Assabet students strike gold at National SkillsUSA competition

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Assabet students strike gold at National SkillsUSA competition
Cameron McLaughlin (left) and Mathew Marinelli. Photo/submitted

Region – Two drafting students at Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School, Mathew Marinelli and Cameron McLaughlin, from West Boylston and Northborough, respectively, ventured to Louisville, Ky., recently to compete at the national SkillsUSA competition in the field of additive manufacturing. Many people know this as 3D printing, alluding to the fact that instead of paring away material as in a machine shop environment, additive manufacturing follows a design and makes a 3D model by adding layer after layer of material, building the model from the base up.

In Kentucky, the team had to design an attachment for the end of a ramp that could change directions to drop a marble in one of three baskets. They were given the dimensions of the basic layout and had to come up with a design that would work. Thirty-four teams competed, 21 of which were in the high school division. In their first phase, there were just 3.5 hours to design their product. It was then printed for them, so that the next day when they came back for just two hours, they could test and revise it, and produce their final design. To add to the competition, there was also a mini challenge – they had to fix a file so that it could be printed, and also take a written test.

“I did most of the calculations for trajectory and initial velocity, and plugged it into the equations,” explained McLaughlin. “I also did the notebook. Mat did the modeling.”

The duo was awarded the Gold Medal and received a 3D Connection Space Pilot Pro special 3D computer mouse, a $1,500 scholarship from the Society of Mechanical Engineers, a MakerBot mini 3D printer for personal use, and a $35 gift card from Best Buy.

McLaughlin, a sophomore, is a member of the school’s Marine Corps JROTC program, robotics, and SkillsUSA. Marinelli, a junior, is in robotics, SkillsUSA, and is treasurer of the Class of 2018. Both students say they are looking forward to competing again next year.

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