Six Wayne Community College students were awarded the top prize in a national competition held by Phillips Corporation.
Connor Bailey, William Johnston, Alexander Lane, Joey Nakamura, Roni Santiago, and Tiffany Viera won first place in the Phillips Design and Machining Student Competition.
The students are in either WCC’s Computer-Integrated Machining program or Mechanical Engineering Technology program.
The competition required student teams to work with a local company to identify a challenge or improvement opportunity, then address it by designing and manufacturing a project using Haas CNC machines and Markforged 3D printers.
WCC’s winning team partnered with the North Carolina Forest Service in Goldsboro to address needs in their field. The students developed a radio-controlled machine capable of drilling into the ground and delivering fertilizer, improving efficiency in forestry and land management.
Judges of applications engineers considered the competitors’ innovation and practicality, teamwork and presentation quality, and creative use of technology to award the winner.
As the first-place winner, the WCC team receives an all-expenses-paid trip by Phillips Corporation and Haas Automation to Los Angeles, California, where they will tour a Haas factory to see how the company’s machines are built and engineered. The students also get the chance to visit a theme park and explore Los Angeles.
Each winning student also receives a Haas digital caliper and micrometer set, and WCC receives a $3,000 Markforged certificate for supplies and student certifications.
A total of nine teams were in the running for the grand prize. In addition to the winning team, two other student teams from WCC placed in the top five of the competition.
“Seeing all three of our teams place in the top five, including a first-place finish, is an incredible accomplishment and a true reflection of our students’ talent and dedication,” said WCC Computer-Integrated Machining Instructor Bailee Gilbert. “These students took real-world industry challenges and turned them into creative, impactful engineering solutions through teamwork, problem-solving, and hours of hard work.”
“Throughout the competition, the students continuously stepped up when instructors challenged them to meet deadlines, think critically, and perform at a professional level,” Gilbert said. “We could not be more proud of the way they represented our programs.”
About Wayne Community College
Wayne Community College is a public, learning-centered institution with an open-door admission policy located in Goldsboro, N.C. As it works to develop a highly skilled and competitive workforce, the college serves around 10,000 individuals annually as well as businesses, industry, and community organizations with high quality, affordable, accessible learning opportunities, including more than 150 college credit programs. WCC’s mission is to meet the educational, training, and cultural needs of the communities it serves.