Happy Engineers Week!
Engineers Week (EWeek) is an annual event that celebrates the contributions of engineers in our world. The theme for 2023 is Creating the Future, which focuses on the way engineers create solutions that impact future generations.
We sat down with a Groov-Pin engineer and project manager, Mark Rotondo, to talk about his engineering path:
How did you get interested in engineering?
I was always good at math and science, and my dad is an engineer. So, it was a career path that naturally made sense to me.
Tell us about your school and career path.
I graduated top of my class from the University of Rhode Island (URI). I started in the engineering program and picked Industrial and Systems Engineering because I liked that industrial engineers had a focus on improvement rather than design.
The industrial side is more of the business end and managing processes, which I liked better than just designing. It’s a different aspect.
What are your responsibilities at Groov-Pin?
Here at Groov-Pin, we’re a make-to-order shop, so we get new or existing jobs and have to make them to the customer’s requirements. We have to look at everything – blueprints, material, and finish requirements, and work with internal teams to essentially figure out how we’re going to make what the customer wants on our equipment.
Day to day, I have different responsibilities that include determining material, general dimensions and tolerancing, reviewing specifications, and figuring out what equipment we need or gauges we need to inspect the finished parts.
What skills are necessary for someone in your position?
You have to be good at math, science, and physics because all of that comes into play at some point. You also need project management skills and the ability to break down and organize tasks. A lot of things look impossible, but once you can break them down into bite-sized pieces, you learn to see patterns.
What’s the most challenging part of being an engineer?
As an industrial engineer, I work with other people a lot more than you would think. It’s not all theoretical, you’re bringing things to life on the manufacturing floor and that takes a village. I’m not just sitting at my computer, designing things.
At Groov-Pin, everything is manufactured custom and high mix, high volume. This is the most complex type of work you could ask for as an industrial engineer. It’s both really interesting and challenging!
Do you have advice for younger people who want to be engineers?
Have fun! There are a lot of numbers and analysis involved, but you have to enjoy it while you’re doing it. You have to find a way to have fun.