BRTC Machine Tool Technology Students 3D Print for a Good Cause

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Black River Technical College (BRTC) Machine Tool and Technology students have 3D printed bunnies to donate to the Phi Theta Kappa collection for its Easter “Together We Foster” donation drive.

Phi Theta Kappa is collecting donations of Easter basket, Easter basket fillers, and individually wrapped snacks and drinks until March 27 at both BRTC locations, Paragould and Pocahontas.

Donation collection at the BRTC Paragould location is in rooms MC 111, PAC 121, and PAC 125. Donation collection at the Pocahontas location is in the faculty mail room, AD 156, and SC 101.

“Krystina brought this to me and asked if we could 3D print some bunnies for the kids, so the students took this project on themselves,” Machine Tool Technology Instructor Rick Barker said. The students designed the print and uploaded it to the 3D printer software and after a few kinks were worked out of the design, the students were able to print about 50-3D bunnies.

The Machine Tool Technology program consists of a wide variety of machining. Machinists and Toolmakers design and create prototypes, fixtures, jigs, and tooling/dies from which most metal and other manufactured items are made, which includes large heavy machinery to small hand tools. Working in a modern, fully-equipped machine shop, students in the machine tool technology program gain the knowledge and skills needed to cut, machine, mill/turn, metals and 3D print polymers/carbon/onyx when regarding NIMS assigned projects.

This high-precision trade requires development of high demand skills in the use of hand tools, precision measuring instruments, testing equipment, and basic, automatic, and computer-numerically-controlled (CNC) machine tools and programming. The program also covers heat treating tool steel and alloying material, as well as accident prevention, leadership, and quality control.

For more information on BRTC”s Machine Tool Technology program contact Rick Barker at (870)248-4139 or email him at rick.barker@blackrivertech.edu.

For information about joining PTK, contact Rachel Koons at rachel.koons@blackrivertech.edu or Shauna Throesch at shauna.throesch@blackrivertech.edu on the Pocahontas campus, and Joan Linnstaedter at jlinnstaedter@blackrivertech.edu or Dianna Fraley at dianna.fraley@blackrivertech.edu on the Paragould campus. More information can also be found at ptk.org/Join.