way to eliminate nervousness is to practice interviewing. After the phone interviews, students took part in three live interviews, in which the students were asking the questions and one in which they were being interviewed by a panel of faculty members, industry representatives, and peers. These interviews were recorded for the students to review on their own and they were given feedback from all the panel members. This is a huge help to those who have had little or no experience with searching for a job.  

Revised by Cord        

The President’s Volunteer Service Award

This is first year that Iron Range Engineering has become a certified organization for The President’s Volunteer Service Award. Students can now be recognized for their service by their nation.  Each student at Iron Range Engineering is asked to complete 10-15 service hours a semester. However, students that volunteer 100 hours or more will now be recognized for their dedication with an award.