CDME Internship Model Worth Replicating
The Center for Design and Manufacturing Excellence participated in a co-located internship program funded by the Ohio Department of Higher Education and managed by the Ohio Manufacturing Institute. The reported outcomes reach beyond the program, with positive impacts for both advanced manufacturing firms, students and staff mentors. The report outlines how the CDME internship model can be implemented at other industry-facing research centers at Ohio State and other higher education institutions to better serve industry.
In a report detailing the results of the internship program prepared by Kathryn Kelley, Managing Director - Ohio Manufacturing Institute, the program was designed "to allow co-located interns to gain hands-on experience working with faculty mentors and manufacturers on real-world advanced manufacturing projects with defined goals, timelines and deliverables."
"Based on the number and quality of existing student industry projects conducted by Ohio State's Center for Design and Manufacturing Excellence (CDME), the OMIC 2.5 team forged an alliance with the center to engage their interns and engineering project managers in the program."
Some highlights excerpted from Kelley's Co-located Internship Analysis:
- This internship program offers manufacturers another entry point to gain access to new product development and technology acceleration.
- Advantages of one-the-job training for students offered a "multiplier effect" on innovation and cultivated a more talented workforce pipeline for industry clients.
- Students learned new technologies quicker
- Students interacted more readily with industry
- Using the model that CDME has developed would be an effective way for research labs at Ohio State to engage with industry
Some benefits for students who participated in the internship program:
- Free access to Moresteam online modules
- Free access to lessons within Six Sigma Green Belt program
- Improved communication practices
- Quality management principles utlized
| "Students who were interviewed about the co-located internship experience at CDME indicated that one of the biggest advantages to the program was that they learned hands-on skills and directly interacted with industry partners with the guidance of CDME staff mentors. One student mentioned that more hands-on training was provided at CDME than in any classroom setting; in addition, this experience could be positively applied to class." -LIFT Ohio Means Internships & Co-ops 2.5 Program - CDME Co-located Internship Analysis prepared by Kathryn Kelley, Ohio Manufacturing Institute |